Coffee can be categorized into different levels based on its quality and taste. These levels include:
- Specialty coffee: This is considered to be the highest quality coffee and meets strict standards for flavor, aroma, and acidity. Specialty coffee is usually grown at high elevations, is hand-picked and carefully processed.
- Premium coffee: This is a high-quality coffee that meets certain standards, but not as strict as those for specialty coffee.
- Commercial coffee: This is lower-quality coffee that is grown at lower elevations and is often machine-harvested and processed.
- Sub-standard coffee: This is the lowest quality coffee, which may have defects or off-flavors.
It's also worth noting that coffee can be graded based on the defects and quality of the beans, Specialty coffee beans are graded 80 points and above, while commercial grade coffee beans are graded 69 points and below.
Another way to categorize coffee is based on its roast level, which refers to how long the coffee beans have been roasted for. The roast level affects the flavor, aroma, and caffeine content of the coffee. Light roast, medium roast, and dark roast are the main categories for roast levels.
Specialty coffee beans are usually medium or light roast, which allow the origin flavor characteristics to shine through. While commercial grade coffee beans are usually dark roast as it mask off-flavors and defects.
