A Look Behind the Scenes of Equal Exchange’s Quality Lab
“Cupping is a precise way to analyze and taste coffee. It’s a kind of “sensory” analysis, meaning we use several senses to evaluate it: smell, taste, and touch (mouthfeel).”
In the time-lapse video above, Equal Exchange's Coffee Quality Control and Food Safety Coordinator, Kim O’Donnell, leads Coffee Roaster, Mark Allen, through the important steps of a Production Cupping, each of which is measured and timed, with the cupper taking notes along the way:
Smell the freshly ground coffee
Add hot water, smell, and steep
Break the “crust” that forms on top of the cup, with 3 forceful stirs; smell again during this process
Scoop and remove the oils and foam from the top of the brew
Taste the coffee, evaluating for several different characteristics, including acidity and mouthfeel, and noting prominent flavor attributes
Although the time-lapse video is only 34 seconds, the process typically takes about 45 minutes. While smelling, tasting, and evaluating, we do not talk. This has two benefits: it allows for complete focus and also prevents the cuppers from influencing each other during their analysis. After each cupper has evaluated on their own, they then discuss their findings, compare notes, ask questions, and sometimes taste again.
Photos, left to right: 1. pouring hot water over pre-measured, fresh coffee grinds; 2. Beth Ann breaking the “crust” revealing the unique aromas of the roast; 3. scooping to remove the top layer of coffee grinds, oils, and foam; 4. Edson tasting and evaluating each cup.
At Equal Exchange, we cup coffee for a variety of reasons. The most common are:
Pre-Shipment Cupping: When evaluating a coffee sample from a farmer group, to determine if we will purchase it, and if so, in what quantity.
Arrival Cupping: When we receive the shipment of coffee that we purchased from a farmer co-op, to confirm that the coffee we received matches the Pre-Shipment Sample, and that nothing compromised the quality of the coffee while it was in transit across the ocean.
Production Cupping: Immediately after roasting a coffee to be packaged and sold to our customers, we evaluate it to make sure that it tastes exactly as it should, to get our thumbs-up to go out the door to you.
Coffee cupping is happening continuously at Equal Exchange. Coffee crops are harvested at different times in different countries that we buy from, and each lot of coffee goes through the 3 cupping processes above, although the process starts at a different moment for each unique lot of coffee.
Different configurations of our team members cup together as well, again, for a variety of purposes. In the photos, Beth Ann Caspersen, our Coffee Quality Control Manager, leads a cupping with Edson Silva, one of our Coffee Roasters. Collaboration between these two teams is something we prioritize.
Our Quality Control team participates in every cupping and their knowledge serves as an important through-line across coffees and across time. We believe that the coworkers who roast the coffee should also have a direct connection to the products that they create.
Coffee beans change over time, and a knowledgeable roaster can adapt their roasting technique to respond to dynamic factors including the coffee’s age and size, as well as to more external factors like weather and humidity. When Kim and Mark, or Beth Ann and Edson, taste coffee together, they are able to note subtle changes and discuss any roasting process tweaks to make in the coming roast cycles.
Coffee quality is a complex concept, and high-quality coffee is a result of many thoughtful steps from farm to final brew technique. Cupping is one essential tool that we use to actively engage in producing high-quality organic, fair trade coffee at our roastery.