Ever ask yourself why one cup of coffee tastes dull and blah while another cup jolts you to attention?
It’s not magic. There’s one answer: quality. Quality coffee starts with artisan roasted coffee which is a world apart from the tin of pre-ground coffee sitting in most kitchens. And when you know the difference, you’ll never view your morning cup the same way again.
Here's the good news...
You don't have to be a coffee snob to taste the difference. You only have to know what to look for.
Let's jump in!
Specialty coffee isn't just a marketing word slapped on a fancy bag.
It's a real grade level. Specialty coffee is graded by coffee experts known as Q-graders who taste every shipment and assign it a rigorous score out of 100 points. Coffee needs to score at least 80 points to qualify as specialty. Below 80? Not specialty. Just commercial coffee.
This scoring system considers all -- aroma, flavour, acidity, body, sweetness and aftertaste. Each component is evaluated. There is no "trying your best" achievement called "near specialty." It either is or isn't specialty.
Want to Experience Real Small Batch Beans Yourself?
You can buy coffee online and have fresh artisan roasted coffee delivered right to your doorstep. It's one of the simplest ways to experience what real quality tastes like from the comfort of your home.
Pretty cool, right?
The thing is... Specialty coffee must meet a higher standard. And you can taste that in every sip.
Now let's talk about the coffee most people drink every day.
The daily brew likely comes from commercial beans. Commercial beans are grown in large volumes, rushed through harvest and then roasted in bulk. Quantity is their main concern -- not quality.
Here's the problem with that:
When you hurry, things go wrong. Beans get missed. Flavours muddy. And you're left with a cup that tastes... kind of blah.
Think about it like this:
Industrial coffee is kind of like fast food. Sure, it'll fill you up and serve its purpose. But it'll never wow you. Specialty coffee is like a nice home cooked meal made with love.
There's another issue too...
Cheap coffee is usually over-roasted to mask imperfections. It burns off the natural flavors that make coffee exciting. That "bitter, burnt" flavor you find with so many cup of joe? Coffee shouldn't taste like that whatsoever.
And consumers are responding. In fact, almost 60% of American coffee drinkers now favor gourmet or specialty coffee. Say goodbye to bland, everyday joe.
Here's something most people don't think about...
The roaster matters just as much as the beans.
No matter how high-quality your green coffee beans are, they're useless to you if they're roasted poorly. Roasting is where everything in terms of flavour becomes active. An experienced artisan will roast each batch for just the right amount of time to extract ideal notes -- be they chocolatey, fruity, floral, etc.
This is where "artisan roasted" really counts.
Large commercial roasters roast beans in tonnes at a time. They don't have time to spend with each batch. Artisan roasters roast in small batches instead. Which means:
Freshness matters here. Coffee begins to degrade the moment it's roasted. Coffee that is made in bulk can sit on the shelves for months before it even gets purchased. By the time it makes it to your cup, most is lost.
Craft roasted coffee is special. Coffee roasted in small batches and delivered fresh. Freshness is a huge reason why it tastes so much better.
It really is that simple.
So is specialty coffee actually worth it?
If you ask most people, the answer is heck yes. And you are not alone. Specialty coffee consumption reached an all-time high just last year, and continues to grow each year as more folks switch over.
Specialty coffee provides you a better experience for a slight increase in price. When measured by the cup, the price difference is minuscule. The difference in flavor however is significant.
Here's what you get when you upgrade to artisan roasted coffee:
There's another health-related tidbit worth throwing in as well. When asked if they think coffee is good for their health, 61% of specialty coffee drinkers say yes. Studies tend to confirm this as well with regards to moderate coffee consumption.
Think about how many cups of coffee you drink each year. If you're drinking one or two cups each day, why not make them great cups? You drink coffee so often -- you should enjoy it.
(That's the "quality over quantity" idea in action.)
The difference between specialty coffee and the everyday cup comes down to care.
Specialty coffee is carefully graded, expertly roasted and shipped fresh to you. Regular coffee is over-produced, burnt to a crisp and often stale. One is roasted to perfection. The other is roasted for profit.
To quickly recap what separates the two:
Fact is once you try good ole fashioned artisan roasted coffee you will never go back. Your normal cup of joe will taste dull and bland.
Well the dilemma is this... Try specialty coffee. Brew yourself a cup, take a drink and listen. You may find that coffee is way better than you ever thought.
Your taste buds will thank you.
