What Is Speciality Coffee?

A Grind Guide to Speciality Coffee

Speciality coffee is the highest quality coffee you can find. From farming to roasting to blending, every step of the process has to be, you guessed it, seriously special.

So what makes it different? Let's break down the history and science behind speciality-grade coffee, what makes coffee beans qualify as speciality, how they're graded, and what this all means for the coffee that ends up in your cup.

Speciality Coffee Definition

Speciality coffee refers to coffee that is graded 80 points or higher on a 100-point scale, which has been certified by a licensed Speciality Coffee Association (SCA) Q Grader.

Speciality coffees must meet stringent quality standards at every stage of the supply chain. They are considered exceptional in comparison to other coffees due to a number of factors: the quality of the coffee cherries picked, the altitude at which they are grown, how and when they are harvested, the health of the soil, and the way in which the beans are roasted.

The History of Speciality Coffee

The term 'speciality coffee' was coined in 1974 by Erna Knutsen, one of the founders of the Speciality Coffee Association. The phrase is now synonymous with high-quality coffee, with more and more people treating coffee as more than just a convenient stimulant. It's now a tasting experience.

Advances in agricultural, roasting, and brewing technology, combined with an increased demand for quality coffee, have made speciality coffee more easily accessible to people all over the world.

In the UK, speciality coffee is now thought to account for about 23% of the coffee served in coffee shops, catering for more discerning customers.

What Is the Difference Between Speciality Coffee and Commercial Coffee?

Speciality-grade coffee is recognised for its distinctive attributes and subtle nuances of flavour that you won’t find in commercial, or commodity, coffee, which is often produced without the same level of care and protection and made from both ripe and unripe coffee cherries.

Commercial coffees are frequently roasted darker to mask any unpleasant tasting notes, and they lack the vibrant and unique flavours that you find in speciality-grade coffees.

The key difference between the two lies in attention to detail and a commitment to quality at every step of the coffee-making process.

How Is Speciality Coffee Graded?

Speciality coffee is graded on a 100-point scale determined by the SCA, a nonprofit organisation with members in over 40 countries. The SCA represents coffee professionals throughout the industry, including producers, exporters, roasters, and baristas.

To qualify as 'speciality', a coffee must receive a score of 80 or above. There are three grading brackets within this range: coffee graded with a score between 90-100 is ‘Outstanding’; 85-89.99 is ‘Excellent’; and coffee with a score of 80-84.99 is ‘Very Good’. Anything outside of this range is commodity-grade coffee.

Green coffee is graded via visual inspection and cupping:

Visual inspection involves taking a 350g sample of green coffee beans and counting defective beans. Defects can be Primary (e.g. black beans, sour beans) or Secondary (e.g. broken beans). For a coffee to qualify as ‘speciality’, it must have zero Primary defects and less than five Secondary defects.

Cupping involves roasting the coffee and brewing simply with hot water. The taster and Q grader will assign scores to each of the coffee's attributes, such as the acidity, body, flavour, and aroma.

Our Head of Coffee has been a certified Q Grader for years, and he continues to cup every blend we make to ensure it meets the highest standards.

Where Does Speciality Coffee Come From?

Speciality coffee is grown around the world, along the ‘coffee belt’—a horizontal strip on either side of the equator, between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Traditionally, speciality coffee is sourced at higher altitudes and the roaster works closely with the farmers and producers.

We've been roasting speciality-grade coffee since 2011. Along the way, we’ve built long-term collaborative relationships with growers who farm sustainably and pay workers fairly. We pay them above the ‘Fair Trade’ price, and they grow us some of the world’s finest coffee. Find out more about our commitment to ethical trading and sustainable sourcing here.

Whether it’s from Brazil, Colombia, or Ethiopia, every speciality coffee we roast and craft has been sourced ethically from producers who are contributing to a sustainable future for coffee. It’s how we’re helping change coffee for the better.

Why Choose Speciality Coffee?

When you buy speciality coffee, you're not just getting a coffee that tastes amazing: you're also supporting coffee producers who are committed to sustainable practices, protecting the planet and its people.

Directly trading with these smaller-scale producers means we can work together in a mutually-beneficial relationship and maintain a transparent, traceable supply chain. It gives us a level of confidence in the origins of our coffee that most mainstream brands don’t have. In short, it's a much more sustainable and ethical way to enjoy coffee.

How Is Speciality Coffee Farmed?

If coffee cherries are not planted, grown, and harvested incredibly carefully, they will not pass the multiple stages of testing that decide whether a coffee is successful in being graded with a score above 80. Only the perfectly ripe cherries are picked, and they are then carefully sorted by hand, removing any unripe cherries or debris, before they are processed.

Coffee processing means removing the layers of fruit that surround the coffee bean. The type of processing used is carefully chosen to bring out the best flavours and aromas in the coffee varieties that have been farmed.

From classic processes like natural and washed to more modern and experimental processes such as anaerobic fermentation and honey processing, each is chosen with careful consideration as to what will enhance the coffee’s flavour.

How We Roast Speciality Coffee

Speciality-grade coffee beans are then transferred to the coffee roaster. Coffee roasting is an art (and a science) that requires a high degree of knowledge and experience to produce speciality level roast profiles.

Coffee beans must be closely monitored during the roasting process to ensure that the highest standard of quality and flavour come through in the final roasted bean. Each coffee is unique and the roaster’s job is to find its perfect roast and blend. Our team at our state-of-the-art roastery in London do this each and every day.

A Q Grader is the coffee equivalent of a sommelier, trained to detect and evaluate the sweetness, acidity, balance, mouthfeel, and tasting notes in a coffee. Our in-house Q Graders test and cup every batch we roast.

How to Brew Speciality Coffee

All the time, care, and effort that goes into cultivating and producing a speciality-grade coffee can be ruined by a bad brew. It’s why we’ve created how-to guides for all brewing methods as well as our own barista-quality brewing tools and equipment, including a stainless steel Cafetière, a sleek and powerful Coffee Pod Machine, an exclusive edition of the Sage Barista Touch™ Impress Machine, a ceramic V60 Coffee Dripper, and a classic Cold Brew Coffee Maker.

Please, always brew with care and store your coffee properly (NOT in the fridge).

Is Speciality Coffee Worth It?

Well, we obviously think it is. But we're not the only ones who think that.

Many coffee lovers believe speciality-grade coffee is worth the extra cost for its incredible quality, flavours, and the ethical sourcing behind it. A cup of speciality coffee is so much richer and more complex than a commodity coffee.

When you choose speciality-grade coffee, you’re supporting people who are trying to change the coffee industry for good and you’re choosing the most planet-friendly option. Especially when the speciality coffee comes in a compostable pod, compostable bag, or recyclable can and is shipped carbon-neutral… a bit like ours.