Taster’s Dictionary
| Acidity | High acid (or acidity) coffees have a sharp, vibrant quality related to the flavor of coffee that gives them snap, verve, and liveliness in the cup. |
| Aftertastes | Lingering taste sensation on the palate after the coffee is swallowed. |
| Aroma | Refers to the wonderful odor of the prepared coffee beverage. It may range from delicate to strong,and distinctive as to flavor. |
| Baked | A taste description given to under-roasted coffee, or coffee roasted too slowly at too low a temperature, so that the flavor is underdeveloped. See Green. |
| Bitter | A harsh, unpleasant taste detected on the back of the tongue. Commonly found in over-extracted brews as well as in over-roasted coffees. |
| Burnt | A bitter flavor commonly found in dark-roasted coffees. |
| Buttery | Said of an oily body or texture in the mouth; denotes full and rich flavor. |
| Cinnamon | Underlying spice accent sometimes detected in the aroma of fine coffee; a flavor nuance. (Also, a very light roast). |
| Clean | Characteristic used to describe fine coffees; associated with washed coffees. |
| Cocoa | Underlying spice accent sometimes detected in the aroma of fine coffee; a flavor nuance. (Also, a characteristic sweetish smell of completely stale roasted coffee; see Stale.) |
| Dirty | An undesirable unclean smell and taste; slight to pronounced. Dirty implies a defect, such as mustiness or earthy. |
| Earthy | A highly undesirable dirt odor and flavor taint picked up by the coffee when dried on the ground. |
| Flat | A dull, lifeless quality due largely to lack of acidity. |
| Flavor | (a) The total impression of aroma, acidity, and body; if the impression is strong and pleasant, the coffee is described as flavorful and ranked on a scale from poor, fair, good, to fine-flavored.
(b) Specific taste flavors may suggest spices, chocolate, nuts, leather, or something less complimentary: straw, grass, earth, rubber, etc. |
| Fresh | Opposite of stale; applies to roasted coffee beans. |
| Fruity | A flavor taint said to come from overripe fruit pulp. |
| Grassy | A flavor taint from use of swamp water for washing, or from improper drying. |
| Green | (a) A flavor taint found in coffee harvested before fully ripe.
(b) Characteristic taste of under-roasted coffee. |
| Hard | Opposite of sweet or mild; also harsh. |
| Harsh | Having a crude, raw taste;used to describe Brazils and robustas. |
| Hidy | Smell of hides from improper storage. |
| Mellow | Full, well-balanced, satisfying coffee; implies low to medium acidity. |
| Musty | A smell and taste taint caused by mildew; similar to earthy. |
| Natural | Aroma and flavor characteristics of coffees processed by the dry method. Typically, these are more bland than washed coffees and may lack clarity of flavor and pointed acidity; some, however, may have intense complex flavors and full,thick body. |
| Neutral | A characterless, flavorless coffee, inoffensive to insipid; without virtue, but without defect;safe for economical blending. |
| Nutty | (a) Often said of coffees that lack coffee flavor.
(b) A specific flavor nuance, suggesting almonds and the like. |
| Past-croppish | Not to be confused with stale. Term used to describe coffees that have deteriorated in the green state before roasting and thus taste as though they were from a past crop. |
| Rancid | Extremely sour, unpleasant. |
| Rio-y | A harsh, heavy medicinal flavor typical of the poorest grades of Brazils but encountered in other coffees as well; said to be caused by allowing berries to dry on the tree. |
| Rubbery | Burnt-rubber odor characteristic of Robusta. |
| Soft | Low-acid coffees are described as soft, mellow, and sweet. |
| Sour | Not to be confused with acidity.A distinctly rand or rancid taste is a defect, often due to improper processing. |
| Spicy | Said of fine aroma or flavor suggestive of spices. |
| Stale | Roasted coffee that has faded in quality after excessive exposure to air. |
| Strong | A term used to indicate intensity of either defects or virtues (as in ‘a strong, sour taste’ or ‘a strong, fine aroma’). A strong-flavored coffee is not necessarily a fine-flavored coffee. |
| Sweet | Said of a smooth, palatable coffee, free from taints or harshness; also soft. |
| Thin | Said of coffees with watery body and lack of flavor. |
| Wild | Coffees with extreme flavor characteristics. These characteristics may be intriguing or undesirable. |
| Winy | Sometimes used to indicate thick body and mellow quality, but also used to denote a sappy, vinous acidity; a characteristic of certain fine coffees. |
| Woody | A flavor taint caused by over-lengthy storage in warm, moist wood sheds. |