Coffee Glossary

Like any other crop, coffee plants are susceptible to a range of diseases caused by bacteria and fungi from errors in fertilization, leaf buildup, wind and rain splash, and unaddressed plant damage. Some of the most common are coffee leaf rust, coffee berry disease, coffee wilt disease, and cercospora berry blotch (or brown eye spot).

The most common coffee brewing method — especially at home — that involves heating and pouring water over filtered coffee grounds and draining it into a carafe. Drip coffee is typically made with an automatic drip coffee machine but can also be made with a manual or single-serve drip brewing device.

The stage before export or roasting during which dried coffee beans are hulled, sorted, and polished.

The process of reducing moisture content in coffee beans after harvesting and processing, important for long-term storage and quality retention.

The invisible line at 0 degrees latitude that divides Earth into the northern and southern hemispheres, near which many top coffee-growing regions exist.

A concentrated form of coffee produced by forcing hot water under high pressure through finely ground coffee

A naturally derived chemical solvent used in coffee decaffeination.

The common name for Coffea eugenioides, an ancient East African coffee plant believed to have produced the modern Arabica plant. The plant is tricky to grow and produces a small yield. In the cup, eugenioides is distinguished by its low acidity and bitterness, and it can vary greatly in flavor from farm to farm or plot to plot.

A coffee sorting standard that allows for a maximum of 8 primary defects per 300 grams in a screen size of 15+.

A rare, controversial, pest-and-disease-resistant and coffee reclassified as a variety of Liberica in the early 2000s but believed by some to be its own species. Excelsa coffee originated in Central Africa and accounts for only about 1% of the world’s coffee. When roasted with care, Excelsa can offer up notes of peanut butter, cocoa, and dried fruit in the cup.