Specialty Coffee is an art form in agriculture. Something I serendipitously discovered about 10 years ago. It’s been expensive, fun, engaging and very fulfilling.
This is my humble effort at explaining what specialty coffee is to the uninitiated. This entire concept of coffee, the focused labour intensive work at the estate, the arduous work of coffee processing, the nuances of specialty coffee roasting, the packaging, the fun process of marketing to the coffee brewer, the absolutely delightful journey of manual brewing at the home barista level – all of this is an ocean of information.
I don’t claim to know it all, I don’t ever will, cuz where’s the fun if there’s no learning. 🙂
Specialty Coffee as defined by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) is highest grade of beans scoring 80 or greater (by Q Graders).
I don’t want to limit Specialty Coffee to just a scientific explanation. Before I tell you what specialty coffee is, let me tell you what it’s not.
Specialty Coffee is
* Not just labelled “premium beans”
* Not expensive instant coffee with a fancy price tag (Davidoff, Percol, Nescafe is not specialty coffee)
* Not flavoured with agents like caramel, vannila or hazelnut
* Not just a bag of coffee that says “100% Arabica”
* Not burnt to char but smells like “coffee”
* Not incompatible with milk.
* Not just about fancy gadgets.
* Not about intimidating brewing rituals.
* Not elitist or snobbish unless people make it that way.
* Not sour for the sake of being “complex”
* Not just black and bitter.
* Not a trend. It’s an agricultural movement.
Types of coffee at a coffee estate
Category 1 : Specialty Coffee
This is coffee that has been picked at its ripest red, processed with intention and care before being shipped to the roasters.
There are skilled, specialised, trained and certified personnel called Q Graders who specialise in scoring coffee. Coffee that scores about 80 points is generally considered Specialty Coffee. Coffees that score greater than 90 points are Unicorn Specialty or premium bags. The flavours of the coffee come from the elevation of the farm/estate above sea level, the varietal of coffee, intercrops and trees that make up the estate (shade grown) and the processing techniques used.
Sub Category : Microlot Coffee
This is a small portion of the specialty coffee that has been separated and processed for unique flavour profile. Usually higher scoring than typical specialty coffee from the farm/estate. Small batch, slightly higher prices.
Sub Category : Certified Coffee
Some estates and coffee are certified as Organic, Fair trade, Rainforest Alliance/UTZ etc based on their cultural and farming practices.
Sub Category : Exotic Varietals
Some farms grow rare genetic types like Gesha, Pacamara, Excelsa which are premium in nature given their limited quantity and thus are coveted among enthusiasts despite the possibly high prices.
Category 2 : Commodity Coffee
The bulk of the farm’s coffee is this. The farm makes maximum revenue also through commodity or commercial coffee. This traded across nations just like oil. The price is set by global exchange rates and not by taste.
There are called C Grade coffee which are large scale, mechanically harvested coffee that contain mixed lots, unripe cherries, inconsistent flavour profile and even defects.
This coffee is further segregated based on quality and sold accordingly.
This coffee is what the majority of the world consumes. The dark brown beans you seen at a local roaster/cafe, the beans that your local south indian roasts and grinds along with chicory to give you “degree coffee” for your south indian filter coffee(with some peaberry), the majority of the beans you buy from any super market, 99% of all the instant coffee in the world.