SCA score (cupping score)
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German: SCA-Score (Cupping-Punkte) Also known as: Cupping Score, SCA-Punkte, Cupping-Skala
A score on a 100-point scale used to rate coffee in a standardised tasting; from 80 points it counts as specialty coffee.
The Specialty Coffee Association developed a rating scheme in which trained tasters score attributes such as aroma, flavour, acidity, body, sweetness, aftertaste and balance individually. Defects lead to deductions. The result is a total of up to 100 points.
From 80 points a coffee is considered specialty, and scores above 90 are rare. The exact tiers above that differ between sources. The SCA is now introducing a revised system, the Coffee Value Assessment, but the 80-point threshold remains widely used.
