The Flavor Perception in Coffee Series, a collaborative effort by the Specialty Coffee Association of America and World Coffee Research, is designed to be a tool for the coffee taster. As a tool, it is meant to be intuitive, enjoyable to use, and a benefit to those who seek to analyze and describe coffees. The WCR Lexicon is the largest collaborative research project on coffee’s flavors and aromas ever done. Created at the Sensory Analysis Center at Kansas State University, the lexicon identifies 110 flavor, aroma, and texture attributes present in coffee, and provides references for measuring their intensity. These new posters expand on the popular Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel by including the WCR Lexicon attributes and their references.

The Flavor Perception in Coffee Series, a collaborative effort by the Specialty Coffee Association of America and World Coffee Research, is designed to be a tool for the coffee taster. As a tool, it is meant to be intuitive, enjoyable to use, and a benefit to those who seek to analyze and describe coffees. The WCR Lexicon is the largest collaborative research project on coffee’s flavors and aromas ever done. Created at the Sensory Analysis Center at Kansas State University, the lexicon identifies 110 flavor, aroma, and texture attributes present in coffee, and provides references for measuring their intensity. These new posters expand on the popular Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel by including the WCR Lexicon attributes and their references.

The Flavor Perception in Coffee Series, a collaborative effort by the Specialty Coffee Association of America and World Coffee Research, is designed to be a tool for the coffee taster. As a tool, it is meant to be intuitive, enjoyable to use, and a benefit to those who seek to analyze and describe coffees. The WCR Lexicon is the largest collaborative research project on coffee’s flavors and aromas ever done. Created at the Sensory Analysis Center at Kansas State University, the lexicon identifies 110 flavor, aroma, and texture attributes present in coffee, and provides references for measuring their intensity. These new posters expand on the popular Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel by including the WCR Lexicon attributes and their references.

The Flavor Perception in Coffee Series, a collaborative effort by the Specialty Coffee Association of America and World Coffee Research, is designed to be a tool for the coffee taster. As a tool, it is meant to be intuitive, enjoyable to use, and a benefit to those who seek to analyze and describe coffees. The WCR Lexicon is the largest collaborative research project on coffee’s flavors and aromas ever done. Created at the Sensory Analysis Center at Kansas State University, the lexicon identifies 110 flavor, aroma, and texture attributes present in coffee, and provides references for measuring their intensity. These new posters expand on the popular Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel by including the WCR Lexicon attributes and their references.

The SCA Systems Map arose from the systems change thinking and methodologies that guided the work of the SCA’s Price Crisis Response Initiative. A systems approach shifts the focus from the individual parts of a system to how the parts are organized, recognizing that the interactions of the parts are not static, but dynamic and fluid. This approach also acknowledges that change is non-linear and happens at multiple levels over multiple time scales.

This map outlines the relationships between key actors and actions in the specialty coffee industry, thereby illustrating the complexity of this global value-generating ecosystem, while recognizing previously invisible actors and telling multiple stories.

The central column of the map depicts the most recognizable activities of a specialty coffee value chain. Each activity corresponds to a primary actor, the (English) names of which often mirror the verb–farming is done by farmers, roasting by roasters–but may also involve other actors. Sometimes the same actor is involved in multiple activities.

This handbook is ideal for field use when trying to detect defects in green coffee. Book includes the SCA standard for washed arabica specialty coffee as well as standard classification such as sample weights, table of defect equivalents, moisture content, water activity standard, bean size, defect classification, flavor characteristics, and roasted coffee quaker count standard.

Defect descriptions written and revised by: Standards Committee, Specialty Coffee Association Research Center

SCA Handbook Series: The Washed Arabica Green Coffee Defect Guide, Edition 3, 2018

We are incredibly excited to announce the publication of the new Coffee Sensory and Cupping Handbook by Dr. Mario R. Fernández-Alduenda, Technical Officer at the Specialty Coffee Association, and Peter Giuliano, Executive Director of the Coffee Science Foundation and Chief Research Officer of the Specialty Coffee Association.

The handbook brings together 30 years of scientific advancements in the field of sensory science—which seeks to understand human perceptions of smell, taste, and mouthfeel—and combines these with cupping practices developed by the SCA and new advances in flavor language exemplified by the recent revision of the Coffee Tasters’ Flavor Wheel. It is the most complete and well-researched work on this topic to date, and is intended to provide an approachable and practical guide to the complexity of coffee and sensory science, to any and every coffee professional.

“It is no exaggeration to say the specialty coffee industry is founded on the concept of flavor. And since flavor is perceived by the senses of smell and taste, the concept of sensory evaluation, communication, and understanding is critical to the skill set of any coffee professional and is essential to any coffee business.”

SCA Handbook Series: The Coffee Biology Field Guide, Edition 2.

The Coffee Biology Glossary Handbook is an essential tool to better understanding the language of biology as it pertains to the science behind great coffee. In this 63 page handbook, author Emma Sage provides an in-depth reference guide for all coffee professionals looking to deepen their understanding of the science behind coffee through the terminology used to describe it. Newly added in edition 2: a chapter on plant biology basics as well as an in-depth section on coffee cultivars.

The aim of this handbook is to provide a practical resource for the specialty coffee community while contributing to the body of scientific evidence on coffee freshness of roasted coffee.

In the first part of this handbook, we explore relevant studies in the field of coffee science and recent research conducted by the Coffee Excellence Center at Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW). Their pioneering research sheds further light on identifying physical changes that can be used to quantify freshness. We then move to a complementary set of experimental studies on sensory perception of freshness and subsequent staling in roasted coffee over time. In this illuminating member-driven experiment conducted by the Roasters Guild, we learn about the sensory impacts of packaging and aging coffee.

Our newest education-based poster offers the basics, or ‘Cupping 101’. From defining aromas, to the quality of the body, to the overall scoring, The Cupping Attributes Poster offers everything you need to know about cupping coffee. The Cupping Attributes Poster – SCAA offers the basics for coffee cupping, while providing the perfect gift idea for the coffee lover. From defining aromas, to the quality of the body, to the overall scoring, The Cupping Attributes Poster offers everything you need to know about cupping coffee.
PDF Format
Open on your computer, ipad, or print out in 8.5 x 11 format

This revised SCA Water Quality Handbook, featuring the water chart and practical guide sets out to establish a solid scientific framework for a unified and transparent consensus on how we measure, aim and treat water for coffee. The fulcrum of this discussion revolves particularly around the two core parameters of alkalinity and total hardness. In particular, we will explore the suitability of different water treatments by deepening our understanding around total hardness as a crucially important parameter in the proper extraction of coffee.

Drawing on recent published research and experiments conducted by the Coffee Excellence Center at Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), this handbook serves to promote a spirited exchange of ideas about the water we use for brewing within the specialty coffee community. An updated practical guide and Glossary of terms also offers the user a toolbox of concepts and methods with the aim of making coffee better in the domestic or commercial environment.

Originally published in 1995, one of the most iconic resources in the coffee industry, the Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel, has been the industry standard for over two decades. In 2016, this valuable resource was updated in collaboration with World Coffee Research (WCR). The foundation of this work, the World Coffee Research Sensory Lexicon, is the product of dozens of professional sensory panelists, scientists, coffee buyers, and roasting companies collaborating via WCR and SCA. This is the largest and most collaborative piece of research on coffee flavor ever completed, inspiring a new set of vocabulary for industry professionals.