Explore the World of Coffee Cupping in DCF’s Tasting Room
Captured by Lou Wilcock at Manchester Coffee Festival 2023
As part of our exhilarating programme at the Dublin Coffee Festival, we're thrilled to introduce a special Tasting Room where you can embark on a guided sensory journey through the art of coffee cupping. Our festival brings together passionate coffee roasters and green coffee producers, offering an unparalleled experience to savour diverse coffee flavours from around the world. In this blog, we'll delve into the basics of coffee cupping and what awaits you in our Tasting Room.
Unveiling the Art of Coffee Cupping
Coffee cupping, or cup tasting is a useful way to assess the flavour notes of coffee, and regularly cupping helps to increase your knowledge and understanding of how process and origin can impact the final in-the-cup experience. Because coffee cupping has roots in grading coffee and quality control, it can often feel a bit strange or intimidating to participate in, but actually cupping is a really fantastic way to further your understanding of different types of coffee, improve your palate, have fun and hopefully, connect with some similarly passionate folk!
It is for everybody, and it isn’t about very clever coffee professionals telling you what’s the ‘correct’ thing to taste; it’s about experiencing coffee in a new way and travelling along your own path to determine what it is you’re tasting on the table, and how you feel about it. Therefore, we’ve put together a very easy step-by-step guide to cupping to help you on that journey!
Captured by Lou Wilcock at Manchester Coffee Festival 2023
Step 1: Assess the dry fragrance. Before the coffee grounds are covered in water to be brewed, they will be coarsely ground and placed into the cupping bowls: at this point, lean in and have a hearty sniff of what the dry coffee smells like. Sometimes it can be a bit hard to know what you’re smelling, and that’s fine! Try thinking ‘do I like this?’ or even ‘does this remind me of anything?’- this experience isn’t about finding a specific answer, it’s just about exploring the coffees on the cupping table!
Captured by Lou Wilcock at Manchester Coffee Festival 2023
Step 2: Don’t break the crust. After the coffee is immersed with hot water, a crust will form in the bowl, and as tempting as it might be, don’t break that crust until at least 3 minutes have passed! The guidelines on how long to leave the crust differ, but there’s a general consensus that you don’t really want to leave it for more than 5 minutes. Breaking the crust can often look different, depending on who is hosting the cupping, but it’s useful to set a repeatable method like stirring three times. Make sure you sniff sniff sniff as that crust is broken, and see how this ‘wet aroma’ is different (or similar!) to the dry fragrance. Once the crust has been broken, scoop away any extra debris from the time, leaving a clean bowl.
Captured by Lou Wilcock at Manchester Coffee Festival 2023
Step 3: Get your slurp on! Once that crust has been broken, and the coffee grounds have been immersed for a total of around 8-10 minutes, it is time for that magical moment of slurping to start! Silly as it seems, slurping the coffee you scoop onto your spoon is actually a great way to get the liquid to cover lots of your tongue and mouth at once, making it easier to assess the flavours of the coffee. Slurping can look a bit different for everybody- and it can certainly sound different, too, but you will find a method that feels comfortable and enjoyable for you. Scoop a small amount of the liquid coffee onto your spoon and inhale as you pucker your lips to shoot the liquid into your mouth, and most importantly, don’t feel embarrassed! After you have sampled from your own spoon, be sure to rinse it clean, hot water, to avoid ‘double-dipping’! Some people like to spit out what they slurp into spit cups so they can taste lots without a caffeine overdose; spitting is a very normal part of the cupping experience and isn’t something to feel awkward about, either!
Captured by Lou Wilcock at Manchester Coffee Festival 2023
Step 4: Slurp, slurp again, and slurp some more! You’ll notice that as the coffee cools down, you’ll be able to pull out other flavours that weren’t so accessible when the coffee was hot: for example, a lot of people find it easier to detect sweetness as the coffee cools closer to body temperature. Go back to your cupping bowls as many times as you’d like (whilst remembering to rinse your spoon in between each time) and try to engage with the experience on your level; don’t worry about detecting specifically ‘black cherry’ or ‘quince’, just enjoy the experience and notice how you feel towards the flavours and aromas you encounter. Think about how the coffee feels in your mouth: Is it thick? Heavy? As soon as you swallow, or spit, does the taste simply vanish or does it linger? Is that bitterness, or is it actually acidity: does it remind you more of dark chocolate or perhaps some kind of citrus fruit? Play with this: there’s no right or wrong here, just the opportunity to explore and learn!
Captured by Lou Wilcock at Manchester Coffee Festival 2023
Step 5: Do it again! Cuppings are great community experiences that really are for everybody, try not to feel intimidated or under pressure to smell or taste the ‘right things’; learn from yourself, and chat to people after the cupping is over about their backgrounds, experience and then what they tasted: everybody is different and cultural and professional references will play a big role in how they cup and what they taste. Chatting with other folk will not only help you feel more comfortable in a cupping setting, but it will also provide a wonderful opportunity to learn from others, too, and take this experience with you the next time you cup!
Start Your First Coffee Cupping in Our Tasting Room!
Our Tasting Room is part of our highlight spot at the Dublin Coffee Festival, bringing together 12 wonderful roasters and green coffee producers. Each of them will showcase their unique coffee varieties from different origins during designated slots throughout Friday and the weekend. For the detailed schedule, head over to our Whats On pages in the link below.
When you enter the Tasting Room, our hosts and crew will have all the necessary coffee cupping setup prepared for you. Simply bring your cupping spoon and cup, or borrow them from our crew, and immerse yourself in the delightful world of coffee exploration. After savouring each cup, take the opportunity to engage with the people around you, our crew and hosts, sharing your thoughts and insights on the captivating flavours you've experienced.
Don't miss out on this extraordinary opportunity to elevate your coffee appreciation. Join us for a memorable journey through the diverse and rich world of coffee cupping this March!
Next Level Cupping!
For an in-depth understanding, we recommend watching James Hoffmann's insightful video on coffee cupping, especially if you're considering trying it at home before coming to our festival!