How we cup
Great coffee starts at origin, but it does not stop there. Every coffee we sell passes through our SCA-certified lab at 11 Fulton Street in downtown Charleston, where our team of Q Graders evaluates it before it is offered to you.
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Samples come in
We cup offer samples from our partners at origin, pre-shipment samples before coffee leaves the mill, and arrival samples when it lands in our warehouse, so we know a lot cups the way we planned.
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We look at the green
Before roasting we examine the green coffee itself: its preparation, appearance and defects.
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Sample roast
Each sample is roasted on our lab roasters to a consistent profile designed to show what the coffee can do.
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Cup and score
Our Q Graders cup side by side and record scores, tasting notes and quality data for every lot.
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Calibrate
Regular team calibration sessions keep our scores and flavor descriptors aligned, so a score from one of us means the same thing as a score from another.
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Share it with you
We share scores, tasting notes and quality data with our customers, and your Green Coffee Advocate is always happy to walk you through them or cup with you.
A working classroom
The same lab hosts our professional courses, including the SCA Q Grader Course, CVA for Cuppers and SCA Sensory Skills, led by our own Q Instructor and Authorized SCA Trainer. And yes, our observation hive from The Bee Cause Project has lived in the lab for more than a decade.