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From the foundation of the Coffee In Coffee Competition
Taster’s Flavor Wheel, through the Coffee competitions are ubiquitous around the world.

expanding boundaries through coffee From local community events to the World Barista Champi-
onship, coffee professionals come together to connect over
competition, and as specialty coffee their shared passion for coffee.
The Barista League, a global event company, curates
culture integrates local flavors and multiple coffee competitions around the world each year.
Though their team is based in Sweden, they put on events in
global inspiration, the possibilities of many other countries, from Spain to South Korea, Colombia
to Canada, the USA to the UAE, and beyond. Their 2022
coffee flavor are ripe for exploration. season featured 9 countries, and 2023 will see them party in
11. The Barista League’s competition format requires partic-
ipants to create signature drinks using ingredients provided
at the event, many of which are sourced in the host city the
day of the competition. Steven Moloney, Founder of The
Barista League (and 2016 & 2017 Swedish Barista Champion),
explains that using such ingredients “makes the events more
local and unique. The local fruits, the types of juices, the
Throughout recent history, most coffee has been con- laborated with more coffee and non-coffee sensory profes- canned goods are all different in different countries. The
sumed in countries that do not produce coffee. Year after year, sionals, data and computer scientists, and designers to create more unique the ingredients, the more interesting and unique
Scandinavian countries drink the most coffee per capita. the current edition of the Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel. the competitions.”
Popular “third wave coffee culture” was developed primarily Though this resource is vast, it does have limitations. At La Rumba in Bogotá, Colombia (which I was lucky
in the mainland United States – far away from where coffee Created primarily in the United States, the Sensory enough to participate in), the competition featured a fruit
itself is cultivated. Recent years have seen a shift, however. Lexicon and Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel have faced scru- tasting using local fruits and fruit juices. Local baristas were
Coffee producing countries are reclaiming coffee as a consum- tiny for being consumer-centric and inaccessible, especially blindfolded and then paired with visiting baristas. The
able product and reinventing the possibilities of flavor. This to people in coffee producing regions. Peter Giuliano, Exec- Colombian team member had to taste a fruit juice and guess
article explores flavor and ingredient use locally and globally utive Director of the Coffee Science Foundation, was involved what it was without seeing the fruit, only describing the
through the Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel, on the global coffee in creating the latest iteration of the Flavor Wheel and noted flavor to their international teammate. The international
competition stage, and in cafés around the world. that blueberry and maple syrup are included in the Flavor barista could see the fruits and describe them, but didn’t
Wheel but are nearly nonexistent outside of North America, necessarily know what it was called. “We thought that it
In the Flavor Wheel thus unknown in coffee growing regions. The Flavor Wheel would be a really fun challenge for the international baris-
does include many items from producing countries including tas – everyone knows what an orange looks and tastes like,
The Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel was first developed coconut, pineapple, orange, lemon, lime, peanut, chocolate/ pion, Juan Díaz, agrees. “I am a very fundamentals focused but what about a lulo or guanabana [soursop] – so having
in the 1990’s by a small team of coffee professionals led by dark chocolate, and molasses. Yet there are plenty more fruits person myself. I think if I was not a Latin American barista the local barista who knows the flavours and the interna-
Ted Lingle, the Executive Director of the Specialty Coffee and flavors omitted from the official lexicon such as panela today and I saw panela, guava, and orange lemon on the flavor tional barista who can actually see the fruits was designed
Association of America (SCA[A]) at the time. The goal was (unrefined cane sugar), cascara (dried coffee cherries), wheel I would be confused. An idea that comes to mind is to get the teams working together in a fun way,” says Mo-
to standardize quality control and create a common language coffee blossom tea (tea made from coffee flowers), passion- allowing producing countries to create a flavor wheel per loney. What was local to one barista was foreign to anoth-
for the coffee industry. This flavor wheel primarily focused fruit (tart tropical fruit), mango (sweet tropical fruit), lulo/ producing country with local spices, cacao, fruits, grains, er, creating a dynamic exchange around flavor descriptions
on “bad” or undesirable characteristics, listing 82 descriptors naranjilla (citrus fruit from Central/South America), pandan vegetable flavors found in coffee. Maybe collecting this data in this competition.
for defects, 66 words for aroma, and only 28 for tastes. (fragrant leaf used in Asian cuisine), ube (purple yam from for professionals who want to get deeper into expanding their Signature drinks also appear in National and World
Three decades later, the flavor wheel was revamped. the Philippines), and many more. flavor memory and palate.” Díaz’s idea creates a connection Barista Championships, where competitors must create a
Whereas the first Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel was based on Though the Flavor Wheel is limited, coffee profession- between the local and global experiences – allowing each signature drink that highlights their espresso and transforms
industry knowledge and experience from the team who cre- als need not restrict their experience of coffee to fit within locale to call out the flavor notes that are most important to the flavor notes by using other ingredients. Moloney states
ated it, the “new and improved” flavor wheel was built upon its confines. Morgan Eckroth, 2022 US Barista Champion and them, while maintaining a broader structure. that, in barista championships, “you are always trying to make
data and research. World Coffee Research (WCR) released a World Barista Champion runner-up says, “I think [the Flavor The current Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel was designed your sig drink pop, so any exotic or rare ingredients can help
Sensory Lexicon in 2016 which scientifically categorized, Wheel is] a great guide but it is, in no way, all encompassing. as a scientific instrument, created to be specific and limited in it stand out from the hundreds of other coffee drinks that
described, and explained 110 flavor and aroma attributes I don’t think we should feel glued to it when evaluating flavor. order to establish a common language for coffee professionals have been done before.” Competitors who are based in coffee
found in coffee. A dense encyclopedia of coffee flavor refer- Flavor is such a subjective thing that builds on our own per- to use. It sets a foundation that others within the specialty producing countries likely have knowledge of fruits that pair
ences, the purpose was to provide objective and quantitative sonal experiences and backgrounds. There’s no way a singu- coffee industry can build upon but needn’t be restricted to. well with certain coffees – like the Colombian baristas during
standards for professionals to use in analyzing coffee. Short- lar wheel will ever be able to cover all of that.” Colombian One realm where creativity and innovation merge with struc- La Rumba. But how do competitors from non-producing
ly after the Sensory Lexicon was released, the SCA[A] col- coffee exporter and 2023 Baltimore Regional Barista Cham- ture and boundaries is in global coffee competitions. countries find unique flavors to feature?

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