Specialty coffee is a term for the highest grade of coffee available, typically relating to the entire supply chain, using single origin or single estate coffee. The term was first used in 1974 by Erna Knutsen in an issue of Tea & Coffee Trade Journal. Knutsen used specialty coffee to describe beans of the best flavor which are produced in special micro-climates. Specialty coffee is related to what is known as the Third Wave of Coffee, especially throughout North America. This refers to a modern demand for exceptional quality coffee, both farmed and brewed to a significantly higher than average standard.
Definition
The widely accepted definition of specialty coffee is coffee scoring 80 points or above on the 100-point Coffee Review scale. Coffee scoring from 90-100 is graded Outstanding, coffee that scores 85-89.99 is graded Excellent, while coffee scoring 80-84.99 is graded Very Good. The Specialty Coffee Association has a series of more detailed specifications and Europe ). The SCA sets standards for specialty coffee at every stage of the coffee production, including allowable defects in green beans, water standards, and brew strength. The SCA also sets clear standards on the coffee grading process.
Growing Locations
In general, coffee is grown in the ‘Bean Belt’, between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, which produce the tropical climate required for trees to thrive. Speciality coffee is typically grown in three continents: South and Central Americas, Asia, and Africa. The world’s most expensive specialty coffee is Panama Geisha coffee, which has been sold for over US$800 per pound.
Specialty Coffee Consumption
In Australia and New Zealand, specialty coffee is considered mainstream with major specialty wholesalers like Campos coffee supplying hundreds of Australian cafes. This is perhaps partly due to a long history of espresso consumption, fuelled by large Italian and Greek migrations in the mid-twentieth century. While specialty coffee in North America is rarely offered in major coffee chains, the Third Wave of Coffee has resulted in a significant increase in specialty coffee consumption. Independent, ‘Australian-style’, or artisan cafes have opened in multiple cities. An SCAA report estimated the US had 29,300 specialty coffee shops in 2013, up from 2,850 in 1993. Europe is already a major coffee market accounting for 30% of global consumption, but is seeing a growth in demand for specialty coffee while overall demand remains stable. In 2016, specialty coffee was Europe’s fastest growing major restaurant category, with an increase of 9.1% from 2014-2015. Western Europe saw a particularly large growth of 10.5% in the specialty cafe market, while the overall coffee industry reduced by 1.5%, perhaps due to a longer history of coffee consumption. Asia is projected to soon represent the world’s largest consumer of specialty coffee, with over US$3.7 billion in new value growth projected from 2016-2020. Despite Asia being traditionally dominated by tea consumption, it is now easy to find specialty coffee shops across many Chinese, Japanese, and Korean cities. There have also been increases in the consumption of coffee from countries traditionally responsible for growing coffee. Brazil’s overall coffee consumption in 2014 was 21 million bags, close to that of the US at 23.4 million bags. Guatemala is also experiencing a surge in popularity of specialty coffee.
