As I'm becoming more involved with enjoying SO's, both ans drip and espresso, there are some nagging questions I have about the descriptors used on labels. Almost all are names/words/places that are completely unfamiliar to me. Some I am familiar with, but have no meaning. It seems to me that the only descriptors that have been deemed important are country/village of origin, curing process and elevation. For me, if I want more information, I have to research the location and the curing process.

The information I am often missing is varietal. Why are wines coffees not sold with varietal labeling? It seems like it would be a major descriptor. Unlike France and Italy, I doubt (correct me if I'm wrong) that coffees from certain regions must contain certain varietals or be processed in specific ways to be labeled as being FROM that region.

Any wine drinkers out there (and I'm sure there are many here) will understand what I'm talking about. With some many roasters to choose from, and so many options, how am I to parse out the quality of coffee? That being said, I'm sure there are roasters (as there are winemakers) who can get more out of lower quality beans. I think roaster quality/experience is a topic for a different thread. But help me decipher coffee labels.

All of the sources I buy coffee from include varietal.

I don't think you can parse out quality unless its been cupped by someone you trust. knowing all this information doesn't guarantee you a great coffee.

All the roasters I buy from include varietal information, if not on the bag, then on their websites. That being said (and others may disagree), the differences between arabica coffee varieties in the cup are not as pronounced as between grapes. While a novice wine drinker could tell a sangiovese from a pinot noir, it takes a more experienced palate to tell a catuai from a cattura. So the information is probably of limited use (or interest) to most consumers, even those who consider themselves coffee enthusiasts.

But, this happens to be a time when the industry is paying more attention to coffee varietals. Only a small number of cultivars are grown commercially, and they are overwhelmingly grown in monoculture environments. This, together with the increasing effects of global warming, makes them particularly susceptible to disease.

So, the industry is actively promoting the development and distribution of new varietals. I encourage you to watch Michael Sheridan's impressive talk from the 2015 SCAA Symposium on the introduction of the new castillo hybrid into Colombia and its superiority over caturra. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibnTZD2Zqss.

The leading industry effort to develop new varietals and improve the quality and consistency of seed stock is World Coffee Research. Here is a link to that work: http://worldcoffeeresearch.org/current- ... telligence. Hope this helps answer your questions.