Emeran Langmaid Among Top Coffee Experts in World

Emeran Langmaid, owner of A&E Custom Coffee Roastery recently joined the ranks of the top coffee specialist in the world, after earning her Q Grader license – the industry's highest standard when it comes to grading coffee. 

The Q Grader exam is a rigorous, three-day, 22 section exam that has to be taken every three years to retain the certification.This was Langmaid’s first effort and she passed all 22 sections – a feat reportedly completed by fewer than 40 percent of the people who take the exam.

“The three-day test is intense predominantly because you have to be so focused on everything at once,” Langmaid said. “When the coffee is hot, you assess the flavor and aftertaste. As it cools, you assess for body. Then, when it’s room temperature, you make a second assessment of everything. You can’t let your mind wander for a moment!”

According to a press release regarding this distinction:

The Q Grader program is a specialty-coffee quality-assurance program overseen by the Coffee Quality Institute, the charitable arm of the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA). The Q Coffee System is internationally recognized and utilized as the primary instrument to uphold specialty coffee standards. The SCAA has been setting quality standards within the coffee trade for more than 25 years.

The program creates a baseline of communication to ensure quality coffee controls the world over.

“Q Graders are not supposed to have any preconceived notions about a coffee. Instead you use the index of all the coffees you’ve tasted to put concrete values on the coffee,” Langmaid said. “Becoming licensed as a Q Grader adds a tremendous amount of legitimacy to our coffee program.”
Langmaid anticipates using the professional accreditation when she moves into direct sourcing coffee.

“I’ll put this knowledge into practice next year when we begin visiting origin countries. The Q Grader license will give me a litmus test to sample coffees and negotiate prices based on quality and consistency. It will allow me to ensure the quality of the coffee we purchase, both when we source it and when it arrives locally.”

There are just more than 1,000 Licensed Q-Graders. To quantify, there are more billionaires on the 2013 Forbes Billionaires list (1,426) than there are Licensed Q Graders worldwide.

According to SCAA standards, a coffee that receives a score of 80 or above is considered specialty, Q Coffees provide an assurance of quality that consumers can trust. While many variables in roasting and brewing affect the taste of coffee, Q Coffees confirm that the beans being used are among the highest quality in the world – properly milled and having distinguishable characteristics that separate them from other coffees. A good bean is the first step toward achieving a perfect cup of coffee.
– Submitted by A&E Coffee Roastery