Coffee Glossary

A process that involves removing part of the mucilage from the coffee cherry before drying, resulting in beans with characteristics between washed and natural processes.

Coffee that is certified as cultivated under tree canopy. Shade-grown coffee ranges in context from rustic to traditional and commercial polyculture, meaning that the growing area may be minimally to significantly cultivated.

The transportation of coffee from producing countries to consumer markets, typically by sea in large containers, ensuring safe and timely delivery.

A term used interchangeably with “microlot,” single-farm lot refers to coffee that comes from a specific farm rather than blended from multiple sources.

Coffee that’s traceable to a single source (growing region, farm, or producer). Single-origin coffee comes with known farming practices, flavor profiles, and a lower carbon footprint due to its more direct route from farm to roaster.

The outermost layer of the coffee cherry that serves to protect the fruit. Also referred to as “parchment,” “silverskin.”

The post-harvest process of manually or mechanically separating coffee beans by size, weight, and quality to ensure consistency and minimize defects.

A term coined by Erna Knutsen in 1974 to denote coffee with a cupping quality score of 80 or higher. Within the specialty range are separate designations of Very Good, Excellent, and Outstanding, as well as separate standards for American and European associations (SCAA and SCAE).

The common name for Coffea stenophylla (also known as “highland” or Sierra Leone coffee due to its southwest African origins), stenophylla coffee was grown and exported to France in the late 19th century but never got the traction Arabica and Robusta did. Stenophylla was “rediscovered” in the wild in 2018, and is considered by some to be a worthwhile investment given the plant’s resistance to the heat brought by climate change.

A large, industrial-grade bag used for storing and transporting bulk quantities of coffee, often holding hundreds of kilos at a time.