SCAA Coffee Cup Evaluation system of American Fine Coffee Association

As one of the most authoritative professional coffee institutions in the world, the professional coffee cup evaluation system established by SCAA is used as a collection of methods, processes and standards for coffee quality evaluation. Although most cafes in China are not suitable to use this method for cup evaluation, some methods and details in its process may be helpful for us to understand the taste of coffee. After a lot of effort, I finally finished the translation of this material, which was limited to the lack of English proficiency, some of which were improperly translated, but I still posted it to share it with coffee friends. I also hope that more professional friends can help correct the improper translation, in order to improve, thank you very much!

Scaa Coffee Cup Evaluation system (cupping system)

Objective:

The figures and Standards Committee of the American Fine Coffee Association recommends these standards for coffee cup reviews. These guidelines will ensure that the quality of most coffee is accurately evaluated.

Necessary equipment

Essential for baking

Environment

Cup review is necessary.

Special roaster for cup evaluation

Good lighting

Balance (specification)

Agtron baking tester or other color measuring instrument

Clean, no intrusive odor

Cup comment cup (with lid)

Bean grinder

Cup review table

Cup comment spoon

Be quiet

Hot kettle

A comfortable temperature

Tables and other textual materials

Restrict interference (prohibit telephone calls, etc.)

Pencil and clipboard

* Cupping glasses / SCAA recommends a 5-or 6-ounce Manhattan or 'Rocks' glass. The porcelain soup bowl of 175-225ml is also fine. The cup must be clean, odorless and kept at room temperature. The lid can be of any material. * all cups must be of the same capacity, specification and material.

Sample preparation Sample Preparation

Baking Roasting

Sample beans must be within 24 hours of baking and at least 8 hours after baking. The baking standard of sample beans should be from light to light-medium, which is similar to that of raw beans 58 and coffee powder 63 with an error of + /-1 (the standard specification is 55-60 or SCAA agtron#55).

Baking should be done within 8 to 12 minutes without obvious blackheads or scorched beans.

Sample beans should be cooled quickly with cold air (not with water) after baking. When the sample beans are cooled to room temperature (75 ℉ or 20 ℃), they should be stored in a sealed box or bag to reduce air contact and prevent contamination.

Sample beans should be kept in a cool place, but not in the refrigerator or frozen.

Specification and quantity

The appropriate ratio is to use 150ml water for every 8.25g of coffee powder, which is in line with the median value permitted by the golden cup "golden cup" formula. Determine the amount of water injected into the cup and adjust the amount of coffee so that the error is less than 0.25 grams.

Preparation for cup review

Prepare the coffee beans and grind them before the start of the cup review. the ground coffee powder should not be placed for more than 15 minutes before soaking. If this is not guaranteed, cover the coffee powder and soak in water within 30 minutes after grinding. Sample beans should measure the weight of their raw beans to ensure that they meet the above coffee capacity. Coffee grind is slightly thicker than conventional filter coffee, with 70% to 75% of coffee powder passing the American standard No. 20 screen. Prepare at least 5 cups of each to ensure the consistency of the sample.

Before grinding each kind of raw beans, grind a certain amount of coffee beans to clean the grinder, and then grind the required capacity of each cup one by one to ensure the consistency of each cup. After grinding, pour the coffee powder into the cup and close the lid immediately.

Water injection Pouring

The water for cup evaluation should be kept clean and odorless, but not distilled or softened. The ideal total dissolved solid is 125-175ppm, but keep it between 100ppm and 250ppm.

The water should be freshly boiled and maintained at a temperature of about 200 ℉ (93 ℃) during brewing. * the water temperature should also be adjusted according to altitude.

Hot water should be poured directly onto the coffee and reach the edge of the cup to ensure that all coffee powder is soaked. Let the coffee powder soak for 3-5 minutes before the cup review begins.

Sample evaluation

Sensory assessment has the following purposes:

Determine the actual sensory differences between different samples

Describe the flavor of sample beans

Determine the tendency of the product

No test can do all of this, but they all have something in common. It is important for cup reviewers to know the purpose of the evaluation and the use of the results. This cup evaluation scheme determines the cup reviewer's perception of quality. The quality of the specific flavor characteristics will be analyzed, using the existing experience of the cup reviewer, and then the sample will be evaluated according to the numerical evaluation. The scores of different samples can be compared, and the sample beans with high score should be obviously better than the sample beans with low score. The cup evaluation form provides a way to record the important flavor characteristics of coffee.

Fragrance/Aroma dry / wet flavor Flavor, aftertaste Aftertaste, acidity Acidity, alcohol Body, equilibrium Balance, consistency Uniformity, purity Clean Cup, sweetness Sweetness, defect Defects, and overall evaluation Overall. The specific flavor characteristics reflect the cup reviewers' positive evaluation of coffee quality, while the defect is the negative score that reflects the bad flavor of coffee. The overall evaluation score is based on the cup reviewer's personal feeling of flavor, which reflects the personal feelings of the cup reviewer as an individual. This is a quality rating scale from 6 to 9 based on the 16-point scale with an increment of 0.25. These grades are:

Quality scale Quality Scale

6.00-Good

good

7.00-Very Good

Good

8.00-Excellent

Excellent

9.00-Outstanding

Excellent

6.25

7.25

8.25

9.25

6.5

7.5

8.5

9.5

6.75

7.75

8.75

9.75

Theoretically, the above measurement level should range from a minimum of 0 to a maximum of 10 points. If the score of the sample bean is lower than the lowest score in the above table, it is the quality below the high-quality grade.

The evaluation procedure / should first evaluate the baking color of the sample beans visually. This will be recorded and may be used as a reference when evaluating specific flavor characteristics below. As the coffee cools and cools, it will lead to changes in coffee flavor, and the following evaluation of various characteristics is also based on this.

Step 1: dry incense / wet incense Fragrance/Aroma

Within 15 minutes after the sample beans are ground, open the lid and evaluate the dry aroma of the coffee by smelling the coffee powder.

After injecting hot water, keep the coffee surface in the cup unbroken and rest for 3 to 5 minutes. Gently touch the surface of the coffee with a long spoon 3 times to break the surface, and gently stir to let the wet fragrance of the coffee pass through the long spoon. Record the score of dry / wet incense.

Step 2: flavor, aftertaste, acidity, mellowness, and balance.

When the coffee liquid is cooled to 160 ℉ (71 ℃), the coffee liquid is tested within 8 to 10 minutes after the injection. Quickly sip the coffee liquid into the mouth, so that the coffee liquid inhaled in the mouth can touch the mouth more fully, especially the upper jaw and tongue surface. Because the coffee vapor emitted to the throat and nasal cavity at this temperature has the greatest intensity, the flavor and aftertaste should be evaluated at this time.

As coffee continues to cool (160℉-140℉, 71 ℃-60 ℃), acidity, mellowness, and balance will continue to be measured. Balance is the cup reviewer's evaluation of the overall harmony of flavor, aftertaste, acidity and mellowness. As the coffee cools, cup reviewers will evaluate different characteristics several times (2 or 3 times) at different temperatures. Mark each score according to the 16-grade scale, and if there is a change (if the sample improves or decreases with the temperature), re-mark the score on the horizontal score line and draw an arrow to point to the final score.

Step 3: sweetness, consistency, purity

Sweetness, consistency, and purity were measured when the coffee solution dropped to room temperature (100 ℉, below 38 ℃). For these features, cup reviewers can give a score of 2 points for each feature of each cup (the highest score is 10 points).

When the coffee drops to 70 ℉ (21 ℃), the cup review should be ended, and the overall score will be given by the cup reviewer according to the comprehensive evaluation of the above characteristics.

Step 4 score Step# 4-Scoring

After all the evaluations are completed, all scores will be added up and the total score will be recorded in the handwritten column on the right.

Single part scoring Individual Component Scores

The feature score is recorded in the appropriate table of the cup evaluation table. For some positive features, there are some bi-directional marking meters.

The longitudinal scale is used to record the performance intensity of perceptual features and serve as a mark recorded by cup reviewers. The horizontal scale is used to evaluate the cup reviewer's relative cognition of perceptual characteristics, which is based on the cup reviewer's empirical understanding of the sample.

Each feature is described in more detail:

Dry / wet aroma characteristics include dry aroma (which refers to the dry powder aroma of coffee after grinding) and wet aroma (which refers to the aroma of coffee powder soaked in water). The cup evaluation process can be divided into three steps: (1) smell the aroma of coffee powder placed in the cup before filling with water; (2) smell the aroma released from the coffee surface after soaking; (3) smell the aroma of coffee when it is soaked. A specific description of the aroma can be recorded on the horizontal line under "qualities", while the dry aroma, the broken coffee surface and the wet aroma during soaking will be recorded on the vertical 5-point meter. The final score will reflect the tendency of dry / wet fragrance of sample beans.

L flavor / flavor reflects the main characteristics of coffee, is the "backbone" characteristics, including from the initial aroma and acidity to the final aftertaste. It is a comprehensive expression of all taste sensations from the mouth to the nasal cavity. The evaluation of flavor should be carried out by sipping coffee in order to fully mobilize the taste organs to participate in the evaluation, and combined with the evaluation of the intensity, quality and complexity of various aromas and flavors that make up the flavor.

Aftertaste / aftertaste refers to the length of a good flavor (aroma and taste) that emanates from the upper jaw or remains in the mouth when the coffee is spit or swallowed. If the aftertaste is short or unpleasant, you will get a low score.

L acidity / pleasant acidity is generally called "brightness", and unpleasant acidity is generally referred to as "sour". At best, acidity increases the vitality, sweetness, and fresh fruit characteristics of coffee, and is usually sensed and evaluated immediately after sipping coffee, but coffee that is too sour or dominated by acidity is often unpleasant, and excessive acidity is often not conducive to the performance of the overall characteristics of coffee. The scores on the horizontal scorecard will record the cup reviewers' relative perception of coffee acidity based on the characteristics of coffee producing areas and other factors (such as roasting degree, expected use, etc.). Coffee that is thought to have strong acidity, such as Kenya, or coffee with low acidity, such as Mantenin, will also get a corresponding preference score, although they vary widely in strength performance.

The degree of alcohol / alcohol is based on the tactile perception of coffee liquid in the mouth, especially the tongue and upper jaw. Most high-alcohol coffee gets high scores because more gum and sugar are extracted during the extraction process. Coffee that is considered to be high in alcohol, such as Sumatra, or coffee with low alcohol, such as Mexico, will get correspondingly high preference scores, although they vary widely in strength performance.

L balance / balance is used to describe how coffee flavors, acidity, mellowness and other different aspects reconcile, complement or conflict with each other. If coffee lacks certain aroma and flavor characteristics, or if some characteristics are too strong, the balance score will be reduced.

Sweetness / sweetness refers to the sweetness and pleasant rich flavor formed by the presence of sugar in coffee. The bad flavor corresponding to sweetness here is "sour", "gathered" and similar to "green and astringent" flavor. This feature can not be directly perceived as in soft drinks with added sugar, but it will affect other flavor characteristics. You can get 2 points per cup, and the highest total score is 10 points.

Purity / purity refers to the "transparency" of a cup of coffee with no extra negative taste from the first mouthful to the last aftertaste. To evaluate this feature, pay attention to the overall flavor of coffee from the first intake to the last swallowing or spitting. Any non-coffee flavor or aroma will degrade the quality of coffee. Purity is calculated through the evaluation of the score of 2 points per cup and the highest total score is 10 points.

L consistency / consistency reflects the consistency of the flavor of the 5 cups of coffee. If the taste of these five cups is different, they will not get a high score. Each cup is calculated as 2 points, and if 5 cups taste the same, you will get a maximum score of 10 points.

L overall evaluation / overall evaluation is a comprehensive and comprehensive evaluation of all aspects of coffee by individual cup reviewers. A sample that scores high in many ways but is "not up to standard" will get a lower score. A coffee that is consistent with its origin characteristics and achieves the desired characteristics will get a high score. A typical example is that a single feature that is not fully reflected in a single score will get a higher score in the preference score. This step is the process of individual evaluation by the cup review team.

L defect / defect is the negative or weak flavor of coffee that is detrimental to the quality of coffee. They are divided into two kinds. Taint refers to the obvious peculiar smell in coffee, but it is not overwhelming and is commonly found in aroma. In the strength assessment, a "taint" will get 2 points. Fault refers to the peculiar smell in coffee, which is commonly found in taste. It can be overwhelming or cause unpleasant taste in coffee. A fault will get 4 points on the strength score. Defects should first be identified and classified (taint or fault), then described (e.g. "sour", "rubber-flavored", "fermented", etc.) and documented. The number of cups with defects will be recorded and marked, and a score of 2 or 4 will be given according to the strength of the defect. finally, the total score of the defect will be obtained by adding up the product of the score and the number of cups.

Final score Final Scoring

The final score is to get the "total score" by adding up the scores of the main characteristics of a single item, and then subtract the defect score from the total score to get the final score. The following scoring key is considered to be a better way to judge the quality of coffee based on the final score.

Total Score Quality Classification total score quality grade

90-100Outstanding excellent Specialty

Fine grade

85-85.99 Excellent excellent

80-84.99 Very Good is very good