What is speciality coffee? A guide to the 80-point standard

Speciality coffee is coffee that scores 80 points or more out of 100 when assessed by trained tasters using the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) protocol. Coffee scoring 80 to 84.99 is graded very good, 85 to 89.99 excellent, and 90 to 100 outstanding. Anything below 80 isn’t speciality grade. In practice the score is the end of a long chain of care, from how the coffee is grown and picked to how it is roasted and brewed.

Only a minority of the world’s coffee makes the grade. Most is commodity coffee, traded in bulk on price rather than flavour.

What makes coffee speciality?

The score comes from cupping, a standard tasting method in which trained cuppers, often licensed Q Graders, assess fragrance, flavour, aftertaste, acidity, body, balance and sweetness, and check that every cup is clean and consistent. Defects cost points. The SCA introduced a newer system, the Coffee Value Assessment, in 2023, which separates a coffee’s quality score from its descriptive tasting notes, but the 80-point line is still the shorthand the industry uses.

Before it’s ever tasted, green coffee is usually checked physically too. Typical tests cover:

• Moisture content and water activity, which affect how well the coffee keeps
• Density and bean size
• Colour
• Defect counts: broken, insect-damaged, sour or black beans, and foreign matter

Roasted coffee can be tested as well, for roast colour, moisture, grind particle size, dissolved solids and pH in the brew, and residual oxygen in the bag. Laboratories can also test for caffeine, chlorogenic acids and contaminants such as ochratoxin A, a mould toxin. Not every coffee goes through every test, but the principle is the same: quality is measured, not assumed.

The chain from farm to cup

A speciality score is only possible if nothing goes wrong along the way. Each link matters.

1. Growing. Almost all speciality coffee is Arabica, grown at altitude in the coffee belt, with good soil, shade and careful farm management. Fine Robusta exists too, but it’s less common.
2. Picking. Cherries are picked ripe, often by hand and in several passes, because underripe and overripe fruit cause defects.
3. Processing. The fruit is removed (washed process), left on to dry (natural process), or partly removed (honey process). Fermentation and drying are watched closely. Most coffee is dried in the sun on patios or raised beds, with mechanical dryers used in some places to finish the job evenly.
4. Sorting and storage. Beans are graded, defects removed by hand or machine, and the green coffee rested and stored at the right moisture before shipping in protective bags.
5. Roasting. Roasters develop a profile for each coffee to bring out its character, which for single origins often means lighter to medium roasts. We explain the differences in our guide to light, medium and dark roasts.
6. Brewing. The final link is yours. Fresh grinding, good water and the right ratio make the most of everything that came before.

Speciality coffee is often produced by smallholders and family farms who put quality ahead of volume. The best-known regions include Central and South America, East Africa and parts of Asia and the Pacific, such as Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

Speciality, craft and micro-lot: what is the difference?

These three are often muddled together. Speciality is a quality grade, decided by the score. Craft coffee describes an approach to roasting and brewing: small batches and hands-on attention. A micro-lot is a tiny, separately kept batch from one part of a farm. A coffee can be speciality without being either of the others, and a speciality blend is still speciality.

Speciality coffee also doesn’t have to come from one place. Single origin means one country or region, and single estate means one farm, but well-made blends of speciality coffees are speciality too. Speciality decaf exists as well; our guide to Swiss Water decaf explains how caffeine can be removed with water alone.

How can you tell if coffee is speciality?

There’s no official logo for consumers, so the bag has to do the talking. Signs to look for:

• Detail about origin: country, region and ideally the farm, cooperative or producer.
• Variety and process: for example Caturra, washed, or Bourbon, natural.
• Tasting notes that sound specific rather than generic.
• A roast date, or at least a clear best before, and a one-way valve on the bag.
• A roaster willing to answer questions about where the coffee came from.

Then taste it. Speciality coffee should taste clean, with no ashy, rubbery or musty notes, and you should be able to pick out some sweetness even without sugar. A bag that just says “100% Arabica, rich and smooth” might be fine coffee, but it isn’t telling you much.

Why speciality coffee costs more

Hand picking, careful processing, sorting, testing and smaller volumes all add cost, and producers are paid a premium for quality. For most people the extra comes to pennies per cup, and we think the difference in flavour is worth it. Our article on why spend more on your coffee goes into the economics.

Speciality coffee in the UK

Instant coffee still fills a lot of British cupboards, but speciality has grown steadily. Independent roasters now operate in cities and market towns across the country, and many high streets have at least one café serving single origin filter alongside the flat whites. Events such as the London Coffee Festival and the SCA’s UK barista competitions have helped bring it to a wider audience. Buying online has made a difference too: freshly roasted beans can arrive by post within days of roasting.

Our approach

We keep our range deliberately small. Chris and Monty carried out more than 5,500 tastings across farms, exporters, importers, roasters and baristas, and chose fewer than ten coffees from all of them. Every one is ethically sourced. The range covers single origins such as Colombian Huila and Fairtrade Brazil, alongside signature blends built for espresso and filter. You can read more about us.

Common questions

Is speciality coffee the same as single origin?

No. Single origin describes where coffee comes from; speciality describes its quality. Many single origins are speciality, but blends can be too.

Is speciality coffee stronger?

Not necessarily. Strength depends on how much coffee you use and how you brew it. Speciality coffee tends to taste cleaner and sweeter rather than harsher.

Can I drink speciality coffee with milk?

Yes. Some coffees are chosen for exactly that. Milk brings out caramel and chocolate notes in many medium roasts.

Is “speciality” or “specialty” correct?

Both. Speciality is the British spelling; specialty is American, and it’s the spelling in the Specialty Coffee Association’s name.

If you’re new to speciality coffee, start with something approachable. Drip Brew Special, a blend of Brazil, Colombia and Costa Rica created for filter, is sweet and malty black and turns to caramel and toffee with milk. It’s a gentle introduction.