Why it matters in the cup.
Coffee glossary
Origin
The place where coffee is grown and usually processed, described at varying levels of precision — from a country to a region, farm, cooperative, or specific plot, depending on traceability.
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How coffee gets bought
How coffee gets bought
What it means
The place where coffee is grown and usually processed, described at varying levels of precision — from a country to a region, farm, cooperative, or specific plot, depending on traceability. Origin shapes climate, altitude, variety expectations, and the broad flavour frames people bring to a coffee. But a country name alone is a starting point, not a full flavour explanation.
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Where this leads
Each one pushes this into the cup, compares it, or helps you act on it.
How coffee gets bought
Single Origin
See how place gets framed on the bag.
When you see single origin, ask how specific the origin actually is.
How coffee gets bought
Direct Trade
Then see how buyers build a relationship around that place.
When you see direct trade on a bag, ask what the buyer is actually doing, not just what phrase they chose.
How coffee gets bought
Micro Lots
Specific origins often get separated into smaller, more traceable lots.
Read microlots as more specific, not automatically better.
How coffee gets bought
Coffee Blend
Compare place-led coffees with deliberately mixed ones.
Judge blends by intent and execution, not by the fact that they are blends.