Coffee Flavour Descriptions

You see a lot of terms frequently used to describe coffee, much like wines, and distinguish one origin from another. What do they mean? How can you apply these characteristics to figure out what type of coffee you like? Here's a start:

Positive Connotations

Balanced: well rounded, with no flavour being overpowering

Caramelly: a caramelized taste, almost like melted sugar

Chocolaty: hints of cocoa flavour

Complex: a mixture of sensations and flavours, sometimes only discovered after a couple cups (over a few days)

Dry: some coffees will leave a "dry" sensation in the back of your mouth/throat due to the acidity

Delicate: not overpowering, smooth on the palate

Floral: hints of flowers, an almost aromatic quality

Full-bodied: a weighty mouth feel and flavour, the coffee mixes well when brewed

Fruity: either sweet or citrusy notes

Mellow: smooth, with low acidity

Nutty: hints of roasted nuts present in the flavour

Rich: intense and flavourful, with a prominent taste

Spicy: an exotic flavour, sometimes with earthy characteristics

Sweet: smooth drinking with low acidity

The goal of a coffee roaster is to bring out all the possible flavours in the coffee - not all coffees will have a floral aroma for example, but a bean that can be strongly floral needs to be carefully crafted. Even with over 40 years of roasting experience, a roasting company needs to constantly accommodate for the changes between shipments.

Negative Connotations

Astringency: a slightly chemical-taste, quite dry

Carbony, Charcoaly: void of flavour, overly smokey

Chemical: distinctly chemical, more overpowering than astringent

Dirty: similar to earthy, but overwhelming to the palate

Flat: typically stale, without much flavour or complexity

Harsh: usually used to describe a flavour that doesn't belong, or stands out in a bad way

Muddy: overdone, the flavours are indistinguishable from one another

Rubbery: a sensation of burnt rubber, more common to Robusta beans

Sour: sour or acrid flavour

Thin, Watery: doesn't have body, or texture; watered-down

A lot of the terms associated negatively with a coffee's flavour are due to over-roasting, or improper storage of the coffee beans. We avoid these aspects in our coffees through proper storage off the ground, in our climate-controlled facility.

Depends on Personal Tastes:

Bitter: a commonly mild characteristic of coffee, some people like this aspect stronger than others

Earthy: a hint of dirt, this generally isn't negative unless overpowering - adds good contrast to other flavours in a cup because it's distinguishable

Gamey: a bit of a wild flavour, more common with African coffees

Smokey: a very deep undertone to the coffee with flavour from heavy caramelizing, literally tasting like smoke

The 4 above are highly individual, with some people really enjoying distinctive flavours. Tastes also change over time, so don't be afraid to try something new, or re-try a coffee that you haven't had in some time. You can find even more terms and coffee-specific definitions on our Coffee Terms Page.