Image source: https://image.slidesharecdn.com/sensoryevaluationoffoodaugust152012-120816210300-phpapp02/95/sensory-evaluation-of-food-august-15-2012-3-728.jpg?cb=1345151026
Below are some common terms used - it is not meant to be an exhaustive list
Astringent - A secondary taste sensation noted by a salty sensation on the sides of the tongue. Caused by acids increasing the saltiness.
Baggy - An unpleasant taste often found in weakly roasted coffees that have been stored for a long time in inappropriate conditions.
Baked - A flat aroma with insipid taste often caused by roasting for too long at too low a temperature.
Beany - The smell associated with insufficiently roasted coffee that has not been able to allowed to develop its full aroma.
Bitter - Sharp or biting sensation felt at the back of the tongue often the result of over roasting the coffee bean.
Bland - Lacking in any noticeable flavour characteristics.
Bready - A bread-like taste that can occur in coffees that have not been roasted long enough or at a high enough temperature to bring out the flavour of the oils.
Bright - A dryness or sharpness (typical of Central American coffees).
Buttery - Rich and oily.
Caramelly - Suggestive of toffee or caramel.
Carbony - A burnt of charcoal flavour.
Chocolatey - Suggestive of vanilla or chocolate.
Creamy - High levels of coffee oils suspended in the brew.
Delicate - A secondary taste sensation noted for its weak sweet-subtle feeling just past the tip of the tongue.
Dirty - Unclean smelling or mustiness.
Earthy 'Characteristic smell of soil or dirt often caused when the coffee beans are stored on the ground after harvesting (typical of Sumatran coffees)
Exotic - Unusual aroma and flavour, such as berry or floral.
Fermented - An unpleasant taste producing a sour sensation. The result of enzyme activity in the green coffee beans changing the sugars to acids in the drying process during harvesting.
Flat - A loss of aroma.
Fragrant or floral - Subtle hints of fragrant flowers such as jasmine.
Fruity - A sweet fruity aroma suggestive of berries or citrus fruit.
Grassy - Suggestive of freshly cut grass.
Green - A faint herbal taste due to the incomplete development of the sugar compounds in the roasting process.
Hard - A hard coffee is poorly balanced. It is a secondary taste sensation of sourness on the bottom sides of the tongue. Caused by higher-than-normal percentage of sour acids. Ranking of hardness ranges thus: strictly soft, soft, softish, softish/hardish, hardish, hard, Rioy.
Harsh - A hard or caustic taste.
Heavy - Higher than average levels of suspended material in the brew.
Herby -. Suggestive of onion or green vegetable.
Hidey - A leather-like odour caused when too much heat is applied during the drying process causing the coffee beans fats to break down.
Insipid - A brew of lifeless character often the result of oxygen and moisture penetrating the bean fiber after roasting.
Lifeless - Thin and flat.
Light - Lower than average levels of suspended material in the coffee brew.
Malty - Suggestive of toasted grains.
Mellow - An overall smooth, mild and delicate flavour lacking in acidity.
Muddy - Thick and lifeless.
Musty - A stuffy or mouldy smell which can be a positive trait for aged coffees such as Java.
Neutral - The absence of a predominant taste sensation.
Nippy - A secondary taste of sweetness, associated with a nipping sensation at the end of the tongue.
Nutty - Smell and taste suggestive of roasted nuts.
Oily - The description given to a coffee that has an oily taste.
Oniony - Suggestive of onions.
Peasy - An unpleasant taste associated with fresh green peas.
Piquant - A sweet, prickling sensation at the tip of the tongue, typified by a Kenya AA coffee.
Point - A coffee with good overall characteristics of acidity, body and flavour.
Potatoy - Suggestive of raw potatoes.
Pulpy - A pungent fruit-like flavour derived from coffee cherry skins.
Pungent - Description given to a full-bodied and forceful coffee.
Quakery - Suggestive of peanuts, often the result of using unripe, green coffee beans.
Rancid - A highly disagreeable taste caused by oxidization of the coffee.
Rich - Strong presence of coffee aromas.
Rioy - An iodine-like flavour caused by continuing enzyme activity that occurs when the fruit partially dies on the coffee tree before harvesting.
Round - A well-balanced coffee whose characteristics are at levels so that no one sensation dominates, giving a feeling of roundness.
Rough - A secondary sensation noted by its grating, salty sensation on the tongue.
Rubbery - reminiscent of burnt rubber.
Scorched - A smoky or burnt aroma and taste caused when the beans are roasted too quickly at too high temperature which char the surface of the beans.
Stale - An unpleasant taste caused by oxygen and moisture penetrating the beans surface.
Sharp - An astringent taste derived from salty tasting compounds within the coffee.
Smooth - Low levels of oily compounds suspended in the beverage.
Soft - A secondary sensation noted by an absence of any predominant taste on any part of the tongue, except maybe for subtle dryness.
Sound - A coffee with no particular positive or negative characteristics.
Sour - A piercing, sour over acidic taste commonly caused by under-ripe beans.
Spicy - An aftertaste suggestive of cinnamon or clove.
Strawy - Suggestive of hay or straw, often from the result of the loss of organic material from the green coffee beans while in storage.
Strong - A coffee, rich in flavour that gives a strong powerful taste.
Sweaty - A coffee that may have been stored inappropriately resulting in a distinct sweaty taste.
Sweetly Spicy - An aroma suggestive of aromatic spices such as cardamom.
Sweet - free from harshness.
Tangy - A secondary sensation noted by a predominantly sour sensation along the sides of the tongue hinting of a fruity sensation.
Tart - A sour puckering sensation experienced on the tongue.
Tipped - A cereal-like taste caused by the beans being roasted too quickly that chars the tips of the beans.
Thick - A high level of solid material suspended in the beverage giving it a heavy feel.
Thin - A low level of solid material suspended in the beverage giving it a watery feel.
Twisty - A coffee with different negative qualities that vary from cup to cup.
Turpsy - Suggestive of turpentine.
Unclean - Coffee with a distinct off-flavor suggesting they have been kept in an unclean environment. An aroma and taste similar to fermenting.
Variety - A qualitative depiction of the gases present in the aroma, nose and aftertaste of coffee's bouquet.
Watery - Lacking in body.
Weak - A beverage that is not flat but definitely lacks body.
Winey - A pleasant sharpness suggestive of wine.
Wild - A distinctive wood-like taste caused by storing the beans too long.
Woody - A coffee with an unpleasant smell and taste similar to dry wood. This can be due to the loss of organic material in the green beans during storage.
