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🧠 Quiz
📖 Coffee Glossary A–Z
A
Acidity · एसिडिटी (अम्लता)
The pleasant brightness in coffee, like in fruit. It is not the same as sourness or pH.
Related: Body, Balance
Arabica · अरेबिका
Coffea arabica, the most widely grown coffee species.
Related: Robusta, Cultivar
B
Body (Mouthfeel) · बॉडी (माउथफ़ील)
The weight and texture of coffee in the mouth, from light and tea-like to heavy and syrupy.
Related: Acidity
Break-even · ब्रेक-ईवन
The sales level where revenue equals total costs. Above it you earn a profit.
Related: Margin, Fixed cost
Brew ratio · ब्रू अनुपात
Coffee to water by weight. 1:16 means 1 g coffee per 16 g water.
Related: Extraction, TDS
Burr grinder · बर ग्राइंडर
A grinder that crushes beans between two burrs, giving more even particles than a blade grinder.
Related: Grind size
C
Cherry · चेरी
The fruit of the coffee plant. It usually holds two seeds.
Related: Parchment, Mucilage
Coffee Board of India · कॉफ़ी बोर्ड ऑफ़ इंडिया
The statutory body under the Coffee Act, 1942 that supports research, development and promotion of Indian coffee.
Related: GI, CCRI
Crema · क्रेमा
The golden foam on espresso formed from CO₂ and coffee oils.
Related: Espresso
Cultivar (Variety) · किस्म (वैरायटी)
A plant type selected or bred within a species, for example S.795, a widely grown Indian Arabica selection.
Related: Arabica
Cupping · कपिंग
A standard way to taste and compare coffees side by side.
Related: Specialty coffee
D
Degassing · डीगैसिंग
The release of CO₂ from coffee after roasting.
Related: Freshness
E
Extraction · एक्सट्रैक्शन
Dissolving soluble compounds from coffee into water. Too little tastes sour; too much can taste bitter.
Related: TDS, Brew ratio
Extraction yield · एक्सट्रैक्शन यील्ड
The percentage of the coffee's weight that dissolves into the brew.
Related: TDS
F
First crack · फ़र्स्ट क्रैक
An audible cracking during roasting as the bean expands. A key milestone roasters watch.
Related: Development
G
Geographical Indication (GI) · भौगोलिक संकेतक (GI)
A legally protected name tied to a place, for example Coorg Arabica.
Related: Terroir
Green coffee · ग्रीन कॉफ़ी
Dried, unroasted coffee seeds.
Related: Hulling
H
Honey process · हनी प्रोसेस
Cherries are pulped but some mucilage is left on the bean while drying.
Related: Natural, Washed
Hulling · हलिंग
Removing the parchment or dried fruit layers to reveal the green bean.
Related: Parchment
M
Maillard reaction · मेलार्ड अभिक्रिया
Reactions between amino acids and sugars under heat that build colour and roasted flavour.
Related: Caramelization
Micro-lot · माइक्रो-लॉट
A small, separately processed lot, often from one part of a farm.
Related: Traceability
Mucilage · म्यूसिलेज
The sticky layer between the fruit pulp and the parchment.
Related: Honey process
N
Natural process · नैचुरल प्रोसेस
Whole cherries are dried with the fruit intact, then hulled.
Related: Washed, Honey
P
Parchment · पार्चमेंट
The thin protective layer around the green bean.
Related: Hulling
R
Robusta · रोबस्टा
Coffea canephora, a hardy species that usually has more caffeine and grows in warmer, lower areas.
Related: Arabica
S
Specialty coffee · स्पेशियलिटी कॉफ़ी
High-quality coffee judged by sensory standards. A common benchmark is 80+ points on the SCA scale; definitions vary.
Related: Cupping
T
TDS · TDS (घुला ठोस)
Total dissolved solids: how concentrated a brew is, often shown as a percentage.
Related: Extraction yield
Terroir · टेरोआर
The combined effect of place on coffee: altitude, soil, climate and more.
Related: GI
Traceability · ट्रेसेबिलिटी
Being able to trace a coffee back to its farm, lot or producer.
Related: Micro-lot
W
Washed process · वॉश्ड प्रोसेस
The fruit is removed before drying and mucilage is fermented and washed off.
Related: Natural, Honey
B
Bloom · ब्लूम
The first release of CO₂ when hot water meets fresh coffee, which makes the grounds puff up.
Related: Degassing
C
Channeling · चैनलिंग
Water finds an easy path through the coffee bed (often in espresso), so some coffee is over-extracted and some under-extracted.
Related: Extraction
Chaff · चैफ़
The thin papery skin (silverskin) that flakes off beans during roasting.
Related: Roast profile
D
Dialing in · डायलिंग-इन
Adjusting grind, dose and time until the coffee tastes balanced.
Related: Extraction
M
Microfoam · माइक्रोफ़ोम
Milk foam with tiny, even bubbles that looks glossy and velvety; used for latte art.
Related: Crema
P
Peaberry · पीबेरी
A single rounded bean in a cherry, instead of the usual two flat-sided beans.
Related: Cherry
R
Ristretto · रिस्ट्रेटो
A shorter espresso made with less water, usually more concentrated.
Related: Espresso
Roast profile · रोस्ट प्रोफ़ाइल
The plan of how temperature changes over time during a roast.
Related: First crack
S
Screen size · स्क्रीन साइज़
Bean size measured in 1/64 inch; screen 18 is about 7.1 mm.
Related: Green coffee
W
Water activity · वॉटर एक्टिविटी
A measure of free water in green coffee, used with moisture as a stability check.
Related: Moisture
Definitions are simplified and general; organisations may use slightly different standards. General references: SCA, ICO, Coffee Board of India.
📚 Research Library
Where to read primary and official coffee information. We link to organisations, not to individual sellers. Coffee Board links were taken from the Board's own site; other links go to organisation home pages. Sites change, so verify.
India: official
International: organisations
Learn more elsewhere (official, non-commercial)
- Coffee Board of India runs the Kaapi Shastra Training Programme: a five-day, in-person course on roasting, brewing, espresso, grinding, cupping and related topics, announced on the Board's website. The 2026 notice listed it as a paid course in English with registration through the India Coffee App. Check the Board for the current schedule, language and fee.
- Coffee Connect is a Coffee Board app for its field staff (grower and estate records, geo-tagging, extension and subsidy tracking). It is not a public learning app.
- Before paying for any course: check who teaches it, what the syllabus is, whether a certificate is recognised by anyone you care about, and ask past students. A certificate does not replace practice.
How to judge a source
Done: 0 / 5
⚠️ Health, legal and money decisions need qualified professionals, not only a website.
🌐 World Coffee Directory
Institutions and open data sources from around the world. Each link was opened and its page matched the organisation before it was listed. We list organisations, research bodies, standards groups and open datasets, not shops, roasters or brands. Notes say when a body is a trade association or industry-funded, when a page is not in English, and when some content needs a login. Free or paid status is stated only where the page said so.
Intergovernmental bodies and world data
- International Coffee Organization (ICO): market reports, indicator prices, sustainability projects. The latest year of data is open; historical data and extraction need a sign-in.
- ICO indicator prices page
- FAO: FAOSTAT, free production, trade and area data for 245+ countries and territories, 1961 to present, including coffee
- USDA Foreign Agricultural Service: Coffee, World Markets and Trade (production, trade, consumption and stocks)
- International Trade Centre (ITC): coffee sector publications, including an exporters' guide
- World Bank Commodity Markets: monthly "Pink Sheet" price data (coffee prices are inside the files)
Research and variety science
- World Coffee Research (non-profit, industry-funded): research programmes, variety catalogue, CafeClima tool
- Association for Science and Information on Coffee (ASIC): conference proceedings on chemistry, health and sustainability
- Coffee Science journal (UFLA, Brazil): open access, CC-BY
- Embrapa Café (Brazil): publications, online courses, production dashboard
- Cenicafé (Colombia): bulletins, journal, crop tools. Spanish
- CIRAD (France): tropical crops research, document library and open data portal
- CATIE (Costa Rica): tropical agriculture research and education, including coffee pest control and pollination news
- Instituto Agronômico, IAC (Brazil): cultivars and technical bulletins. Portuguese
- UC Davis Coffee Center (USA): research and publications
- Specialty Coffee Association research hub and published standards (some content is for members)
Producing countries: official and sector bodies
- Coffee Board of India (government): statistics, publications, advisories, e-magazine
- Federación Nacional de Cafeteros (Colombia): growers' federation, reference prices and statistics. Spanish
- Anacafé (Guatemala): technical guides and statistics. Spanish; some services are paid
- IHCAFE (Honduras): prices, statistics, technical library. Spanish
- National Agricultural Export Development Board, NAEB (Rwanda): coffee sector information
- Cecafé (Brazil): exporters' council, a trade body; export reports
- Vicofa (Vietnam): coffee and cocoa association, daily prices. Vietnamese; some content for members
Sustainability and standards bodies
- Global Coffee Platform: sustainability reference code and equivalence mechanism, farming guidance
- initiative for coffee&climate: climate-smart methods for smallholders (collaboration that includes coffee companies)
- ISEAL Alliance: credibility principles for sustainability standards in general, not coffee only
- Fairtrade International: how Fairtrade works and impact data
- Rainforest Alliance: what its seal means, annual report
Nutrition, plants and open science
- PubMed: search "coffee" for study abstracts
- PubMed Central: free full-text biomedical articles
- USDA FoodData Central: nutrient data (public domain)
- Plants of the World Online (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew): search "Coffea" for species, names and native range
- GBIF: open biodiversity records
- CoffeeResearch.org: independent education site (ownership and funding are not stated on the page)
Consumer-country associations
How to use these sources well
- Trade associations and industry-funded bodies represent their members. Their data can be very useful, but read them next to independent or government sources.
- Prices and statistics change. Always note the date and unit (for example per pound, per kilogram, or per bag) before comparing numbers.
- A study listed in PubMed is not automatically strong evidence. Check the study type, size and who funded it, and see our Health section for how we grade evidence.
⚠️ Not listed because we could not open them: several national coffee authorities (for example in Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and Costa Rica) and the European Coffee Federation. They exist, but we list only what we could check. Some sites restrict automated readers, so please verify any link yourself.