Q Grading

Q Grading: The systematic sensory evaluation and calibration process conducted by certified professionals known as Q Graders. Developed by the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) and integrated into modern Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) standards, this protocol assesses coffee across multiple attributes. Through the evolution of the Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) framework, Q Grading has shifted away from traditional single-number thresholds, moving instead toward a multi-dimensional approach that decouples objective sensory descriptions from affective quality judgments.