Tasteless!

[Bardo]

I have read many posts about cupping, and I understand the reasoning behind the practice I think. So I think it wise to cup my own coffee, so that I can judge its merit against my own metrics, but also the samples that I get so that I can decide on what coffee to buy. Now being that I am essentially isolated from any coffee community other than this great forum (by geography mostly), I am working in a vacuum. I don't have another coffee nut sitting with me to bang my judgements off of. How can I refine my cupping palette? Or am I simply creating my own palette with which to judge the coffee world as I see it?

 

[ensoluna]

hello freeman.

I think that your thread is very important and great question. I do not know how others did it before, but I just wanted to explain how I learned it.

I am also new to cupping. when I began, i had absolutely no idea how to do it and what to look out for.
I learned it by attending cupping practices in cooperatives, in our company, and in other exporting companies here in Guatemala. (i have never took any classes or lessons in USA). I just followed what my partner did in the beginning and later on, i started to asking questions in detail to Daniel and other professional cuppers. then, I researched it on line to verify it. and if I had questions, again, I asked questions and practiced with Daniel and real cuppers in our company. For me, I guess that I have a much greater advantage over many people because all day long I am surrounded by great cuppers and one of our partner is the greatest cupper in Guatemala ever. that really helps me.

I think that you must have someone to show you, teach you to do it right.
In cupping, there are so many procedures, from the picking out the right beans, peeling it, roasting them in right roaster, grind, measuring in right grams, perfect water temp and what kind of water to use.... it is almost endless to do it 100% properly. (even though NO ONE follows it 100% correctly)

If there are really no real cuppers to teach you and show you, I suggest you to take some classes and know the basic. then, it is about practice and practice and making memos on what you have done to compare with next practice..and so on.
However, without the experts you to tell you what you have done is right or wrong, it is bit tough to do it all by yourself.

for your reference, in real professional cupping world, among professionals, there are + - 1.5 point difference. Even among CoE auction cuppers.
From cupper from Japan can have 83.5 and another cupper from France can have 86.5. that is 3 point difference which is huge in CoE auction.
They said that where the countries the cuppers are from, their palette can be quite different due to cultures, foods, ...etc

Anyway, to begin, take some basic courses to find out how it is exactly done and keep practicing on your own and if you have a chance to do it with others, do it as many as you can. it is all about training your senses.

 

[augustaroaster]

Cupping is a very quirky thing. It's a little weird, to be honest, but I love doing it and we do it at my roaster about two to three times a week. The easiest way to "hone-in" your palate is going to be by comparison. What I mean by that is get a coffee sample from an importer. Look at the notes the importer has on their website for said coffee, go buy the fruits, spices, etc. that are said to be in the coffee. Cup the coffee, making sure all variables are accounted for (like water temp, grind size, ratios, etc.) and see if you can identify the nuances and notes by comparing them to the fruits, spices, and whatever else you have. PM me if you have any questions, I'll be happy to go more in depth!