What Is Coffee Cupping?

Coffee cupping is a vital practice in the coffee industry, serving as a standardised method for evaluating and understanding the flavour profiles of different coffee beans. Furthermore, this meticulous process allows roasters, buyers, and enthusiasts to discern subtle nuances in aroma, taste, and mouthfeel, ensuring that only the highest quality beans make it to your cup.

This article is the foundational guide to cupping: what it is, how the process works, why roasters do it, and why it matters. For practical at-home guidance, read our guide to coffee tasting at home. For a deep dive into advanced cupping techniques, explore our Mastering Coffee Cupping series.

Definition: What Coffee Cupping Means

Coffee cupping, also known as coffee tasting, is a systematic procedure used to evaluate the characteristics of coffee beans. It involves brewing and tasting coffee in a controlled environment to assess its aroma, flavour, acidity, body, and aftertaste. Moreover, the process is standardised to ensure consistency and accuracy in evaluations, making it easier to compare different coffees side by side.

Cupping was developed in the late 1800s by coffee merchants as a way of running consistency checks. As a result, it has evolved into the universal industry standard for coffee quality assessment, used today by every major coffee producer, importer, roaster, and competition.

The Cupping Process Step by Step

The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) has codified the cupping process into a standardised protocol. Furthermore, while there are slight regional variations, the core method is universal:

1. Preparation

• Bean selection. Choose the coffee beans to be evaluated. Typically, these beans are freshly roasted and ground to a medium-coarse consistency.
• Setup. Arrange the cupping bowls, each containing a precise amount of coffee grounds, usually around 8.25 grams.

The standardised size of a cupping bowl, as defined by the SCA, is typically:

• Volume: 7.5 to 9 ounces (220 to 266 millilitres)
• Diameter: Approximately 3.25 to 3.75 inches (8.25 to 9.5 centimetres)
• Height: Approximately 2 to 2.5 inches (5 to 6.3 centimetres)

These dimensions are designed to ensure consistency in the cupping process, allowing for uniform extraction and evaluation of coffee samples. As a result, the standardised size helps cuppers maintain consistent water-to-coffee ratios and provides a common basis for comparison across different coffees.

2. Fragrance Assessment

Smell the dry coffee grounds to evaluate their initial fragrance. Furthermore, note any distinct aromas that stand out: fruity, nutty, floral, chocolatey, or otherwise. As a result, this first impression is a useful baseline for what the cup might deliver.

3. Brewing

• Hot water addition. Pour hot water (approximately 200°F or 93°C) over the coffee grounds in each bowl, filling them to the brim. Allow the coffee to steep for about 4 minutes.
• Crust formation. A crust of coffee grounds will form on the surface. Moreover, after the steeping period, gently break the crust with a spoon and inhale deeply to assess the aroma. This is the most aromatic moment of the entire cupping.

4. Tasting

• Slurping. Once the coffee has cooled slightly, use a spoon to slurp the coffee. Furthermore, the slurping action aerates the coffee, spreading it across your palate and allowing you to experience its full range of flavours.
• Evaluation. Assess the coffee’s flavour, acidity, body, sweetness, and aftertaste. As a result, taking detailed notes on each characteristic helps you build a vocabulary for what you taste over time.

5. Spitting

Professional cuppers often spit the coffee out after tasting to avoid caffeine overload, especially when evaluating multiple samples. On the other hand, casual cuppers at home usually swallow.

What Cuppers Are Looking For

During a cupping, cuppers evaluate several specific qualities. Furthermore, each one tells a different part of the coffee’s story:

• Fragrance. The smell of the dry coffee grounds. Indicates roast level and aromatic potential.
• Aroma. The smell of the brewed coffee. Reveals processing, variety, and origin character.
• Acidity. The bright, lively quality in the cup. For more, read our guide on coffee acidity.
• Body. The weight or texture of the coffee in the mouth. Ranges from light and tea-like to heavy and syrupy.
• Sweetness. Natural sweetness from sugars in the bean. For more, read our guide on what makes coffee sweet.
• Flavour. The specific tasting notes, such as berry, citrus, chocolate, or florals.
• Aftertaste. What remains in the mouth after swallowing or spitting. Furthermore, a good aftertaste lingers pleasantly.
• Balance. How harmoniously all the qualities work together.

In addition, cuppers score these qualities on a 100-point scale set by the SCA. As a result, only coffees scoring above 80 are considered specialty grade.

Why Roasters Conduct Cupping

Cupping is not just an art. It is also a tool for making business decisions. Roasters cup coffee for four main reasons:

1. Quality Control

Cupping allows roasters to maintain consistent quality by identifying any defects or inconsistencies in the coffee beans. Furthermore, regular cupping sessions ensure that only the best beans are selected for roasting and sale. As a result, you can drink Routes coffee with confidence that every batch has been tasted before it leaves the roastery.

2. Blending

Roasters use cupping to create and refine coffee blends. By understanding the flavour profiles of different beans, they can combine them to achieve a desired taste profile that appeals to consumers. Moreover, this is how blends like our Tutti Frutti Co Fermented Premium Blend are developed and refined.

3. Roast Profiling

The cupping process helps roasters determine the optimal roast level for each type of bean. Furthermore, by tasting coffee at various roast levels, they can identify the roast that best highlights the beans’ unique characteristics. As a result, the same green coffee can be roasted differently depending on what cupping reveals.

4. Sourcing

When sourcing new coffee beans, roasters rely on cupping to evaluate potential purchases. As a result, they can confidently select beans that meet their quality standards and flavour preferences. Moreover, this is how Routes ensures the green beans we buy match the kinds of coffee we want to roast.

Why Coffee Cupping Matters

Cupping is the foundation of specialty coffee. Without it, the industry could not consistently produce, trade, or roast coffee at the quality level we expect today. Furthermore, cupping matters for four interconnected reasons:

• Consistency. Cupping provides a consistent method for evaluating coffee, allowing reliable comparisons between different beans and roasts. Moreover, this consistency is crucial for maintaining quality across batches and origins.
• Transparency. The cupping process offers transparency in the coffee industry. As a result, it enables clear communication about quality and characteristics between producers, roasters, and consumers.
• Education. Cupping is an educational tool for both professionals and enthusiasts. Furthermore, it helps individuals develop their palate and understanding of coffee, fostering a deeper appreciation for the complexity and diversity of coffee flavours.
• Market differentiation. High-quality coffee is often marketed based on its unique flavour profile, which is determined through cupping. As a result, this differentiation helps consumers make informed choices and supports the premium pricing of exceptional coffees.

How Cupping Connects Everything in Coffee

Cupping is the connective tissue of the coffee world. Producers cup their own coffee at origin to assess quality and improve processing. Importers cup samples to make purchasing decisions. Roasters cup green and roasted samples to dial in roast profiles. Furthermore, baristas cup to refine espresso recipes and competition lots. As a result, every link in the coffee supply chain uses cupping to communicate quality.

This is why understanding cupping deepens your appreciation for specialty coffee. Moreover, the more you know about how coffee is evaluated, the more you can taste in every cup.

Going Further with Cupping

If this introduction has piqued your interest, there are several next steps depending on your goals:

• Want to cup at home? Read our practical guide to coffee tasting at home.
• Want to go deeper into the science? Our Mastering Coffee Cupping series covers sensory science, roast chemistry, and brewing mastery.
• Want to understand how taste works? Read our guide on taste and sensory receptors in coffee.
• Want to build a tasting vocabulary? Explore our flavour cluster, which covers fruity, sour, sweet, floral, and bitter notes in depth.

Cup Routes Coffee at Home

The best way to understand cupping is to taste widely. A Routes Coffee subscription delivers a rotating selection of single origins and blends, each cupped and refined at our Oxford roastery. Furthermore, every bag arrives with detailed tasting notes, so you can compare your own cupping experience to ours.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is coffee cupping?

Coffee cupping is the standardised method used in the coffee industry to evaluate the aroma, flavour, acidity, body, and aftertaste of coffee. Furthermore, it allows roasters, buyers, and enthusiasts to assess coffee quality consistently and objectively. As a result, every specialty coffee you drink has almost certainly been cupped multiple times along its journey.

Why do roasters cup coffee?

Roasters cup coffee for four main reasons: quality control, blending, roast profiling, and sourcing. As a result, regular cupping ensures consistency, helps refine roast profiles, and allows roasters to confidently buy and combine coffees that match their flavour goals.

Can anyone cup coffee, or is it just for professionals?

Anyone can cup coffee. While the standard cupping protocol comes from the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA), the basic process can be done at home with simple equipment. Furthermore, cupping is a great way for any coffee drinker to develop their palate and explore different beans.

What ratio is used in coffee cupping?

The Specialty Coffee Association cupping standard is 8.25g of coffee per 150ml of water, which is roughly a 1:18 ratio. Furthermore, this ratio produces a slightly weaker cup than typical brewing, which makes flaws and subtleties easier to detect.

Why do cuppers slurp loudly?

Slurping aerates the coffee, spreading it across the entire palate at once. As a result, cuppers can taste the full range of flavours and aromas in a single sip. Moreover, slurping also pushes aromatic compounds up into the nasal passage, which is where most of the flavour perception actually happens.

How long does a cupping session take?

A typical cupping session takes 30 to 60 minutes from start to finish. Furthermore, this includes 4 minutes of steeping plus time for tasting as the coffee cools, which is when many of the deeper flavours emerge.

Do you have to spit the coffee?

No. Professional cuppers spit when evaluating many samples in one session to avoid caffeine overload. On the other hand, home cuppers usually swallow. Furthermore, neither approach affects the accuracy of your tasting.

Related Reading

• Routes Coffee, Guide to Coffee Tasting at Home
• Routes Coffee, Mastering Coffee Cupping Part 1: Foundations of Sensory Science
• Routes Coffee, Mastering Coffee Cupping Part 2: Roast Chemistry and Processing Signatures
• Routes Coffee, Mastering Coffee Cupping Part 3: From Sensory Memory to Brewing Mastery
• Routes Coffee, Understanding Taste and Sensory Receptors in Coffee
• Routes Coffee, Why Coffee Tastes the Way It Does
• Routes Coffee, What Is Specialty Coffee and Why Is It Important?

Sources & Further Reading

• Specialty Coffee Association, cupping protocol and grading standards.
• Coffee Quality Institute, Q-grader training and methodology.
• Rivera, J. A. Roast Magazine, sensory science and coffee evaluation.
• Perfect Daily Grind, beginner’s guides to cupping.