Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication helps us understand what something known as the “olfactory system” works and how we can train our brain to better identify aroma in coffee.

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication helps us understand what coffee professionals mean when they talk about “green coffee aging.” What happens to the beans over time, and why?

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication helps us understand the science behind “freshly roasted coffee” and what implications freshness has for flavor.

Specialty coffee remains America's coffee of choice, with younger adults driving sustained growth in the 2026 NCDT Specialty Coffee Report.

The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) is proud to announce new additions to the Certified Home Brewers list.

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication helps us understand what coffee professionals mean by the term “baked coffee” and whether common theories about what causes “baking” are supported by science.

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication discusses words we use to describe what we smell in coffee. He shares why talking about smell can be so complicated, and how we can build a common language to communicate and share this wonderful sense.

The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) is proud to announce that the Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) and its tools are now available to use in the digital space, on two platforms.

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication discusses how much of coffee’s original cherry mass we actually consume—less than 3 %!

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication writes about flavor chemistry in coffee: how can we understand the compounds behind what we taste and smell?

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication, helps us understand the impact of roast color on coffee flavor

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication, helps us understand the history of coffee roasting and why roast level matters so much to consumers.

Welcome to Coffee, Decoded, the Specialty Coffee Association’s weekly column on science, research, and all things coffee knowledge.

PETER GIULIANO, the SCA's Senior Advisor for Scientific Communication, helps us understand the mystery of coffee sweetness: How do we perceive it? What causes it? Can we smell it?

The Specialty Coffee Association is now accepting nominations for the 2027-2029 SCA Board of Directors.  The SCA will announce the slate of candidates selected through the interview process by August 27.

Rather than viewing the grinder simply as a machine that crushes coffee beans, Ceado approached grinding as an active part of flavor development, a system capable of controlling the physical variables that directly influence extraction and sensory expression in the cup. 

At World of Coffee Brussels, BWT water+more is redefining what exceptional coffee can be. The message is bold and simple: great coffee starts with great water.

One of 25’s goals is to share academic research on coffee in plain language and in free-to-access formats. But we also believe that the coffee sector is full of stories and that these stories are important and influential. Research can sometimes feel abstract and theoretical, but we also know that there’s a story behind every project—even those conducted in a chemistry laboratory or by poring over data from scientific studies in something known as a global meta-analysis.

Peter Giuliano, SCA Senior Advisor of Science Communication, shares insights from research into the perspectives of coffee farm workers, and how this research has shaped knowledge building at the SCA.

Emily Pappo, Ph.D., a Postdoctoral Fellow with Smithsonian Bird Friendly Coffee & Cocoa, draws on a global meta-analysis to argue that while tree planting dominates current climate strategies in coffee, protecting existing biodiverse agroforestry systems should also be recognized as an effective climate and biodiversity solution. When incentivized, this approach can build shared value for producers and buyers.