Why tasting is the point
Most coffee is designed to disappear into its own preparation. Espresso pulled dark, flat whites padded with textured milk, syrups that turn a cup into a dessert — all of these choices are about hiding the bean rather than revealing it. Speciality coffee does the opposite. It starts with the question: what does this particular variety, grown at this altitude, processed in this exact way, actually taste like? Everything else — roast level, brew method, water temperature — is in service of that answer.
SHOT's two coffees are built around flavour contrast. Jaguar and Black Panther come from the same farm, the same altitude range, the same harvest season. What separates them is variety and processing. That makes a side-by-side tasting genuinely instructive: you can isolate what a Parainema tastes like versus a Geisha, and what a washed process delivers compared to an anaerobic natural. This guide walks you through both.
How to set up a tasting at home
You do not need specialist equipment. A V60 pour-over is ideal because it produces a clean, filtered cup that lets each coffee's individual character come through without interference. A French press works almost as well; the slight increase in body it produces does not mask the key differences between the two roasts. Avoid espresso for this exercise — the pressure extraction and concentration of espresso compress flavour contrast in a way that makes comparison harder.
Brew both coffees using identical parameters: the same dose (15g per 250ml is a reliable starting point), the same grind size, water at 93°C, poured over the same duration. Let each cup cool for two minutes before tasting. Drink black — milk will mask the most distinctive flavour characteristics in both coffees, particularly the fruit acidity in Black Panther and the floral aroma in Jaguar. Have a glass of water on hand to cleanse your palate between cups.
Tasting Jaguar — SCA 92, Parainema, Washed
Jaguar's tasting notes are: caramel, hazelnuts, sweet mountain orange, and a floral aroma. Start with the dry fragrance — when you grind Jaguar, the aroma should be notably sweet, almost biscuity, with a subtle floral lift underneath. This is the Parainema variety expressing itself before water even enters the picture.
On the palate, caramel arrives first: not confectionery sweetness, but the clean, round sweetness of properly developed sugars. The hazelnut character sits in the mid-palate as a gentle nuttiness that softens the acidity without flattening it. Then, as the cup cools, the orange note becomes more distinct — a bright citrus acidity that lifts the finish and keeps it clean. The washed processing is directly responsible for this clarity: because the fruit mucilage is removed before drying, there is nothing between the bean and its inherent flavour. What you taste is the variety and the terroir, unmediated.
An SCA score of 92 places Jaguar in the top fraction of a percent of the world's coffee. In practical tasting terms, that score reflects the precision and consistency of its flavour — every attribute is clear, balanced, and present in the right proportion.
Tasting Black Panther — SCA 93, Geisha, Anaerobic Natural
Black Panther's tasting notes are: cocoa, blackberry wine, blueberries, and maple syrup. Where Jaguar is bright and structured, Black Panther is deep and layered — a coffee that changes significantly as it cools and rewards slow attention.
The first sip is vinous. Blackberry and blueberry arrive together at the front of the palate, and there is a wine-like quality to the acidity that is immediately recognisable as the product of anaerobic natural fermentation. The extended oxygen-free fermentation process develops lactic and acetic acids inside the sealed tank, concentrating the fruit sugars in the bean and creating the complex, winey character that distinguishes anaerobic naturals from any other processing method. Cocoa sits in the mid-palate — not bitter, but smooth and dark, the way good chocolate smells before you eat it. The finish is long, with maple syrup sweetness that lingers well after the cup is empty.
The Geisha variety amplifies all of this. Geisha is genetically distinct from mainstream Arabica cultivars, more closely related to wild Ethiopian forest coffees. Its cup character is inherently more complex and aromatic, and when that genetic foundation is combined with anaerobic natural processing, the result is a coffee of unusual depth. At SCA 93, Black Panther sits among the rarest-scored coffees available anywhere in the UK.
“Same farm, same altitude, same harvest — different in almost every way that matters in the cup.”
Side by side — what the contrast reveals
When you taste Jaguar and Black Panther next to each other, the educational payoff becomes clear. Jaguar is precise and citrus-forward; Black Panther is rich and fruit-forward. Jaguar finishes clean; Black Panther lingers. Jaguar's acidity is bright and linear; Black Panther's acidity is deep and round.
Because both coffees come from Finca Jerusalén at 1,300–1,600 metres altitude, the contrast between them is not about terroir. It is about variety and process. The Parainema variety, with washed processing, delivers one set of flavour characteristics. The Geisha variety, with anaerobic natural processing, delivers a completely different set. Tasting them side by side is one of the most direct ways to understand what those two variables actually do to coffee flavour — without reading a single technical paper.
If you have never tasted speciality coffee before, this is the best possible starting point. The difference is not subtle. You will taste it immediately.