What is A Specialty Coffee, what are Its Standards?

Posted by Mudassar Ali on January 25th, 2018

When you have delved into coffee a bit more, you will undoubtedly have heard the term 'specialty coffee.' Specialty coffee is a well-known term in the coffee world and stands for coffee beans of the very best quality.
In this article, we will explain what coffee beans have to meet to get the specialty coffee stamp. So, keep reading if you want to make the perfect cup of coffee at home.

Why is specialty coffee conceived?
Specialty coffee characterizes only a small proportion of the total coffee production worldwide. So, you can check that your specialty coffee has a higher price tag.
The idea behind was that you pay more money for specialty coffee, but also know that you get good coffee. A combination that is not always self-evident.

The guidelines for specialty coffee
The SCA (specialty coffee association) has drawn up specific instructions for specialty coffee. To be able to carry the title specialty coffee, the coffee will have to satisfy an intense aromatic taste.
These aromatic flavors are only achieved with arabica coffee and often only occur in microclimates.
The flavors of the coffee bean are very dependent on the areas where the coffee plant has grown. Each country is unique and therefore produces coffee beans with unique taste characteristics. This means that only a small part of all coffee beans is ultimately suitable for specialty coffee.
In total there are 100 million people who are financially dependent on the production of coffee. Just like the entire coffee market, specialty coffee is growing. More and more coffee drinkers are familiar with specialty coffee and are prepared to deposit extra money for high-quality coffee beans.
To come to specialty coffee, everyone in the production chain has to perform optimally: production, burning and coffee making, something the barista is responsible for.

11 criteria that specialty coffee has to meet
11 standards have been drawn up which specialty coffee has to meet. These requirements are recognized worldwide because they have been drawn up by SCA (a recognized association that guarantees the quality of coffee worldwide). During the cupping (testing and judging) of the coffee, the 11 criteria are evaluated:

Fragrance/aroma: the smell of the ground coffee (fragrance) and the smell of the ground coffee after it has come into contact with hot water (aroma).
Taste: in this case, it concerns the general taste of the coffee (experienced between the first impression and the aftertaste).
Aftertaste: the taste that lingers in your mouth after drinking the coffee. How long does the aftertaste last and how intense is it?
Acidity: clarity of the coffee, which tells something about the sweetness of the coffee and the fruity character.
Body: how does the coffee feel in the mouth? A full body is similar to milk and a thin body of water.
Balance: how is the balance between the different taste characteristics? Does an acidic or bitter taste prevail or are they well balanced?
Sweetness: to what extent are sweet flavors present? Sweet flavors are similar to fruity flavors.
Clean cup: refers to the impressions of the intake until the aftertaste of the coffee.
Uniformity: these criteria relate to the consistency of the coffee taste when multiple trays of coffee are made.
Overall: refers to the total experience that is experienced while drinking the coffee.
Defects: this relates to the negative tastes that detract from the quality of the coffee.
One criteria outweigh the other. Eventually, the coffee is judged on these 11 principles and can achieve a score of 100. Coffee rated with 90 to 94 points is called premium specialty coffee and coffee from 95 to 100 points super premium specialty coffee. In order to get you drip coffee makers, please visit our site: CoffeeCorner.com