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Tasting Terms

While tasting the coffee, you should try to discern whether the flavour, body, acidity and aroma of the coffee is pleasant, or unpleasant. Here are the criteria that most tasters use to judge coffee:
  • Acidity: Acidity is a desirable characteristic in coffee. It is the sensation of dryness that the coffee produces under the edges of your tongue and on the back of your palate. The role acidity plays in coffee is not unlike its role as related to the flavour of wine. It provides a sharp, bright, vibrant quality. With out sufficient acidity, the coffee will tend to taste flat. Acidity should not be confused with sour, which is an unpleasant, negative flavour characteristic.
  • Aroma: Aroma is a sensation which is difficult to separate from flavour. Without our sense of smell, our only taste sensations would be: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. The aroma contributes to the flavours we discern on our palates. Subtle nuances, such as "floral" or "winy" characteristics, are derived from the aroma of the brewed coffee.
  • Body: Body is the feeling that the coffee has in your mouth. It is the viscosity, heaviness, thickness, or richness that is perceived on the tongue. A good example of body would be that of the feeling of whole milk in your mouth, as compared to water. Your perception of the body of a coffee is related to the oils and solids extracted during brewing. Typically, Indonesian coffees will possess greater body than South and Central American coffees. If you are unsure of the level of body when comparing several coffees, try adding an equal amount of milk to each. Coffees with a heavier body will maintain more of their flavor when diluted.
  • Flavour: Flavour is the overall perception of the coffee in your mouth. Acidity, aroma, and body are all components of flavour. It is the balance and homogenization of these senses that create your overall perception of flavour. The following are typical flavour characteristics:

General flavour characteristics

  • Richness—refers to body and fullness
  • Complexity— the perception of multiple flavours
  • Balance— the satisfying presence of all the basic taste characteristics where no one over-powers another

Typical specific desirable flavour characteristics

  • Bright, Dry, Sharp, or Snappy— (typical of Central American coffees)
  • Caramelly —candy like or syrupy
  • Chocolaty— an aftertaste similar to unsweetened chocolate or vanilla
  • Delicate— a subtle flavor perceived on the tip of the tongue (typical of washed New Guinea arabica)
  • Earthy— a soily characteristic (typical of Sumatran coffees)
  • Fragrant— an aromatic characteristic ranging from floral to spicy
  • Fruity— an aromatic characteristic reminiscent of berries or citrus
  • Mellow— a round, smooth taste, typically lacking acid
  • Nutty— an aftertaste similar to roasted nuts
  • Spicy— a flavour and aroma reminiscent of spices
  • Sweet— free of harshness
  • Wildness— a gamey flavour which is not usually considered favourable but is typical of Ethiopian coffees
  • Winy— an aftertaste reminiscent of well-matured wine (typical of Kenyan and Yemeni coffees)

Typical specific undesirable flavour characteristics

  • Bitter— perceived on the back of the tongue, usually a result of over roasting
  • Bland— neutral in flavor
  • Carbony— burnt charcoaly overtones
  • Dead— see "flat"
  • Dirty— a mustiness reminiscent of eating dirt
  • Earthy— see "dirty"
  • Flat— lack of acidity, aroma, and aftertaste
  • Grassy— an aroma and flavor reminiscent of freshly cut lawn
  • Harsh— a caustic, clawing, raspy characteristic
  • Muddy— thick and dull
  • Musty— a slight stuffy or mouldy smell (not always a negative characteristic when in aged coffees)
  • Rioy— a starchy texture similar to water which pasta has been cooked in.
  • Rough— a sensation on the tongue reminiscent of eating salt
  • Rubbery— an aroma and flavour reminiscent of burnt rubber (typically found only in dry-processed robustas)
  • Soft— see "bland"
  • Sour— tart flavors reminiscent of unripe fruit
  • Thin— lacking acidity, typically a result of under brewing
  • Turpeny— turpentine-like in flavour
  • Watery— a lack of body or viscosity in the mouth
  • Wild— gamey characteristics

Coffee History and Related Innovations

Espresso Machines

In 1822, the first espresso machine was made in France. In 1933, Dr. Ernest Illy invented the first automatic espresso machine. However, the modern-day espresso machine was created by Italian Achilles Gaggia in 1946. Gaggia invented a high pressure espresso machine by using a spring powered lever system. The first pump driven espresso machine was produced in 1960 by the Faema company.

Melitta Bentz

Melitta Bentz was a housewife from Dresden, Germany, who invented the first coffee filter. She was looking for a way to brew the perfect cup of coffee with none of the bitterness caused by overbrewing. Melitta Bentz decided to invent a way to make a filtered coffee, pouring boiling water over ground coffee and having the liquid be filtered, removing any grinds. Melitta Bentz experimented with different materials, until she found that her son's blotter paper used for school worked best. She cut a round piece of blotting paper and put it in a metal cup.
 
On June 20th, 1908, the coffee filter and filter paper were patented. On December 15th, 1908, Melitta Bentz and her husband Hugo started the Melitta Bentz Company. The next year they sold 1200 coffee filters at the Leipziger fair in Germany. The Mellitta Bentz Company also patented the filter bag in 1937 and vacuumpacking in 1962.

James Mason

James Mason invented the coffee percolator on December 26, 1865.

Instant Coffee

In 1901, just-add-hot water "instant" coffee was invented by Japanese American chemist Satori Kato of Chicago. In 1906, English chemist George Constant Washington, invented the first mass-produced instant coffee. Washington was living in Guatemala and at the time when he observed dried coffee on his coffee carafe, after experimenting he created "Red E Coffee" - the brand name for his instant coffee first marketed in 1909. In 1938,  Nescafe or freeze-dried coffee was invented.

Other Trivia

On May 11, 1926, "Maxwell House Good to the last drop" was trademark registered
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