Coffee Is Food: Defining Coffee Acids Is a Way Out Beautiful Trip, Man
Recently I have read some posts from folks in the coffee industry that were not using the term “acidity” with consumers since the term sounds negative or problematic. Terms like ‘juicy’ or ‘lively’ were substituted instead. More coffee descriptors are describing the aroma, body and flavors of the coffee and few use acidity in their descriptions.
I have even heard this discussion from many baristas not wanting to turn customers off of a coffee by describing the level of acidity. Part of the challenge is that acidity does sound caustic, sour or acidy. Recently I was doing some training with individuals and acidity was more often confused with bitterness or sourness.
Coffee Is Food: Defining Coffee Acidity
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I usually just try to talk about other foods acidity levels. Oranges have acidity, so do carrots, but they affect your tongue in different ways and both are pleasing and expected when you eat them. Right? Folks usually nod their heads and smile then ask say “give gimme a cup a car-fee!” Gotta love the south.
Seems to me that the problem is not the terminology but the ability to communicate those terms in a succinct palatable way so that customers can understand acidity and other descriptors and become excited by them. I get it though – “acidity” can be a hard sell to the stone-cold novice. Just gotta work on that sales pitch.