The Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) is asking for help to acquire samples of unique flavoured coffees for a research project they’re currently involved in. href=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdsPkWu9LhI”> The project, which the SCAA is working on in conjunction with World Coffee Research and Kansas State University, is to develop a flavour lexicon for coffee. Flavour lexicons are tools for describing a selection of food or beverage and are commonly used in the wine and cheese industries. “A flavour lexicon is simply a set of words to describe the flavour of a product or commodity,” said M.A Drake and G.V Civille, in Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety. The lexicon provides a source list to describe a category of products, such as coffees. “To develop this lexicon, we must provide researchers with samples of coffees featuring many different, unique flavours and sensory characteristics,” said the SCAA. “We are looking to our members to provide samples of their most distinctive, unusual, or interesting coffees for evaluation by a panel of professional tasters.” The SCAA is seeking 4.5 kilogram sample packs of roasted coffee to be sent to Kansas State University along with tasting notes, and information regarding the grower and producer. These coffee samples will be used to develop a common language for comparing coffee. “Once developed, flavour lexicons can be used to record and define product flavour, compare products, determine storage stability, as well as interface with consumer liking and acceptability,” said Drake and Civille. Anyone interested in submitting a coffee can learn how to online: Watch taste professional Gail Vance Civille tell the story of sensory science and the coffee trade.
