Coffee Flavor Wheel Explained
How to use coffee flavor wheel to find the best coffee
You may have seen a coffee flavor wheel in a cafe where baristas show customers what to expect from the coffee they order, or you may want to set up a coffee tasting session at home. Flavor notes are a useful guide that can help you find coffees you really like, so it’s really worth getting familiar with them.
If you want to find out more about the coffee flavor wheel, you are in the right place. Here we explain what a coffee taster’s wheel is, how to use it and how to learn identifying flavors in coffee. We hope this helps you find the type of coffee beans you like, notice more and enjoy your coffee more!
What is a Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel?
The coffee flavour wheel is a chart created by the Speciality Coffee Association (SCA). Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel is a standarized method of identifying flavors in coffee. It provides a glossary of flavor terms used based on sensory science to help identify the natural flavours in coffee. The flavor wheel can be used either in coffee tasting at home or professional coffee cupping.
The coffee flavor wheel is based on the sensory lexicon.
What is coffee sensory lexicon?
The coffee sensory lexicon is a taste guide. It identifies over 100 flavors, aromas, and textures occurring in coffee, and provides guidance measuring their intensity. The coffee flavor wheel uses the tastes most relevant in describing coffee.
In the coffee flavor wheel developed by Counter Culture, the main flavor sections are:
- Fruit
- Chocolate
- Sweet
- Grain and cereal
- Roast
- Spice
- Savory
- Vegetal, earthy and herb
- Floral
Coffee flavor wheel free download
Need a flavor wheel PDF to download? You can find a coffee taster’s flavor wheel free download here.
You can also buy a coffee taster’s flavor wheel poster on Amazon.
How to use the coffee flavor wheel?
The flavor wheel breaks down the flavors into general sections located in the center and then divides them into more specific descriptions in the outer parts of the circle. To use the coffee flavor wheel, start from the centre and try to identify the most basic flavors first. Then move outwards and gradually get more specific looking into more nuanced flavors. Doing that, think about what the tastes in coffee you can find. Using the coffee flavor wheel as a prompt.
Start from one general section, then working your way out try to identify more details derived from this section. Next, go back to the centre and do the same starting with another general section. Remember to take notes all the time.
Tips on working with coffee flavor wheel:
- work from the centre outwards
- take notes
- find an area with no other smells for your coffee tasting session
- taste different things, not only different coffees, to develop your ability to identify flavors.
Common questions about identifying flavors in coffee answered
What are flavor notes in coffee?
A flavor note is a small part of a coffee’s flavor. Flavor is very complex, so we describe it as a whole with many flavor notes, not just one word. We are talking about flavors occurring naturally in coffee, not added flavors.
What are the 5 elements of tasting coffee?
Coffee enthusiasts share a common way of describing brewed coffee. We use five main categories of tastes in coffee: sweetness, body, acidity, flavors and finish.
Final note
While tasting is completely subjective, the coffee flavor wheel provides a starting point to coffee flavors evaluation. Always have in mind that the flavor notes you pick up may be completely different for someone else. Apart from getting familiar with the coffee taster’s flavor wheel, you need to be tasting new things to develop your sensory skills.
Positive and negative descriptors may be controversial. E.g. petroleum notes are generally considered undesirable in coffee, but some people like them.