What are the High, Medium, and Low Temperatures of Coffee? What are the Three Major Standards of Coffee Tasting?

Previously, FrontStreet Coffee mentioned in the article "Does Coffee Have an Optimal Drinking Temperature?" that a complete coffee tasting process requires tasting from high temperature to low temperature, because the flavor and aroma of coffee continuously change with time and temperature. Therefore, the purpose of tasting at each stage will differ accordingly.

Since FrontStreet Coffee only explained the principles behind these changes in the article and lacked introduction to the tasting content, many friends have asked about the corresponding temperatures and purposes for each tasting stage. So today, FrontStreet Coffee will continue where we left off and share what temperature ranges correspond to high, medium, and low temperatures in coffee tasting, and how their tasting purposes differ. But before that, we need to briefly understand the coffee extraction process in cupping, as this tasting method originates from coffee cupping. The reason this tasting method is used in cupping is not only to judge the coffee's flavor but also because this approach can better detect the true quality of coffee.

The coffee extraction model in cupping is a very standard immersion method, as the entire process simply involves soaking coffee grounds in hot water for 4 minutes, with almost no human influence or interference. After the time is up, you just need to break the crust with a spoon to remove the coffee grounds floating on the surface, and then you can begin tasting.

High Temperature (70~50°C)

First is the high-temperature stage of coffee, referring to coffee in the temperature range of 70°C to 50°C. Typically, after breaking the crust in cupping, the coffee temperature has already reached around 70°C (the same for pour-over coffee after completion), so after breaking the crust, we can formally begin tasting the coffee.

Since the coffee temperature at this stage is quite high, this is not the best time to experience the overall coffee. High temperature reduces the taste buds' sensitivity to flavors, making our capture of coffee taste less sharp, thereby affecting the expression of mouthfeel. Therefore, in the high-temperature stage, we only experience the flavor notes of the coffee and its aftertaste. In other words, it's the aroma emitted by the coffee! Because aroma dissipates fastest and is richest at high temperatures, we can experience more obvious flavor expressions from this stage. The drinking method is also very particular, otherwise you might burn your mouth! We need to sip the coffee into our mouths to atomize it, thereby reducing the coffee's temperature and increasing its contact area. This allows us to better and more comprehensively experience the coffee's flavor expression.

After swallowing the coffee, we need to hold our breath and savor, trying to feel the aroma emitted by the coffee remaining in our mouths and its duration. What we experience at this time is its aftertaste.

Medium Temperature (50°C~35°C)

As the temperature decreases, coffee enters the medium-temperature stage, which is most suitable for tasting overall performance. The medium-temperature stage refers to coffee in the temperature range of 50°C to 35°C! Because at this time, coffee no longer has the impact of high temperature on taste buds, and it's also at a temperature where perception of sweet and sour is relatively sensitive, so we can more directly and better taste delicate flavors.

The tasting method is no longer limited to sipping, but because the tasting content includes not only the coffee's aroma but also its acidity, mouthfeel, and aftertaste, we cannot focus solely on its flavor expression from when the coffee enters the mouth until after swallowing. Finally, we need to evaluate the overall balance of the coffee by combining flavor, taste, mouthfeel, and aftertaste, making it a very busy stage.

Low Temperature (35°C~25°C)

Finally, there's the low-temperature stage of coffee, where the coffee temperature is in the range of below 35°C to 25°C. This is the best time to detect whether coffee has defects. There are two reasons: one is that prolonged placement allows most of the coffee's aroma to dissipate, so the coffee won't have overly prominent flavor expressions to mask its defective flavors; the other is that our perception of sweetness decreases at this stage, while the expression of other flavors will be enhanced.

In other words, because there's no "cover," the defects in coffee will be fully exposed at this time. If the coffee has negative expressions such as saltiness, bitterness, or off-flavors, we can easily and clearly perceive them from this stage. This is also why a cupping session takes an average of 30-50 minutes - the purpose is to wait for the coffee temperature to drop and conduct the most comprehensive inspection of coffee quality. So above are the temperature ranges for high, medium, and low temperatures in coffee tasting and their corresponding tasting content. When drinking coffee, if you don't mind the trouble, you can try this tasting method to more comprehensively experience the performance of a cup of coffee~ And some coffees show amazing performance at low temperatures, for example, Alo in FrontStreet Coffee's bean list shows very obvious mango and oolong tea notes at low temperatures; or Panama Geisha, which shows green tea and honey when cold.

However, not all coffees are suitable for this approach. For example, some coffees with predominantly bitter notes taste relatively balanced with a thick mouthfeel at medium to high temperatures because the perception of bitterness is weaker. When the coffee cools down, although it won't develop negative flavors, our taste buds' perception of bitterness recovers and becomes more sensitive, making the coffee taste more "bitter," which is not a good thing for most people. So FrontStreet Coffee suggests it's best to "choose the method according to the coffee" - for medium to dark roast coffees, just drink from high to medium temperature ranges~

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