Coffee Tasting 5 min read

Coffee Cupping: How to Cup Coffee at Home

How coffee cupping works: the SCA-style ratio, water, grind and timing, how to break the crust and slurp, and how professional scoring is changing.

By the CupCura editorial team. How we work

Published · Reviewed

Cupping is a standardised way of tasting coffee: several samples are brewed the same way, in identical cups, so you compare the coffees rather than the brewer.

You pour hot water straight onto coarse grounds, wait four minutes, break the crust, and taste with a spoon as the liquid cools. The method is professional, but a basic session needs only a scale, matching cups and a spoon, and it is one of the cheapest ways to learn what your own palate prefers.

The protocol at a glance

The figures below come from an importer's step-by-step guide that follows the long-standing SCA protocol. They are the numbers most cuppers still use, though the SCA has since adopted newer standards (see below), so check SCA-102 if you need certified conditions.

VariableStandardHome version
Dose8.25 g per 150 mL water (about 1:18, 55 g per litre)Same; weigh the coffee, do not scoop
Water93°C (200°F), within 92.2 to 94.4°CFreshly boiled and left a moment
Grind70 to 75% of grounds pass through a #20 sieveMedium-coarse, ground just before cupping
Sample roast8 to 12 minute roast, done 8 to 24 hours beforeUse the roast you have; very light or dark roasts can mislead
Cups5 per sample, 207 to 266 mL (7 to 9 fl oz), 76 to 89 mm across, with lids2 to 3 identical cups per coffee
Steep4 minutes before breaking the crustSame
First tasteOften about 77°C (170°F), 10 to 15 minutes after pouringThen keep tasting as it cools

The guide stresses weighing by ratio, because grounds displace water: 11.5 g in a 200 mL glass leaves about 185 mL of water, so the glass size is not the measure.

Step by step

  1. Weigh 8.25 g of coffee per cup and grind just before cupping. Flush the grinder with a few grams of the next coffee between samples.
  2. Smell the dry grounds and note the fragrance.
  3. Pour 150 mL of water over the grounds, wetting all of them, and start a timer.
  4. At 4 minutes, push a spoon gently but firmly through the crust until the grounds are fully broken and only foam remains, and sniff as the aroma rises. Rinse the spoon between cups.
  5. Skim the foam off with two spoons, leaving the grounds undisturbed.
  6. Slurp a spoonful sharply so the coffee sprays across the palate. Wikipedia gives a typical spoonful as 4 to 5 mL. Spitting is encouraged.
  7. Taste again as the coffee cools, and note aroma, acidity, sweetness, body and aftertaste separately before forming an overall view.

Setting up a fair test

  • Water matters. The importer's guide gives an ideal of about 150 ppm total dissolved solids, 40 ppm alkalinity and pH 7.0; the SCA's current cupping-water specification may set different ranges, so check SCA-102 for certified work. The guide also calls for 0 ppm chlorine, so strongly chlorinated tap water falls outside it. Our water minerals guide explains why.
  • Blind it. Many cuppers use random alphanumeric codes with a key prepared in advance. The guide warns that looking at grounds sheets or bean samples can bias judgement.
  • Keep the room neutral. Avoid strong smells and foods such as salt, fat, spice, sweet or sour beforehand, stay quiet and keep discussion until after tasting.
  • Order matters. Strong flavours affect the next sample, and the guide notes that fully random order is not always best.

Scoring: what is changing

For years cuppers used the SCAA form from 2004, scored out of 100, where below 69.9 was defective, 70 to 79.9 commercial, 80 and above specialty, and 90 and above "super" specialty. In November 2024 the SCA formally adopted three new Coffee Value Assessment standards that replace the 2004 protocol and form: 102 for sample preparation and tasting mechanics, 103 for descriptive assessment and 104 for affective assessment. The SCA says the aim is to move away from a single quality score towards a fuller profile.

For home use this means you do not need a number. Writing what you smell and taste, then separately how much you like it, matches the new idea. It also avoids false precision: your score is a record of your palate on one day, not a measurement of the coffee.

Limits of cupping

Cupping tells you how coffees differ under one standard recipe, not how they will taste under yours. Immersion in coarse grounds is unlike espresso or a cone dripper, so a coffee that cups well can still need adjusting when you brew it. The method also depends on the taster. Group discussion can prompt re-tasting, and the guide notes that cuppers may adjust scores afterwards, which shows how subjective the result is. Calibration comes from tasting the same coffees alongside other people.

Who it suits

Cupping suits anyone choosing between two to six coffees, learning to separate acidity from bitterness (see the acidity guide and the bitterness guide), or checking whether a new bag lives up to its tasting notes. Skip the formal version if you only drink one coffee, or if you want a recipe to brew with: use the extraction guide for that. For comparing roasts you may prefer to cup the same bean at two roast levels.

Questions

What spoon is used for coffee cupping?

A round, bowl-shaped spoon in non-reactive metal. The importer's guide describes a 4 to 5 mL capacity, wide and shallow, while Wikipedia describes short handles and deep basins, so sources differ; a deep tablespoon works for home use.

What size are coffee cupping bowls?

The importer's guide lists 207 to 266 mL (7 to 9 fl oz) cups with lids and a top diameter of 76 to 89 mm for the SCA standard. Informal sessions often use two or three cups per coffee instead of five.

Do I need a class to learn cupping?

No. A basic session needs a scale, matching cups and a spoon. A class or a group helps because you calibrate your palate against other people's.

Sources

Related reading

Found a mistake? Tell the editors.