Bean Facts
From Arabica to Zambia, discover the most important coffee terms
5 mins
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At NESCAFÉ®, we drink, live and breathe coffee. So much so, we even love the words associated with it! From its exotic origins to the delicate process of making the perfect brew, we find the language of coffee to be wonderfully uplifting. Here are a few key coffee terms we think you should know.
Arabica
There are two types of coffee bean typically used for creating the delicious NESCAFÉ® coffee you know and love – Arabica and Robusta.
Barista
A coffee term you should know! A barista is a person who artfully crafts your favourite coffee, usually at a coffee shop. It takes a lot of skill to be able to make great coffee and baristas have to master a host of beverage varieties from an espresso shot to the precise layers of the cappuccino.
Yield is a coffee term that refers to the weight of the espresso in the cup, put simply, the more yield, the more espresso!
Cappuccino
What else could we have for C in our coffee dictionary other than cappuccino? It’s one of the most popular coffee types in the world after all! Originating in Italy, this delicious beverage contains equal parts espresso, steamed milk and milk froth and is usually served with a dusting of chocolate powder on top.
Decaf
Decaf coffee has had almost all of the caffeine content removed before the roasting process. Interestingly, it’s actually impossible to remove all of the caffeine from coffee beans!
Espresso
Espresso is one of our favourite coffee words because it forms the basis for so many of our favourite beverages – alternatively, it can also be served in small, strong shots too!
Flat White
The Flat White has been taking the coffee world by storm in recent years and has fast become one of the most popular coffees on the menu. However, there’s been much debate about where it originated from with some saying Australia, others New Zealand.
Green Beans
This coffee term may surprise you, but did you know that when coffee beans are fresh off the plant, they’re actually green and have a grassy scent? It’s the roasting process which turns them that rich brown hue and gives them that incredible smell!
High Grown
Refers to the process of growing coffee plants at high altitudes. This practice produces more rich and flavourful beans as the beans develop slower, resulting in a more complex and robust flavour profile.
Irish Coffee
A coffee with a kick. Crafted with hot coffee, Irish whiskey, sugar and topped with cream, this warming beverage is favoured in the colder months.
Java
You’ll likely be familiar with this coffee terminology as a slang word for ‘coffee’. But did you know that ‘Java’ was originally used to refer to coffee grown on the island of Java? When the coffee trade grew, the word was adopted by many all over the world and now it’s become a generalised word for ‘coffee’.
Kaldi
Kaldi was a goat herder who allegedly first discovered the effects of coffee, so of course we had to mention him in our coffee dictionary!
Café Latte
Could L be for anything else but latte? This coffee type is a super popular choice for many and consists of 1/3 espresso, 2/3 steamed milk, with a layer of frothed milk on top. Café Latte’s often come with a variety of delicious flavour choices too, ranging from vanilla to hazelnut.
Macchiato
The macchiato is an espresso with milk added. In fact, the beverage was developed in Italy in the 80’s as a way for baristas to identify a plain espresso and one with milk added. The name comes from the Italian word for ‘stained’.
Noisette
Noisette is a French coffee type which gets its name from the lovely hazelnut colour you get when mixing espresso and hot milk. It may sound similar to the macchiato, and it is because it just happens to be the French version!
Over Extracted
This coffee term is one you’ll want to avoid at all costs as it’s what happens when espresso is exposed to brew water for too long. The result is a drink that possesses a bitter or burnt taste – not ideal for making those smooth and delicious lattes or cappuccinos!
Portafilter
Most valued by baristas, it’s perhaps the most essential item in their toolkit. It’s what’s responsible for holding the ground espresso beans in the coffee machine for the whole brewing process.
Quaker
A Quaker is a coffee term which refers to un-ripened coffee beans. They usually have a wrinkled surface and remain pale even when roasted.
Roasting
Roasting is what gives coffee beans that delicious smell and darkened colour, plus it also has a huge impact on the overall taste profile. Coffee can be roasted light, medium or dark and each roast type has a different level of acidity and unique flavouring.
Single Origin
Single origin coffee is when the beans are sourced from a single location. Due to this, it’s generally of a much higher quality with a stronger flavour profile as it’s not a blend of beans from varying locations and growing conditions.
Turkish Coffee
Did you know that Turkey is one of the coffee hotspots of the world? They have a very unique way of making coffee which is said to be more akin to cooking than brewing and the result is a thick and frothy drink with a very strong aroma.
Uganda
Uganda is in the top 10 coffee producing countries. Its landscape with rich, volcanic soil provides the ideal conditions for growing coffee plants.
Vietnamese Coffee
A type of coffee that’s unlike any other, rich and flavourful with an added tang of sweetness thanks to the layer of condensed milk in the bottom of the glass. What’s more, you can also enjoy this beverage iced, so it’s perfect all year round!
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