What are the three best things you can do to improve your coffee-tasting skills? Smell, taste, compare. Repeat.

Step 1: Smell the Coffee
Start by smelling the coffee when it’s freshly ground, then smell the brewed coffee to compare the two aromas. How does that compare to the aroma of the brewed coffee? Besides the obvious coffee smell, what does each aroma remind you of? A plant or flower? Wood? Earth? Use your nose to give your mouth a preview and leave your mind wide open.

Step 2: Taste the Coffee
Our Tasting Terms can help you put words to the flavors, aromas and textures you are experiencing. Get the fullest flavor by doing what the professional tasters do: slurp the brew, which aerates it. Take the coffee into your mouth so that it spreads evenly over the entire surface of your tongue and reaches all of your taste buds at once, while drawing in its aroma. Don’t be afraid to make a loud noise!

Step 3: Compare Coffees
Taste several different coffees side by side, so that the comparisons you make are as fresh in your mind and taste buds as possible. Prepare all the samples the same way, so they are consistent with each other. Take your time, and enjoy the process of each tasting. The more you taste, the better you’ll get at it.