Curious About the Description

[Wakejava]

When I read a review about a coffee, sometimes I will read words like 'hint of tangerine' or, 'almond aroma'. Where does this flavor come from exactly. When a coffee has a hint of tangerine, does that mean tangerines where grown next to the harvest? Or were almonds once grown in the same area? Or is it just a matter of what sense the taster is just trying to describe?
Reading a coffee has a sense of honey to it...I am thinking that somehow, honey got infused into the bean..or did the brewer actually add honey to it while it was roasting?

 

[dstrand]

These are subtle characteristics that sensitive tasters can detect in the coffee. Similar to wine, coffee has nuances that can't be detected by gulping, and requires a trained palate to uncover.

Coffee has over 600 flavor compounds - naturally occuring in it. This makes it one of the most complex foods we taste.

 

[eldub]

There are a few theories concerning the manner in which specific flavors are imparted to wine and those theories COULD possibly carry over to coffee.

For example, Kermit Lynch, an importer of wine whom I greatly admire, has been told by an old and knowledgable wine maker in France that specific berries, flowers and herbs growing near vineyards do indeed lend their flavor to the grape vines grown in the same vicinity. One theory on this states that pollination by bees could be the reason for the flavor cross-over. Other's say its a result of soil conditions and production techniques.

 

[Wakejava]

Thats actually a very interesting concept. "Berry" flavor is a pretty broad description. So I can see a taster making that sort of a connection to a coffee...but one such a walnut, or tangerine...thats very specific. A flavor or aroma such as that, has to have some correlation to the actual fruit being described, Id think.

 

[eldub]

I was speaking in broad terms. Specific varieties of berries can be identified in various wine offerings. Coffee has many similarities, imo. However it takes a discerning palate (and imagination) to translate that into words.

As a matter of fact, we recently purchased and roasted an Ethiopian Sidamo coffee bean that tasted STRONGLY of blueberries 24 hours after being roasted. A few days later the blueberry flavor was much fainter although still present.

To get the most flavor out of a coffee, try sampling it at a cooler than normal drinking temperature. Aspirate the liquid over your tongue by sucking in air as you take the coffee into your mouth. You might be amazed to discover the various flavors that can be discerned with this method, as well as finding the various areas of the mouth which are the most sensitive to specific flavors. For instance, while the Sidamo filled our mouths with blueberry flavor the day after roasting, a week later the only way I could taste the fruit in question was by sucking in air while the cooled coffee entered my mouth and even then it was only at the very front of my mouth (in front of my teeth) that the blueberry was noticeable.

Btw, people aren't adding honey or tangerine or walnuts to their product, in general, when the flavor is reported to be present. Flavored coffee is an entirely different animal.

lw