The taste of the coffee can be hard to describe if you do not know the correct way of describing it. Knowing how to taste coffee can be a very important tool when you want to pick the right bean or the most flavourful brew. This can also help you identify any unique flavour that the coffee might have, allowing you to determine your coffee choice. Here are the 5 essentials on how to taste coffee properly:
Essentials of Coffee Tasting
For the purpose of learning how to taste, we have divided the essentials into 5 taste categories. With this article, you will be able to understand the contribution that each category makes and see how that helps build a unique flavour profile for each type of coffee!
You might have considered coffee to be bitter, but the better the coffee is, the sweeter it is supposed to taste. The presence of sweetness can easily help you choose a coffee type.
While drinking coffee, notice the kind of sweetness that you taste. Is it similar to fruit? Honey? Or caramel? For example, coffee from East Africa might have sweetness similar to light honey, while Colombian coffee can give you that hint of butterscotch.
These flavours will be detected by your sensory organs and help save them in your memory so that when you taste a similar sweetness profile, you will be able to see what coffee you are drinking.
This is determined by how the coffee feels on your tongue. This is, by far, the easiest quality that you can detect. Notice whether your coffee feels light like milk or does it feel heavy like cream? Once you are able to master that, your coffee tasting experience will get even better.
A coffee’s acidity does not just add brightness to it, but it also adds a whole new dimension to the flavour profile. Usually, the pH level of different coffees remains stable across the spectrum, but for this particular flavour category, we take a look at the type of acidity. For example, does the coffee taste tart or does it have a tang? Is the acidic flavour muted or can it be easily detected?
The way you roast your coffee can have great effects on its acidic flavour. The darker the roasting, the less acidic it will be.
If you have recently started to drink coffee, then all coffee flavours may taste the same to you. But as you gradually start drinking it regularly, you will notice different flavours. Coffees have had hints of toasted nuts, notes of fruity flavour, or even have a floral touch. Recall all the flavours you have tasted in your life and see which one tastes similar to the coffee that you are drinking.
Last but not the least, see how the coffee feels on your tongue even after 5 minutes after you sip it. Take a look at how long the flavour stays and feel the texture. Is the texture rough or does it feel smooth?
Conclusion
If this seems like a lot to you, there is no need to worry. Practice makes you better. So keep on drinking those cups of coffee and add the flavours to your sensory memory!