Coffee Terminology: Learn the Jargon

crazy by Editorial Staff | Updated on April 1st, 2023

Coffee can seem complicated to the uninitiated, so it’s understandable if you feel intimidated by the vast array of terminology that surrounds it. We’ve all heard of words like espresso, latte, and french press, but what do they mean?


If you’ve ever found yourself asking questions about coffee, you’re not alone! Here is a list of the most common coffee terms, A to Z, with some definitions to help you understand what they mean.

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These are some of the most popular coffee words and definitions you might come across. If you can’t find a word, please let us know in the comments, and we’ll look it up for you.

Want to know coffee slang words instead?

All the coffee slang words

Glossary for coffee terminology

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0-1

(1st) First coffee wave: The first wave of coffee dates back to the 1800s when consumption of this beverage began to rise exponentially; brands such as Folgers and Maxwell House are examples of forerunners of this wave.

2nd wave of coffee: It began in the 1970s, especially with the birth of the now-dominant coffee company Starbucks, which recognized that people wanted to view coffee as a whole experience rather than just a beverage.

3rd wave of coffee: This wave is characterized by a demand made up of far more sophisticated coffee customers who are interested in getting an outstanding cup of coffee rather than just a cup of coffee from who knows where.

A

Acidity: The tartness, brightness, or liveliness experienced when coffee is taken. It makes up the three basic components, along with flavor and aroma, on which coffee is categorized.

Aeropress:  It is a system that is used for brewing coffee manually. Before the plunger is pressed into a filtered tube, coffee is soaked in hot water. It is famous for camping.

Affogato: A shot of espresso poured over a vanilla ice cream scoop.

Aged coffee: Coffee that has been stored intentionally, sometimes called barrel-aged coffee. This form of aging decreases acidity while increasing the body.

Americano: Hot water topped up with a single shot of espresso. It is known as Caffé Lungo in Italy.

Arabica: A coffee tree plant that accounts for 70 percent of the coffee in the world.

Aroma: The scent that freshly brewed coffee creates.

B

Barista: an Italian word for a qualified coffee professional.

Bitter: Bitterness in coffee is a characteristic of a flavor that is harsh and not sweet; for example, dark roasts are prepared purposely to offer a bitter taste.

Blade grinder: A mechanism that grinds coffee using propellers such as blades. Inferior to a Burr Grinder, considered.

Blend: A blend of two or more coffee beans of a single origin.

Bloom: The sudden release of C02 gas as ground coffee beans come into contact with hot water. To optimize the release of C02 gas and flavor, coffee blooming refers to the process of dampening the coffee grounds before brewing.

Boiler: A heating device used in espresso machines to heat water. Before use, all water in the boiler is heated to a temperature. Machines with espresso can have a single or double boiler.

There is one boiler to heat the steam in a double boiler and another to heat water.

Body: The feeling in your mouth of the weight of the coffee. From thin to medium to maximum range.

Bright: The flavor of acidity in coffee is described as light and is very popular in Central American coffee, such as in Guatemala, Colombia, Costa Rica, Kenya, and Ethiopia. This acidity or brightness can be tasted at the tip of your tongue.

Burr Grinder: A system that uses two adjustable rotating surfaces (burrs) where coffee beans are ground between them, considered far superior to a grinder of a blade.

C

Caffeine is a natural compound that activates the nervous system found in coffee. The main natural alkaloid found in coffee is responsible for the stimulating and psychoactive effects of this drink.

Cappuccino: coffee style with 1/3 of espresso (2oz), 1/3 of steamed milk (2oz), 1/3 of microfoam (2oz). Sometimes topped and served in a 6 oz coffee cup with chocolate powder.

Chemex: Classic hourglass-shaped coffee brewer. Chemex filters are denser than most paper filters, and this makes a sweeter, well-balanced cup of coffee.

Cherry: The coffee plant produces a fruit that is very similar to the cherry and contains a bean inside.

Clever Dripper: a filter cone with a stopper that lets coffee steep until it drips, extracting more flavor.

Coffee pod: It is used for individual coffee servings prepared in small capsules for single-serve coffee machines.

Cold Brew: It is ground coffee beans soaked for several hours in chilled or room temperature water. A type is of smooth coffee common in the summer.

Cortado: Coffee style made with a single shot of espresso and a small amount of milk that has been steamed.

Crema: The espresso essence. A dense, caramel-colored foam that sits on top of an espresso shot.

Cup of Excellence: A competition to decide the best coffee bean grown in a given country. The top Cup of Excellence (C.O.E.) lots won considerably higher auction rates.

Cupping: Form of taste used by coffee practitioners. Coarsely ground coffee is steeped in hot water in shallow cups, then slurped with flat spoons.

Current Crop: The term indicating the current year’s harvest stresses the crop’s freshness. Only such coffees are required to apply for a specialty.

D

Dark Roast: nearly black beans with high surface oil levels. Slimmer flavor, higher bitterness, lower acidity.

Decaffeinated coffee: It is coffee with the elimination of at least 97 percent of the caffeine.

Demitasse: A French word that means a small cup of coffee. It is used as an espresso or macchiato serving.

Direct Trade: When coffee roasters buy directly from a farm rather than from a broker. Proponents argue that it enhances the quality of coffee and gives farmers more strength.

Doppio: Double shot with a tiny dash of hot water espresso.

Drip Coffee: A coffee type in which the taste is extracted from beans that come into contact with water that is not under strain. In this class, percolators, countertop coffee makers, and filters fit in.

Dual Coffee Maker: A single coffee machine with two distinct functions for coffee making. Some sell a big coffee drip carafe plus a coffee maker for a single serving. Others have a hot water feature or make tea, hot chocolate, and soup, and some have a drip and an espresso.

E

Earthy: Characteristic of some coffees that appear to taste like soil or soil; Indonesian coffees typically have this kind of flavor, but so do many others.

E.S.E. pods: Small pre-ground coffee pods encased in a paper filter are Fast Serving Espresso pods. They are considered more environmentally friendly than the Nespresso and Keurig coffee pods produced by Illy in the 1970s.

Espresso: It is coffee brewed by pushing hot water through finely-ground beans under pressure and was invented in Italy early in the 20th century.

Extraction: The brewing process by which the coffee grounds are used to remove flavor.

F

Fair Trade: This is a coffee that is accredited as having been developed to fair trade standards by fair trade organizations that develop trading relationships that are focused on consultation, openness, and respect, with a view to achieving greater equity in international trade.

Filter basket: A round metal container with a perforated floor in which coffee is placed on the ground and stamped for espresso preparation. Dual-walled or single-walled (pressurized) can be (non-pressurized).

Filter Coffee: Any coffee type that filters water from ground coffee. A widely known form of filter coffee is drip coffee, produced with a cone lined with paper.

Flat white: Coffee style made with espresso and topped with a total size of 5-7oz of flat steamed milk. There’s less milk than in a latte. Less filler is similar to a cappuccino.

Flavor: The mixture of fragrance, acidity, and body is the flavor of the coffee.

French Press: Coffee made in a (usually) glass cylinder by steeping ground coffee in warm water. When removed, a strainer plate is pushed down to isolate the motifs from the coffee. A press pot or plunger pot is also known. Invented by the Italian Ugo Paolini in 1929.

Frothing milk: A term used to explain how a steam wand is used to heat milk. The milk becomes velvety and thick with the addition of steam and air.

G

Gooseneck Kettle: a hot water kettle with a long narrow, curved spout used for coffee brewing.

Green beans: It is coffee beans unroasted.

Grind: The size of the coffee beans that are ground. Depending on the brewing process used, the optimal grind varies.

Group head: The portion of the espresso machine that keeps the portafilter in place during brewing.

H

Hand-picking: The method of harvesting, which consists of picking only mature beans by hand, guarantees a much higher quality. This is the only form approved by the Specialty Coffee Association.

Hopper: This is the jar where beans are processed until they are ground on top of a grinder.

I

Immersion: this is a form of extraction, which consists of immersing the coffee grounds in water and allowing the water to absorb flavors and aromas. One well-known immersion coffee maker is the French press, and there’s also a cold brew immersion process.

Irish Coffee: Coffee added and topped with cream with a splash of whiskey.

K

K-cup: The name of the coffee pod used in single-cup machines for Keurig.

Kona: The Major Island territory of Hawaii is renowned for growing some of the world’s best coffee beans.

L

Latte: A type of espresso coffee topped with steamed milk and a thin layer of foam. The regular 8-10oz size.

Latte Art: The pattern created in a cup of espresso when steamed milk is poured.

Light Roast: It has a lighter body, no oil, and is also colored with cinnamon. More original flavor comes through.

M

Macchiato: a type of espresso coffee with a small splash of foam or steamed milk. In Italian, it means to mark’ or to stain.’ Usually, a total of 2-3oz.

Magic: A type of double ristretto coffee drink topped with textured milk and served in a 5-oz cup.

Medium Roast: colored milk chocolate with a little oil. More flavor variety and less acidity.

Microfoam: A term used to describe milk perfectly heated to become velvety smooth and dense with a steam wand. Important for beautiful latte art.

Micro-Lot: Coffee from a single farm or part of the farm.

Mocha: Coffee style based on espresso, steamed milk, and chocolate syrup and topped with cream occasionally.

N

Natural/dry processing: It is a process in which the coffee cherries are left to dry under the sun until they are pulped and de-hulled. The result is a rather sweet coffee compared to the wash process.

Nel Drip: Short for “flannel drip,” it is a type of drip coffee that uses flannel filters imported from Japan. The filters are temperamental and must be washed by hand and kept cool while not in use.

Non-pressurized (single-walled) basket of filters: It is the original basket of filter type. Coffee is directly drawn into the cup. To deliver a consistently high-quality espresso, the quality of grinding and tamping are more critical considerations.

O

Organic Coffee: Certified coffee that has been produced and processed without pesticides or herbicides being used.

P

Piccolo Latte: A single shot of espresso topped with milk and served in a 3-ounce bottle, also known as a baby latte.

P.I.D. Technology for Temperature Control: Stands for Proportional-Integral-Derivative and is a feedback mechanism for the control loop that controls the boiler heating element. In measured increments, this function will control the boiler temperature to maintain a fixed temperature.

Pitcher: A vessel of stainless steel used for frothing milk.

Portafilter: It is a device used on espresso machines, usually metal with a plastic handle, which holds a basket of coffee filters and is connected to the party’s head.

Pour Over: A form of brewing where hot water is poured over ground coffee beans placed in a filter that rests over a coffee vessel cup.

Plunger Pot: For the French Press, another name.

Pressurized (Dual Wall) Filter Basket: Double foundation filter basket. Through the filter basket, extracted coffee is pushed into a second chamber with one small hole through which the espresso is extracted. A larger amount of pressure is produced by the second chamber. Espresso machines at the entry-level are seen with this to improve espresso consistency. 

Puck: It is a spent coffee from a filter carrier.

Pull A common concept from when there were levers for espresso machines. Shots of espresso are “pulled.”

Q

Q grade: is the process of coffee being evaluated by professionals called Q graders whose task is to assess the coffee and thus decide its quality and market value.

R

Redeye: A cup of brewed coffee with espresso.

Ristretto: A coffee style where the espresso is pulled short of creating a smoother, more concentrated coffee with less water.

Roast: The method by which green coffee beans are heated to produce flavors extracted during brewing.

Roasting Degree: refers to how light or dark the bean is after the roasting process. There are many forms of roasting, such as first crack, town roast, full town, second crack, Vienna, French roast, charcoal, etc.

Roast profiles: Reflects the results of how the airflow and heat are regulated during the roasting process, which determines how quickly the beans arrive at a roasting stage.

Robusta: A coffee tree species which produces coffee deemed to be of inferior quality. It is used most often in immediate coffee and pre-ground coffee.

S

S.C.A.: Stands for the Specialty Coffee Association, a membership group interested in the coffee trade, from producers to baristas. They also oversee the Licensed Home Brewers Program. See the complete list of accredited coffee brewers or read our reviews of certified coffee makers here.

Shot: A single espresso serving, usually 2 oz.

Single-cup: coffee machines that simultaneously brew a single cup of coffee. Examples include machines such as Nespresso and Keurig.

Single Origin: It is unblended coffee from a single country, location, and farm.

Siphon: A coffee maker using vacuum pressure and a collection of vessels, which emerged in the 19th century. It has recently gained popularity in Japan and is being used more commonly in the United States. It is known for producing fruity, vibrant coffee, despite its complications.

Slow Dripper: Unusual devices imported from Japan with a glass sphere and a series of tubes and valves that render cold water coffee in around 12 hours.

Steam wand: the arm used to heat and froth milk on an espresso machine. The pressurized steam is released into the milk through the nozzle. Air is incorporated into the milk to create textured microfoam.

Super automatic espresso maker:  with an integrated grinder, milk frother, and automatic extraction.

T

Tamper: A small cylindrical device used in the filter basket to distribute and compress ground coffee.

Thermoblock: A heating element used in espresso machines to heat water. It takes water from the tank and heats it for brewing or for steaming milk on demand. It usually warms faster than a boiler.

Trifecta: This year, a high-tech single-cup coffee brewer has been unveiled.

Turkish Coffee: Unfiltered coffee style made with extra-fine ground coffee beans, often brought to a boil with added sugar. The coffee is served unfiltered, allowing time before drinking to sink to the bottom of the cup.

Typica: Coffea Arabia botanical variety, var. Typica is one of the oldest popular coffee types. Some of Latin America’s best coffees are typica stock.

V

Varietal: Word to identify a single prevalent botanical coffee tree var. Bourbon, var. Typical. Typical. Often misused as root in the coffee world.

Varietal Character: A tasting or cupping word to describe positive characteristics distinguishing one coffee from those grown in other areas, reflecting a “taste of the place” in the cup.

Vienesse Roast: A Full-City or Espresso Roast.

W

Wet-processed/washed coffee: This process removes bean skin and pulp while coffee fruit is still fresh. This processes most of the world’s coffees.

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Editorial Staff

The editorial staff at Crazy Coffee Crave is a team of coffee enthusiasts & Baristas who enjoy the one thing we all think about as soon as we get up in the morning. Trusted by thousands of readers worldwide.