cont'd...

Desirable Flavor Characteristics:
· Clean - Describes a coffee without any of the wild, earthy, varietal distinctions that punch through a cup. Clean coffees tend to be pleasantly one-dimensional, often light-bodied and void of any complex nuances. If they have an aftertaste it will dissolve rather than cling. This character makes for a great coffee for those who like to drink several cups one after another.

· Varietal Character - not often used beyond the professional cupping table. It is an essence that denotes the qualities that separate one sample from another. To an acquired palate, there is nothing like a Colombian but a Colombian. In lay terms, the words standard, classic, exemplary, and grand cru are often used to imply or give a solid sense of security and reputation upon a particular choice.

· Complexity - I like to think of complexity as an orchestra that is getting along. The ability for the coexistence of sensations such as acidity, sweetness, winyness, earthiness, roasty pungency and body to reside in the same cup is what we are referring to when we say a coffee is "complex". Complexity presents a wide range of possibilities upon your palate. And sometimes what you sense is elusive and ethereal; and sometimes hearty and pervasive.

· Balance - When acidity is present but does not dominate, and body is substantial but not cloyingly so, and no idiosyncratic character rises above for attention, a coffee is then considered balanced. Few straight varietals are considered balanced. They typically have distinctive varietal characteristics that are unmistakable to an educated palate. Sometimes "balanced" is used loosely to denote a coffee as being a very good representation of their origin. A Guatemalan from Huehuetenango may be heavier bodied with a muted acidity compared to a Guatemalan from Antiqua, but as a representation of a Huehue, it is "balanced". It is everything you should expect. Attaining a pure balance of flavor is one of the goals of blending coffees.

· Wild, earthy - When you learn to identify this synergistic alignment of chemical reactions you will never lose your ability to lay claim to its presence. Wild, earthy coffee has a slight sour twist to the acidity that points to a broad fruit or citrus sweetness or fresh tilled wet loam. Can you smell rain? Then you are on your way to grabbing this from your cup…or perhaps you will now notice how some cups come out and grab you! One of the things we love about all coffees is the undertone of naturalness. Coke has no undertone, just synthetic overtones. Wild, and earthy tasting coffees go one-step further than clean-cupping coffees by speaking directly to this earth-rootedness.

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