Foundations track · Lowfield Academy
Cupping: how to taste coffee
Taste eight coffees side by side the way roasters do, and learn to describe what you taste.
- Length
- 2 hours
- Class size
- Up to 10 people
- Price
- A$65 including GST
- Level
- Beginner · Ages 16 and over. Under 18s need a parent or guardian to enquire.
Fictional price, as of 12 October 2026. By request: we confirm a seat by reply.
The class
You will be able to taste coffees side by side, tell the difference between acidity, sweetness and bitterness, and describe coffee in your own words.
A cupping is how roasters and buyers taste coffee. Every coffee is ground the same way, brewed in a cup with the same amount of water, and tasted by spoon. That makes the differences between them easy to notice.
The Saturday class is led by Theo Marangoni, our head roaster. Tamsin Iredale from the academy also teaches cupping. You will taste washed, natural and honey process coffees from different countries, and you will learn to separate what you smell, what you taste and what you feel in your mouth. By the end, the words on a coffee bag will mean something.
The class runs Saturdays at 10:00 at the Lowfield Academy in Collingwood, upstairs from the café. There is a lift. Tell us when you enquire if you would like anything set up differently.
Who it is for: Curious drinkers, home brewers, and anyone who wants to buy coffee with more confidence.
Before you come: None. You do not need any coffee experience.
What you learn
- How a cupping table is set up and why it is set up that way
- How to slurp, smell and compare eight coffees
- The difference between origin, variety and process in the cup
- How to read a roast date and a flavour description on a bag
- How to keep a tasting notebook
Included
- Eight coffees, cupped side by side
- A tasting notebook and flavour wheel to take home
- Water, tea and a pastry from the bakery
In the class
Learn with the coffee in front of you.
Your teachers
Theo or Tamsin runs the class.
Theo MarangoniHead roaster and academy instructorTheo runs the roastery and writes every roast profile. He teaches the cupping class and the sample roasting course because he thinks people taste better once they have tried to roast. He cups around forty coffees a week and keeps a notebook of every batch, which he is happy to let students flip through.
Tamsin IredaleAcademy coordinator and instructorTamsin runs Lowfield Academy: the schedule, the room, the enquiries and the first-timer classes. She teaches the cupping and home brewing classes and likes the moment in a class when somebody realises they can taste the difference between two coffees. She answers the academy phone and the class enquiries herself.
Fictional people. Portraits are AI-generated for this demo.
Questions
Before you book a seat.
- When does it run?
- By request. Ask Tamsin about a date; nothing is booked until a seat is confirmed.
- What if I need to change dates?
- If you need to change dates, tell us at least 48 hours before the class and we will move you to another date at no cost. After that, we may not be able to hold your place. If we cancel a class, we will offer you another date.
- Who is it for?
- Curious drinkers, home brewers, and anyone who wants to buy coffee with more confidence.
- Is there an age limit?
- Ages 16 and over. Under 18s need a parent or guardian to enquire.
Related
Next classes
- Home brewing: filter and plungerMake better filter coffee at home with a scale, a kettle and one recipe you can repeat.
- Espresso fundamentalsDial in an espresso from scratch: dose, grind, yield and time, on a commercial machine.
- Milk and latte artSteam silky milk and pour your first hearts and tulips.
Wholesale desk
Pick a date with Tamsin.
Enquire with the class name and two or three dates. Nothing is booked until Tamsin confirms a seat.
- Wholesale desk
- Mon–Fri, 8 am–4 pm, Melbourne time
- Phone
- (03) 5550 0142 (demo contact details)
- wholesale@lowfield.example