"Over second and third cups flow matters of high finance, high state, common gossip and low comedy.  Coffee is a social binder, a warmer of tongues, a soberer of minds, a stimulant of wit, a foiler of sleep if you want it so."  ~ Author Unknown

At Coffee Depot, we are passionate about our brews. We know coffee, we guarantee freshness, and we can recommend the perfect cup. You might hear one of our baristas talk about the acidity or body of one of our varieties. What does it all mean? We're here to serve you the perfect cup and help you understand the jargon.

The Essential Coffee Glossary:

Acidity: Usually, the pleasant tartness of a fine coffee. Acidity, along with flavor, aroma, and body, is one of the principle categories used by professional tasters in cupping, or sensory evaluation of coffee. When not used to describe cup characteristics, the term acidity may refer to pH, or literal acidity, or to certain constituents present in coffee that may produce indigestion or nervousness in others. Generally, lighter roasts have higher acidity.

Aftertaste/Finish: The sensory experience of coffee just after it has been swallowed. Some coffees transform from first impression, others stand pat.

Arabica, Coffea Arabica: The earliest cultivated species of coffee tree and still the most widely grown. It produces nearly 70 percent of the world’s coffee, and is dramatically superior in cup quality to the other principal commercial coffee species, Coffea canephora or Robusta.

Aroma: The fragrance produced by hot, freshly brewed coffee. One of the principal categories used in cupping.

Blend: A mixture of two or more single-origin coffees.

Body: The sensation of heaviness, richness, or thickness and associated with texture when one tastes coffee. Body is one of four principal categories used in cupping.

Earthiness: Either a taste defect or desirable exotic taste characteristic depending on who is doing the tasting and how intense the taste in question is. Apparently, earthiness is caused by literal contact of wet coffee with earth during drying. Indonesian coffees are particularly prone to display earthy tones.

Fair Trade: Coffee that has been purchased from farmers at a “fair” price as defined by international agencies.

Flavor: In cupping, what distinguishes the sensory experience of coffee once it’s acidity, body, and aroma have been described.

Organic: Coffee that has been certified by a third-party agency as having been grown and processed without the use of herbicides, pesticides, or similar chemicals.

Robusta, Coffea Canephora: Currently the only significant competitor to Arabica among cultivated coffee species. It is a lower-growing, higher-bearing tree that produces full-bodied yet bland coffee of inferior quality and higher caffeine content than Arabica. It is used as a basis for blends and preground commercial coffee. Robusta coffees are NOT served at Coffee Depot.

Single-origin: Unblended coffee from a single country, region, or crop.

Specialty Coffee: Practice of selling coffees by country of origin, roast, flavoring, or special blend, rather than by brand or trademark.

Varietal Distinction/Characteristic: A cupping term describing positive characteristics that distinguish a given coffee from coffee from other regions. Examples are the winy or berry-like acidity of Kenya or the full, resonant characteristic of our Sumatra.