Become a coffee sommelier with our professional cupping course or tasting classes!
Coffee tasting is a fascinating world both for coffee enthusiasts and home baristas and for the professional who aims to become a coffee taster and a Q grader.
The coffee tasting course, as well as the SCA sensory foundation, intermediate and professional tasting and cupping courses aim to train the skills of recognition, analysis, comparison and description of coffee.
The final goal of these coffee appreciation classes for the most ambitious is to become a professional coffee taster, a Q Grader capable of selecting coffee from international markets.
Experience an unforgettable holiday in Italy!
These courses are held in Florence, one of the most beautiful cities of Italy and of the world.
The courses are always in English, in a super friendship and international environment.
COFFEE SENSORY BASIC COURSE / FOUNDATION SCA.
One day. Florence - January 8th, February 10th or March 10th 2025
Join our beginner's coffee tasting course and embark on a journey of coffee appreciation! Starting from understanding the physiology of taste and recognizing basic tastes like bitterness and acidity. Then we work on the different degrees of the body and on the three main categories of aromas: sugar browning, enzymatic and empyreumatic.
Discover the origins of these flavors, coffee varieties, origins and processing methods.
With extensive practical exercises, including coffee tasting and comparisons in both cupping and espresso, you'll sharpen your palate and deepen your coffee knowledge.
COFFEE SENSORY INTERMEDIATE COURSE SCA.
Two days. Florence - January 24th and 25th or March 19th and 20th 2025
If in the basic coffee tasting class you learn to know and recognize, in the intermediate course you learn to measure and compare. A largely practical course with several coffee cupping and triangulation sessions dedicated to the recognition of defects and the ability to recognize the different degrees (and types) of acid and sweetness.
This course also covers the SCA tasting sheet to start evaluating a specialty coffee introducing concepts as balance and “clean cup”.
COFFEE SENSORY PROFESSIONAL COURSE SCA.
Three days. Florence - November 19th, 20th and 21st 2024
The SCA professional sensory coffee course is the pinnacle for aspiring professional coffee tasters and a stepping stone for those aiming to become Q Graders.
Have you not the time for a coffee vacation in Italy?
With our online courses and video courses with SCA certification exam you will grow your your coffee skills and knowledge without leaving your home! Discover the online course
Are you interested in this course?
A coffee tasting course for enthusiasts and coffee lover
Every December, many people contact us to gift a coffee course to their loved ones, an heartwarming gesture for those who are truly passionate about coffee!
Throughout our catalog, the most popular and gifted course remains: the coffee tasting course!
And we're pleased about this! We're pleased because finally, coffee is being discovered and becoming interesting even for many people who are not professional baristas, but who discover coffee much like discovering cuisine or wine, a wonderful world to explore and love!
What's the layout of a coffee tasting course?
How many coffees do you drink? Are they made with a Moka pot? With an espresso machine? Do you add sugar? These are just a few of the questions we receive from people who are interested in taking their first coffee tasting course.
But how does it really work? A coffee tasting course doesn't start with coffee, actually. We begin by tasting various solutions of water with dissolved substances (all natural!) that gradually allow us to distinguish between sweet, acidic, and bitter flavors and balance these tastes.
Then, we work deeply into aromas—the ones that come from the coffee plant, those that arrive from roasting, and those that are considered technical defects.
At this point, we're ready for the main event: tasting the coffee. And the technique/ceremony of cupping will simply be fascinating!
Discover Coffee's Secrets: Is There a Coffee Sommelier Course?
In recent years, coffee has become a much more experiential product. Many people, even non-professionals, have discovered this beverage not just as a simple morning pick-me-up, but as an interesting product, with different production regions and varieties, each with its own unique flavor profiles.
That's why a coffee tasting course has become such a fascinating experience, both for those approaching coffee as an "interesting" product and for the more dedicated "home baristas".
Is there a course to become a "caffelier"?
The word "caffelier" has become very common in recent years. It's easy to understand that it's a mix of the word "coffee" with the word "sommelier," a term used to describe a wine taster.
At a professional level, this figure doesn't exist, and the professional coffee taster is often referred to as a "Q grader."
However, for coffee enthusiasts, those who want to discover the aromas and wonderful sensory notes of this beverage, even without making it their profession, a caffelier course is definitely a beautiful experience that will completely change the way they approach to coffee!
Q Grader Course
The professional coffee taster, who has the opportunity to travel among the various coffee fincas and farms around the world, tasting extraordinary coffees, is called a Q Grader, short for Quality Grader.
Becoming a Q Grader is not a simple task. In fact, the Q Grader course starts by taking part in the courses you'll find on this page, the various SCA levels.
Once you've completed the professional SCA Sensory course, you can apply to the Coffee Quality Institute to take the exams, which are very difficult and very costly
A big effort for a big achievement!
Student says...
One Journey, One Vacation In Italy
The dates of the Espresso Academy courses are always set in such a way as to allow you to take part in several courses, one day after another, to give the maximum value to your trip, and your Italian vacation.
Find out below the dates coordinated on our calendar
Our Trainers
Marco Cremonese
