18 Coffee Terms to Make You Sound Like a Pro

Are you coffee-obsessed but don’t sound like a coffee-profesh? Have no fear! We are going to help you sound like a coffee pro with these 18 coffee terms. (There are other coffee terms besides what is on our list, check more out here.)

Aged Coffee - Coffee that is held in warehouses for several years, sometimes deliberately, sometimes inadvertently. Such aging reduces acidity and increases body.

Americano - An espresso that is cut with very hot water to fill an American-size cup.

Batch Roaster - A machine that roasts a given quantity or batch of coffee at a time.

Body - The perceived thickness, richness, or viscosity of brewed coffee. A full-bodied coffee is one with a heavy mouthfeel.

Cappuccino - An espresso drink created with one serving of espresso topped with steamed milk and froth.

Drip Method - Brewing method that allows hot water to settle through a bed of ground coffee.

Dark Roast - Coffee beans roasted to a medium-dark color and beyond; coffee oils appear on the surface of the beans and varietal flavors are muted.

Espresso - A brewing method in which hot water is forced under pressure through a compressed bed of finely ground coffee; typically less than 2 ounces of espresso is produced.

French Roast - Beans become very dark brown in color with an oily surface; acidity and varietal qualities fade; bittersweet notes dominate.

Macchiato - A serving of espresso "stained" or topped off with a small quantity of hot, frothed milk. 

Mocha - Espresso combined with chocolate syrup and steamed milk.

Organic Coffee - Coffee that has been certified by a third-party agency as having been grown and processed without the use of pesticides, herbicides, or similar chemicals.

Piston Machine - An espresso machine that uses a piston operated by a lever to force brewing water at high pressure through a compacted bed of ground coffee.

Pour-Over Coffee - A method of drip coffee in which water is poured in a thin, steady, slow stream over a filter cone filled with ground coffee. One cup of coffee requires three minutes to brew.

Single-Origin Coffee - Unblended coffee from a single country, region, and crop.

Specialty Coffee - Specialty coffee is distinguished by the quality of its raw material and represents 10% of all coffee grown worldwide. Of that amount, only 1-2 percent qualify as superlative.

Terroir (tare – wahr) - From the French word "terre," meaning land, it denotes the influence of geography, geology, and climate on a coffee's unique taste qualities.

Wet-Processed/Washed Coffee -This process removes the skin and pulp from the bean while the coffee fruit is still fresh. Most of the world's coffees are processed in this manner.