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Tasting Notes in Coffee: How We Describe Flavor at Tradition

By Brian Burik | Read time: -- min | Category: How To

Ever picked up a bag of our coffee and noticed the tasting notes? Years ago, before I started a specialty coffee business, I would’ve rolled my eyes at that idea. Tasting notes? It just tastes like coffee. That was my take.

From the Firehouse to the Roastery

Before founding Tradition Coffee Roasters, I was a firefighter in New York City, working out of Ladder 28 in Harlem—one of the busiest houses in the city. Fires were frequent, sleep was rare, and coffee was essential.

In the firehouse, coffee had a single purpose: to wake us up and keep us going. We drank dark roast by default—not because we loved the flavor or knew its origin, but because it was strong and reliable. No one talked about tasting notes. No one cared about roast levels. The only thing that mattered was that first pot of the day, the aroma drifting through the halls, the mental haze lifting... and finally, the first sip. Ahhh.

Coffee back then was functional. It was straightforward, bitter, dark, and bought based on price. If you'd asked me what it tasted like, I’d have said, “Coffee.”

Today: A New Perspective

Now, I co-own Tradition Coffee Roasters, where we source and roast coffee from around the world, with a special focus on Hawai‘i-grown beans. Along the way, I became a licensed Q-Arabica Grader and Q-Processor (Professional Level 2)—certifications that require intense training and testing.

Through this journey, my view of coffee transformed. I discovered that coffee can be complex, sweet, fruity, tropical, floral—even creamy or bright. In short, coffee is anything but one-dimensional.

That evolution in understanding brought a favorite phrase to life for me:

“You don’t know what you don’t know.” Years ago, I didn’t. But now I do.

What Tasting Notes Really Mean

One of the most important parts of Q-Grader training is learning how to describe coffee. It’s not something you’re born with—it takes repetition, calibration, and focus. But over time, you train your palate to detect the subtle notes that naturally emerge from a coffee’s origin, process, and roast.

So when we list tasting notes on a bag, we’re not adding flavors—we’re simply sharing what we taste. Our goal is to help set expectations and add a layer of enjoyment for you, the drinker.

Three Types of Coffee Drinkers

In our experience, people tend to fall into one of three camps when it comes to tasting notes:

1. The Curious Taster — You find tasting notes fun. You see them as a guide and a challenge. Whether you detect the same flavors or not, you enjoy the process.

2. The Skeptic — You still just taste “coffee.” You wonder if tasting notes are real or just clever marketing. Maybe you feel a bit left out, thinking your palate isn’t refined enough.

3. The Literal Thinker — You take the notes literally. If it says “sweet,” you assume there’s sugar. If it says “nutty,” you worry it might trigger a peanut allergy.

To be clear: We don’t add flavors to our coffee. The only ingredient is coffee. The tasting notes come from what we naturally perceive during roasting and cupping.

How Flavor Develops

The natural flavors in coffee are influenced by four key factors:
Varietal – the genetic variety of the coffee bean
Growing environment – soil, altitude, climate
Post-harvest processing – how the coffee is fermented and dried
Roasting – how we bring out the bean’s inherent character

Our Tasting Categories

To make tasting notes more accessible, we’ve grouped them into broad, easy-to-understand categories. These help communicate what you can expect from the coffee—whether you're a first-timer or a seasoned sipper.

Here are the 15 flavor categories we use at Tradition Coffee Roasters: