Walk into almost any independent coffee shop in the UK and you will probably come across the words specialty coffee. You might see them printed on a coffee bag, displayed on a café menu or used to describe a carefully prepared flat white. You may even have noticed the term appearing on coffee subscription websites, independent roasters and premium coffee brands.
But what does specialty coffee actually mean?
Is it simply more expensive coffee? Does it come from a particular country? Is it about the way the beans are roasted, how they are grown or how they taste? And perhaps most importantly, what makes one coffee specialty while another is considered commercial or everyday coffee?
The truth is that specialty coffee is about considerably more than an attractive bag, an interesting origin story or a premium price tag. It is about quality, consistency, traceability, careful cultivation, processing, roasting and the people responsible for bringing coffee from farm to cup.
At Siren Grounds, we believe understanding coffee is part of enjoying it. Whether you are discovering specialty coffee for the first time, exploring different origins or simply trying to understand what makes one cup taste different from another, knowing what sits behind the term can completely change how you experience coffee. So, let's look at what actually makes a coffee specialty.
What is specialty coffee?
Specialty coffee is coffee that demonstrates exceptional quality through its cultivation, processing, evaluation and preparation. Traditionally, specialty coffee has been associated with the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) quality framework, under which coffees scoring 80 points or above on a 100-point scale have historically been classified as specialty grade.
However, the industry has been evolving its approach to coffee evaluation. The SCA's newer Coffee Value Assessment framework takes a broader approach, considering physical, descriptive, affective and extrinsic attributes rather than relying solely on one overall score. In simple terms, specialty coffee is coffee that stands out for its quality, identifiable characteristics and the care taken throughout its journey.
This can include:
- High-quality coffee cherries selected at the right stage of ripeness.
- Carefully managed growing conditions.
- Precise harvesting and processing techniques.
- Clear information about origin and production.
- Quality-focused roasting.
- Distinctive aroma, flavour and balance.
- Consistent preparation and brewing.
It is not simply about buying beans from an expensive coffee shop or choosing a product with premium packaging. A genuinely quality-focused coffee has a story that can be traced back through the people, places and processes responsible for producing it.
The 80-point rule: How is specialty coffee graded?
One of the most frequently asked questions about specialty coffee is whether there is an official grading system. Historically, the Specialty Coffee Association's 100-point scoring system has been one of the industry's most recognised methods of evaluating coffee quality.
One of the biggest misconceptions about specialty coffee is that its quality is created entirely during roasting. In reality, much of what makes a coffee exceptional begins long before the beans reach a roastery.
Coffee is an agricultural product. Its characteristics are influenced by where it grows, the surrounding environment, the coffee variety and the way the crop is managed. Several factors can influence the final cup. Coffee grown at higher elevations can mature more slowly because of cooler temperatures and differences in growing conditions. This slower development can contribute to complex flavour characteristics, although altitude alone does not guarantee quality. Depending on the variety and environment, coffees from higher elevations may display floral, fruity, citrus or more delicate flavour profiles.
Temperature, rainfall, sunlight, soil composition and local environmental conditions all influence how coffee plants develop. Different coffee-growing regions have distinct climates and ecosystems, which can contribute to differences in the flavour of their coffees. This is one reason why coffees from Ethiopia, Colombia, Brazil and Guatemala can taste so different from one another.
Coffee cherries do not all ripen at exactly the same time. On the same coffee plant, cherries can reach maturity at different stages, which means harvesting decisions can have a direct impact on the quality of the final beans. For quality-focused coffee production, selecting ripe cherries is particularly important.
Under-ripe cherries can contribute unwanted grassy, harsh or astringent characteristics, while overripe or damaged fruit can introduce undesirable flavours. Careful harvesting helps producers maintain consistency and quality. Some farms use selective hand-picking, where workers choose cherries that have reached the desired level of ripeness.
Although this can be more labour-intensive than mechanical harvesting, it allows greater control over which cherries enter the processing stage. This is an important part of the specialty coffee journey because quality starts with the raw material.