Describing what you taste

Start wide, then narrow

Don’t reach for “blueberry” first. Start wide — is it fruity? — then narrow: berry? Then, only if it’s really there, blueberry.

The wheel is built that way

The professional flavor wheel from the SCA and World Coffee Research is laid out the same way, general in the middle and specific at the rim, and you may stop at any ring.

Stop where you’re sure

You’re sure it’s fruity, but no fruit will come. What do you write?

Answer: Fruity. A confident “fruity” beats a guessed “lychee” every time, and the wheel is built so you can stop at any ring.

Climb the ladder

This app’s wheel starts you on one of seven families: fruity, floral, sweet and caramel, chocolate and nut, spice, earthy and roasty, and funky and fermented.

Build the note

Put these four words in the order you’d write them.

1. chocolate and nut
2. nutty
3. hazelnut
4. clear

Family, group, note, then how loud: “chocolate and nut, nutty, hazelnut, clear”. That is a whole tasting note in four words.

How loud, and how good

Which question does each word answer?

• how much
  • faint
  • clear
  • loud
• how good
  • juicy
  • round
  • flat

Faint, clear and loud say how much; juicy, round and flat say how good. The SCA’s newest standard keeps them on two separate forms.

Two forms, two questions

One SCA form records what’s there and how strong. What does the other ask?

Answer: How much you liked it. The newest standard splits the two questions, so “what is in the cup” never gets tangled up with “do I like it”.

Write it down, then peek

In the Notebook, tap the chips that match and put the rest in the notes: the ladder, the intensity, the finish, and what changed as it cooled. Read the roaster’s notes after writing yours, not before.