Food & DrinkThe BestieBeginner
The Flavor of Coffee course icon

The Flavor of Coffee

Like Duolingo, but for The Flavor of Coffee. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.

For the part of you with thirty open tabs that never became anything.

9 bite-size levelsAbout 5 minutes each

Free forever · No credit card · iPhone & Android

Bean-Bean the Bear
The Flavor of Coffee
with Bean-Bean the Bear
9
Levels
2
Sections
5
Min/day
What you'll learn

Key ideas in The Flavor of Coffee

  • High heat numbs the tongue's ability to perceive complex flavors
  • Slurping creates a fine mist that spreads coffee over the entire palate
  • Coffee's sweetness and acidity become more apparent as the liquid cools toward room temperature
  • Aeration during a slurp carries aromas to the back of the nose where flavor is actually processed
  • Piping hot coffee primarily registers as 'heat' and 'bitterness' rather than specific flavor notes
  • A forceful slurp ensures the coffee hits all taste receptors simultaneously
  • How temperature changes the sensory experience of coffee
  • The functional purpose of slurping coffee
  • Dry grounds reveal the most volatile, immediate aromatics
  • Residual oils from one coffee can distort the flavor of the next one
  • Adding water releases different 'wet' aromas like steam and oils
  • Plain water resets the palate's sensitivity to acidity and sweetness
  • The sequence of sensory preparation in coffee tasting
  • Sweetness is most easily identified at the very front of the mouth
  • Acidity in coffee is often felt as a 'sparkle' or 'tingle' on the edges of the tongue
  • How to maintain taste accuracy when trying multiple coffees
Why not just Google it

You've tried the other tabs

Wikipedia

Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.

YouTube

You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.

ChatGPT

One answer, then back to scrolling.

Online courses

Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.

Tomo gives The Flavor of Coffee the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.

Try a question

Here's what playing it feels like

A real question from this course. Take your best guess.

Heat and the Power Slurp

What is the physical effect of slurping coffee forcefully?

Get it right to open this lesson and 8 more in the app.

Course map

Where The Flavor of Coffee takes you

Move beyond 'just bitter' and learn to identify the hidden notes of fruit, chocolate, and spice in your morning cup. This course teaches you the physical techniques and mental vocabulary used by professional tasters.

  1. 1

    The First Sip

    • The Mechanics of the Sip
    • Finding the Big Three Tastes
  2. 2

    Developing Your Palate

    • Feeling the Coffee's Texture
    • The Lingering Impression

2 sections · 4 units · 9 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.

How it's taught

You pick the voice

This course
The Bestie

The Flavor of Coffee is taught in the The Bestie style: your friend who just gets it. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.

Start free

Start The Flavor of Coffee today.

Download Tomo, search The Flavor of Coffee, and play your first lesson in under a minute.