This professional certification confers the skills and basic knowledge to perform coffee evaluations from farm to import to consumer-facing products. The Q Grader course is offered for both arabica and robusta evaluation.
Q Arabica was the first component of the Q education system, launched by CQI over 15 years ago. The concept was simple: train everyone in the supply chain to speak a common language of quality. In this way, aiming to elevate quality coffee worldwide and ultimately rewarding producers for higher quality while opening market opportunities.
The course covers job-relevant skills and palate development, including: cupping protocols, olfactory senses, gustatory sensory skills, green and roasted grading, organic acid identification, triangulation skills, roasted sample identification, coffee processing evaluation, and general coffee value chain knowledge
This course consists of two corresponding parts over six days. In the first part learners review assumed knowledge and theoretical principles, including practice of all activities and exams. The second part is a 3-day series of exams regarding the material presented. The course includes 20 exams over 9 Modules to test the learners’ job-relevant skills.
Q Combo Course & Exam
Become a certified Arabica Q Grader
Additional info:
Retakes
Several exercises have retake options within this course
If a retake for a Cupping Table, General Knowledge or CQI Flavor Standards are required, it will occur at a future course
You have 18 months from today to successfully complete all exercises
You may participate in 3 Q courses: This one and 2 others
Calibrations
Your Q Grader Certificate is valid for 12 months from completion
You will be required to take an at-home, self guided CQI Flavor Standards Calibration every 12 months.
You will be required to attend a live Q Grader Community of Practice Coffee Calibration event every 36 months to align to the Q System and your peers.
Resources
Training Tools
Exams
Cupping Skills
To teach the attendee the SCA or CQI Protocol for Cupping Coffee
To familiarize the student with the SCA or CQI Cupping Form
To measure the attendee’s ability to cup and rate coffee flavor attributes in a consistent and accurate manner
Triangulation Skills
To measure the attendee’s ability to successfully differentiate coffees by flavor attributes relating to origin
Olfactory Skills
To familiarize the student with thirty-six (36) common aromatic scents often found in coffee’s fragrance, aroma, and nose.
To teach the student the basis on which the common aromatic scents can be categorized into four basic groups: Enzymatic, Sugar Browning, Dry Distillation & Aromatic Taint
To measure the student’s ability to recognize, match, and identify the most common aromatic scents found in coffee.
Green & Roasted Coffee Grading
To grade green and roasted coffee samples
To determine coffee quality through physical evaluation
To grade Arabica coffee samples using the SCA Green Coffee Classification System & SCA Green Coffee Defect Handbook
To objectively measure an attendee’s ability at detecting and identifying (4) basic taste modalities
To function as a pre-screening exercise for more advanced level cupping training
Sensory Skills
To identify properly roasted cupping samples
To determine if an attendee can correctly identify roasted coffee samples meeting the CQI sample roast standards.
To determine if student can correctly identify roasted coffee samples meeting the SCA sample roast standards.
To determine an attendee’s ability to use any resources available to quantitatively and qualitatively measure if CQI Roast Standards have been met.
Roast ID Skills
General Knowledge
To confirm the student’s understanding of the specialty coffee industry, including the basics of coffee production, roasting, cupping, and brewing.
Flavor Standards Skills
To differentiate between sensory analysis references and sensory analysis standards
To categorize CQI Flavor Standards into positive attributes & off-flavors
To identify CQI Flavor Standards by name in aqueous solutions
Matching Pairs of Coffee Acids Skills
To train attendees on how to assess their individual sensitivity to the various coffee taste attributes created by the six (6) organic acids commonly found in coffee. 4 of those six are tasted and practiced.
To train attendees on how to assess their individual sensitivity to the various coffee taste attributes created by the four (4) acids commonly found in coffee.
To objectively measure the attendee’s ability to identify and match specific taste attributes at acidity levels created by the four of the organic acids commonly found in coffee.
To objectively measure the students’ ability to identify and match specific taste attributes created by acids commonly found in coffee.