J&A Report: Regional Focus: Why Single-Origin Coffee Matters

Specialty coffees have been on the rise for coffee connoisseurs. This trend has boosted general knowledge and enthusiasm for single-origin coffees. In this report, J&A briefly provides an introduction of single-origin coffee, outlines the differences in flavor profiles by region, compares single-origin with blended or mixed coffees, and lays out overall trends.

What Is Single-Origin Coffee?

Single-origin coffee comes from a single producer, crop, or region in one country. Single-origin coffee is often called single-farm, single-estate, single-malt, or single-vineyard coffee. Coffees that are not single-origin are blends, which include more than one single-origin coffee. Due to the one-time harvest in the year, single-origins are only available during specific times throughout the year.

Because tracing single-origin coffee leads to a single place, they have a distinct flavor based on the process from growth to processing of the region. Many factors influence flavors including botanical variety, soil, climate, altitude, and shade. Processing methods also vary by region and influence the final taste.

FIGURE 1: Coffee Flavor Profiles Along the Coffee Bean Belt

Single-Origins Versus Blends

Blends are a mix of two or more single-origin coffees from different regions. As such, the tastes vary, and the origin is not as distinguishable. Blends are more flexible in the market but cannot be sold at the same price or compete against single-origin coffees in niche markets. Blends are usually cheaper and found most commonly.

Single-Origins Coffee Taste

Single-origin coffees taste different than blends in the market. Light roasting single-origin coffee develops subtle aromas and distinct tasting notes. The body is more tea-like, and the flavors are fruity and citric rather than nutty or chocolaty.

Single-Origin Coffee Popularity

• In the first half of 2019, the single-origin coffee market resulted in $182 million in grocery sales.
• In 2020, these sales grew by 4%, outpacing the total premium coffee segment.
• Among coffee drinkers between the ages of 25 and 49, 81% are willing to pay 10% more for single-origin coffees, incurring financial rewards for the many smallholder farmers who provide 80% of the world’s coffee beans.

The rising amount of cafés offering alternative brew methods has influenced the current interest in single-origin coffee. Single-origins are particularly popular because of their traceability. The impact of single-origins affects farming methods, and specialty farmers are developing and improving high-quality crops in response to demand. Some farms and processing plants experiment with their varietals or cultivars selection, control over the growth stage, harvesting time and technique, and the milling and processing method.

Outlook for Single-Origin Coffee Moving Forward

This report outlined what specialty single-origin coffee is and what specifics categorize a coffee as such. The difference in atmosphere and preferred processing methods within regions produce many flavors, making single-origin coffees a niche market for coffee connoisseurs. Blends are a mixture of various single-origin coffees that are indistinct from a specific region’s flavor profile. The rising sales and marketing trends for specialty coffees boosted the market for single-origins by 4% in 2020. J&A expects this trend to maintain as the coffee industry raises awareness for farm owners and consciousness towards processing methods.

Source: Counter Culture Coffee, MyRecipes, Perfect Daily Grind, Tripe Pundit, and Forbes

Jahani and Associates Industry Report: Specialty Coffee Testing

The global specialty coffee market grew by 11.8% in 2020 despite drastic contractions in the restaurant and hospitality sector¹. 

The market is set to expand with a compound annual growth rate of 13% between 2021 and 2024. Specialty coffee is an artisan industry with unique scoring methods and flavor profiling designed to test the quality of each cup. This article will provide insights into the industry-standard coffee testing process and the rules and regulations regarding specialty coffee.

Coffee Testing: The Official Process

The Speciality Coffee Association² has set specific guidelines for coffee sampling to ensure uniformity in testing standards. Beans are roasted, sampled, and then assigned a grade (out of 100) based on numerous characteristics and criteria.

Samples are roasted for between eight and 12 minutes and allowed to rest for at least eight hours². The beans must be consumed within 24 hours of roasting. The Speciality Coffee Association makes recommendations for the size of the cup, the pouring method, and the measurements used when testing beans. At least five cups of coffee are prepared from the samples to evaluate the beans’ flavor profile and unique qualities.

Sample Testing Criteria

Scoring is based on 10 defined categories². The fragrance of the beans when pouring, roasting, and tasting is the first noted quality. The sweetness, body, balance, acidity, and the beans’ flavor profile contribute to the majority of the total score.

Homogeneity of the coffee cups, a lack of defects, and the brightness of the coffee are the remaining categories. The overall perception of samples is what grants additional points.

The points in each category are assigned as follows: six points for satisfactory, seven for very good, eight for excellent, nine for outstanding, and 10, being the top score, for perfect.

To be classified as specialty coffee, coffee beans must score 80 or higher ². Beans with a score of 80 – 84.99 are considered very good; between 85 – 89.99 are considered excellent. The top 1% of all specialty coffee beans hold outstanding scores of 90 or above.

Coffee Testing: Flavor Profile

Coffee sampling and tasting notes are subjective, but the coffee tasters’ flavor wheel denotes the standard categories of flavors commonly experienced by coffee drinkers.

The coffee tasters flavor wheel was designed by World Coffee Research in 1995.

Simplified Coffee Tasters’ Flavor Wheel

The wheel outlines nine flavor categories with numerous sub-categories. Desired flavor profiles include fruity, sweet, nutty, and cocoa, and various spices. Unwanted flavors such as chemical or sour notes will lead to lower testing scores. Coffee flavors are uniquely perceived, and individuals with different tasting pallets may pick up specific notes over others. Generally, specialty coffee is roasted in a manner to highlight the natural flavor profile of the beans.

For the accurate comparison of beans, the testing of specialty coffee is a standardized and repeatable system.The quality of specialty-grade coffee beans is verified to ensure consumer confidence. The rise of specialty coffee will continue as global coffee drinkers gain access to new varieties, regions, and flavor profiles.

Sources:

1. finance.yahoo.com/news/research-report-specialty-coffee-shops
2. sca.coffee/research/protocols-best-practices
3. worldcoffeeresearch.org/work/sensory-lexicon/

J&A Report: Coffee Processing: How Washing Affects Taste

The process of washing coffee consists of removing its fruit layers before drying. Coffee is washed with water to remove the mucilage after the beans have been fermented. Mucilage is the soft, sticky layer that is responsible for sweetness.

Washing coffee beans results in a clean flavor profile. It is an ideal processing method for mild and bright brews. Removing as much mucilage as possible produces coffees with a light body and a bright, clean cup. The result is a fruiter, acidic flavor, while unwashed methods yield a heavy, smoother, and sweeter bean.

Washing Coffee Process

Before starting the process, weighing raw coffee cherries is necessary to calculate the yield in volume and weight. Then the pulp is removed using mechanical pulping machines. Inside the machinery, a blade cuts the cherry open, extracts the seeds, and discards the empty cherries. The coffee beans are set aside for mucilage removal.

The mucilage is composed of different sugars and alcohols that affect the flavor of the bean. Leaving this layer entirely or partially intact produces sweeter flavors. After the removal of the mucilage layer, coffee dries to prepare for the roasting process.

FIGURE 1: Coffee Washing Process

Washed Versus Unwashed Coffee Taste

Washed Coffee

Washed coffee has a cleaner taste than unwashed coffee. After the removal of the mucilage layer, the focus is drawn to the actual bean’s flavor. The result is a fruity-tasting coffee with a slight, fresh acidity. Specialty coffee experts prefer clean coffee because its flavor reflects that of the real bean. Properly washed coffee develops fundamental flavors, which vary based on the origin of the coffee bean.

Unwashed Coffee

In unwashed coffee, processing methods alter the taste of the bean. Unwashed coffee has a heavier body; it produces complex and smooth-tasting coffee. Due to its dense body and sweet characteristics, the taste often has hints of berries or tropical fruit.

Other Processing Methods

Honey Process

Central America is known for the use of the honey process. Beans are left with some mucilage when drying. Honeyed coffees taste naturally sweet and bright—a combination of unwashed and washed coffees.

FIGURE 2: Classification of Honey-Processed Coffee

Unwashed Coffee

In unwashed coffee, processing methods alter the taste of the bean. Unwashed coffee has a heavier body; it produces complex and smooth-tasting coffee. Due to its dense body and sweet characteristics, the taste has hints of berries or tropical fruit.

Anaerobic

Anaerobic means without oxygen. Anaerobic coffees are renowned high-end coffees that undergo a process similar to the washed process, but the fermentation happens in sealed tanks. Anaerobic-processed coffees have wild, unexpected, and complex flavor profiles.

Carbonic Maceration

This is similar to the wine-making process; the fermentation of the cherries happens during the harvest in carbonic maceration. The process breaks down the cell walls of the fruit flesh from inside out. Beans get soaked in all the flavors from the mucilage during the fermentation. Carbonic maceration yields varying flavor profiles and aromas like red wine, whisky, banana, and bubblegum.

Giling Basah

The Giling Basah method is typical of Indonesia. Giling Basah is a similar process to the washed process, but the beans are dried partially only. After 35 – 40% drying and elimination of the mucilage, the coffee beans need to be dried again. Giling Basah yields earthy flavors like wood, mustiness, spice, and tobacco.

Washing Coffee Beans to Improve Taste

A variety of flavors result from minor alterations in the duration of each step. Sorting and pulping remain the same for the various methods of the washing process. It is during the fermentation phase when flavor profiles develop, depending on the amount of mucilage left to react on the bean and the duration of fermentation, and form new flavor compounds. After being washed, the coffee beans now have distinct tastes based on these stages, their origin, and their variety.

Sources: Coffee Cartel, Coffee Wiki, Paulig