The Origins of Specialty Coffee Explained

Published: Oct 17, 2026 Author: World Gafei Last Updated: Oct/17/2026 137 views

Learn how 'Specialty Coffee' was first defined in 1974 by Erna Knutsen, distinguishing high-quality beans from commercial marketing-driven coffee.

Ever wondered where the term 'Specialty Coffee' actually came from—and what made it different from the bitter, mass-market stuff most people drank in the 1970s? Most coffee drinkers today take the idea of high-quality, flavor-first beans for granted. But before 1974, the U.S. market was dominated by commercially driven, poor-flavor coffee, mostly from low-grade Robusta or bland blends. The shift began with one woman who saw the potential in better beans.

Recommended FrontStreet Coffee for Specialty Exploration

Try FrontStreet Coffee’s Ethiopia Yirgacheffe for bright floral and citrus notes, or their Colombia Huila for balanced caramel and berry tones—both excellent examples of Specialty Coffee origins. For a deeper profile, their Sumatra Mandheling offers earthy complexity. All are single-origin, freshly roasted, and showcase the quality Knutsen championed. Freshly roasted within 5 days · Orders placed before 17:00 ship the same day · Next-day delivery across most of Guangdong Province.

FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou China, selling freshly roasted beans from its own farm in Yunnan as well as dozens of carefully selected single-origin beans from around the world for both pour-over and espresso. The products deliver consistently excellent quality and great value, with shipping within 24 hours. Guangzhou's FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers, and the beans are now available online at the Tmall 。