"Q" for Coffee Quality – the Q-Grader

Q-Graders analyze the quality of coffee using a standardized cupping and evaluation protocol. They are calibrated to provide objective assessments. They evaluate the quality and intensity of acidity, body, flavor and aroma of a coffee on a scale between six and ten. Coffees rated at more than 80 points are considered specialty coffee.

A Q-Grader in Singapore evaluates coffees on the same basis as a grader in Korea or Mexico. A Q-Grader's license is valid for three years. After that, a Q-Grader must undergo calibration and license renewal.

The Q-Grader Program was created to evaluate Arabicas. In the meantime, there is also a protocol for evaluating Robustas, the so-called R-Grader Program.

Swiss, German and Austrian Q-Graders

Currently, the following Q-Graders are active in Switzerland (follow the link and search for "Switzerland"). By now, around 50 Q-Arabica Graders are certified in Switzerland. That is quite a lot when you compare the number with, for example, Germany, where 31 Q-Arabica Graders are certified. The high density also reflects the fact that Switzerland is an important hub for the trade and assessment of coffee qualities. Austria has 6 Q-Graders, Great Britain 9.

Q-Grader Exam

All 20 exams must be passed. Failed exams can be retaken twice within 18 months.

General Coffee Knowledge

100 questions on coffee cultivation, processing, brewing, roasting and the coffee market. Knowledge of the SCAA manuals is required (Water Quality, Coffee Cuppers, Coffee Brewing, Coffee Processing, etc.).

3 x Sensory Skills Test

Three tests must be completed. They all focus on recognizing and evaluating salt, acidity, and sweetness in solutions.

• 1 – 2: Identification and ranking of three solutions each
• 3: Mixed samples in which, for example, sweetness of intensity I is paired with salt of intensity II must be identified.

4 x Cupping Skills Test

6 coffees from the following four categories must each be correctly evaluated in one coffee.

• Washed Milds (Central America)
• African coffees
• Asian coffees
• Natural processed coffees

Olfactory Skills Test (4 Tests in 2 Parts)

The various aromas of le Nez du Cafe must be identified and classified.

Triangulation Tests

A triangulation is performed for each of the four groups of the cupping tests. The participant must discriminate one deviating cup from six sets of three cups each.

Organic Acids Matching Pairs

Four of the acids found in coffee must be identified: acetic, malic, phosphoric, and citric acid

Arabica Green Coffee Grading

350 g of green coffee must be sorted and evaluated. Defects must be noted, counted and evaluated and the coffee must be graded.

Arabica Roasted Coffee Grading

Roasting defects must be identified in a 100 g batch.

Roasted Sample Identification

From four brewed coffees, it must be identified which coffee is "underdeveloped," "overroasted," "baked," or "perfectly" roasted.

More information about Q-Graders is available directly from the executing Coffee Quality Institute.

Starting in October 2025, a new evaluation form, the Coffee Value Assessment, will be introduced. Here we have discussed and analyzed this in detail.

The Professional Field of the Q-Grader

Q-Graders work as professional coffee tasters in export and import. They hold a relay function because they provide feedback on coffee quality to coffee producers and also provide information to potential buyers. The assessment of Q-Graders significantly determines the selling price of a green coffee.

Beyond that, many larger companies in product development and quality control have filled positions with Q-Graders. More and more smaller roasters also have a Q-Grader, thereby developing a vocabulary for themselves.

Part of Q-Grader training is developing linguistic expressions that match sensory impressions. Participants learn to describe coffee as precisely as possible along a framework. Once you speak this language, navigation in trade becomes significantly easier.

In the origin, both Philipp and I experienced that Q-Grader training made many conversations with local tasters easier. On the one hand, there is a shared experience of having passed a truly difficult exam. On the other hand, it does not take long to figure out what each person means by quality. Communication becomes much easier when you can articulate what you are looking for.

Our Q-Graders

Nadja Schwarz is now the fourth Q-Grader in the group. She learned precise analysis and description of green coffee during her time as a lab manager and confirmed it with the Arabica and Robusta Q-Grader. Her affinity for wine (WESET 3) and interest in the influence of the environment on the sensory development of food give her a multifaceted insight into the field of flavor complexity. She is also our sensory course instructor.

Michel Indelicato is our third Q-Grader. Now with three of us, we can theoretically assemble a complete panel, since the assessment of three Q-Graders is required to make a final evaluation of a coffee. From our perspective, however, it makes sense if at least one external Q-Grader contributes to an evaluation, since through our daily work we are very well calibrated with each other. There is also the risk that we collectively drift away from global calibration.

Philipp Schallberger has been a Q-Grader for several years. He completed this training while working in research and development at Delica AG. Through his many years of service as a judge at national and international coffee championships, he is an experienced juror. Philipp taught our sensory courses for a long time because he can formulate taste descriptions with unparalleled precision. This is aided by the fact that he is also well-trained as a wine connoisseur and can make numerous cross-references.

Benjamin Hohlmann is an Arabica and Robusta Q-Grader. He has also successfully completed a sensory license in coffee at ZHAW Wädenswil. The German Cup Tasting Master and regular guest on the podium of the Swiss Cup Tasting Masters has worked his way deeply into coffee sensory science especially through his own championship participation. A breakthrough for this was participation in the Brewers Cup and also Cup Tasting World Championship. Months of training and focused tasting sustainably shifts the boundaries of one's own taste perception.

Sensory training is possible through private training, courses and continuous practice in daily work. Our Sensorikkurse can contribute to this.