From the Editor

Lee F. Stowe

Founder • Morning Fix Coffee

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The Coffee Lexicon | Coffee Industry Acronyms & Abbreviations

The coffee industry speaks its own language. From café shorthand scribbled on cups to espresso machine terminology used by technicians and roasters, coffee abbreviations are everywhere. Whether you're a home barista, café owner, coffee enthusiast, or simply trying to decode what your local coffee shop wrote on your cup, this guide will help translate the industry's alphabet soup.

Many abbreviations save time during busy service hours, while others represent important organizations, quality standards, processing methods, and brewing technologies used throughout the global coffee supply chain.

🔎 Explore more coffee terminology:

☕ The Coffee Lexicon Hub.

☕ Coffee Shop Drink Abbreviations

Walk behind an espresso bar and you'll hear these abbreviations constantly. They help baristas communicate quickly and keep drinks moving during rush periods.

• A — Americano
• B — Brewed Coffee or Breve
• Baby chino — Steamed milk with cocoa powder
• C — Cappuccino or Caramel
• CB — Coffee Blended or Cold Brew
• Chai — Chai Latte
• CL — Caramel Latte
• CLM — Caramel Mocha Latte
• CM — Caramel Macchiato or Custom Steamer
• Cort. — Cortado
• DC/MK — Half Decaf, Half Steamed Milk (Half Caff)
• ESP — Espresso
• FOH — Flat White
• FR — French Roast Coffee
• FT — Fair Trade
• FW — Flat White
• GB — Ground Beans or Glass Brew
• GC — Green Coffee
• GT — Green Tea
• HC — Hot Chocolate, Hot Cream, or Heavy Cream
• HibT — Hibiscus Tea
• HM — Hazelnut Mocha or House Milk
• IC — Iced Coffee
• IM — Iced Mocha
• L — Latte
• LB — Long Black
• Mac — Macchiato
• M — Mocha
• MB — Mixed Berry Smoothie
• ML — Matcha Latte
• MT — Matcha Green Powder
• Nitro — Nitro Cold Brew
• Pic — Piccolo Latte
• PO — Pour-Over
• PP — Peppermint
• RB — Ristretto Bianco
• RC — Regular Coffee
• RE — Red Eye
• SF — Sugar Free
• SFL — Sugar Free Latte
• SFV — Sugar Free Vanilla
• TD — Toffee Drizzle
• WM — White Mocha
• WML — White Mocha Latte

☕ Related reading: 📖 Espresso Explained

⚙️ Espresso & Equipment Acronyms

Espresso enthusiasts and technicians use hundreds of technical abbreviations describing boilers, grinders, temperature systems, and brewing hardware.

• AOR — All Origins Roast
• BC — Bottomless Portafilter
• BDU — Boiler Dual Use
• BH — Brew Head
• BIP — Brewed In Pot
• BP — Brew Pressure
• BT — Brew Temperature
• BV — Burr Variable
• DDT — Direct Drip Technique
• DED — Dedicated Espresso Device
• DF — Distribution Funnel
• DOM — Domestic Machine
• DP — Double Pump
• DS — Double Spout
• DST — Double Shot Tool
• DTP — Dual Temperature Probe
• E61 — Classic group head design
• EP — Espresso Profile
• ES — Espresso
• ESE — Easy Serving Espresso pods
• FC — Flow Control
• FG — Flat Grinder
• GBW — Grind By Weight
• HE/HX — Heat Exchanger
• IB — Internal Boiler
• IMS — Precision filter basket manufacturer
• PID — Electronic temperature controller
• PST — Portafilter Spout Tool
• PT — Portafilter Tool
• RB — Rancilio Silvia machine abbreviation
• RDT — Ross Droplet Technique
• SBDU — Single Boiler Dual Use
• SBPU — Single Boiler Pump Use
• SCG — Second Crack
• SE — Super Automatic machine
• TDS — Total Dissolved Solids
• TP — Tamp Pressure
• TS — Thermosiphon
• V60 — Cone-shaped pour-over brewer
• VST — Precision coffee equipment manufacturer

⚙️ Learn more: 🔬 What Is a Portafilter?

🌎 Processing & Coffee Industry Acronyms

These abbreviations are commonly used by importers, exporters, green coffee buyers, quality graders, and specialty roasters.

• ASL — Above Sea Level
• COE — Cup of Excellence
• CQI — Coffee Quality Institute
• EP — European Prep
• FC — First Crack
• FOB — Free On Board
• GCA — Green Coffee Association
• GDM — Green Diamond Method
• MC — Monsooned Coffee or Methylene Chloride
• PCD — Post Crop Dehumidification
• Q-Grader — Certified Coffee Taster
• QC — Quality Control
• QP — Quality Price
• RP — Roast Profile, explore our Medium-Dark Roast Coffee
• SC — Specialty Coffee
• SCA — Specialty Coffee Association
• SWP — Swiss Water Process
• TC — Tropical Coffee
• VP — Varietal Profile

🌍 Continue exploring: 🚢 The Coffee Atlas Collection

🥛 Common Barista Modification Codes

Most coffee shops use shorthand on cups or point-of-sale systems to speed up communication between order takers and baristas.

• +shot — Extra espresso shot
• ↑HOT — Extra hot milk temperature
• -cf — Decaf coffee
• -ff — Blended or frappe style drink
• -sc — Sugar free syrup
• +WHC — Extra whipped cream
• Alm — Almond milk
• Breve — Half-and-half milk
• Decaf — Decaffeinated coffee
• HWC — Heavy whipping cream
• NF — Nonfat milk
• Oat — Oat milk
• Soy — Soy milk
• WH — Whole milk

🏪 Why Coffee Shops Use Abbreviations

Busy cafés may prepare hundreds of drinks per hour during morning rushes. Abbreviations reduce writing time, improve consistency, and help baristas communicate quickly without confusion.

Benefits include:

• ⚡ Faster order production
• ☕ Consistent drink preparation
• 📋 Easier communication between staff members
• 🚚 Improved inventory tracking
• 🌍 Standardization across multiple store locations

📖 Final Thoughts

The coffee world contains thousands of abbreviations spanning cafés, roasteries, import warehouses, laboratories, and international trade organizations. Learning these terms makes reading coffee menus, equipment specifications, roast reports, and cupping sheets significantly easier.

Whether you're ordering a CM, dialing in an espresso machine with a PID, measuring TDS, or evaluating a coffee from a COE auction lot, understanding coffee shorthand helps you speak the language of coffee professionals.

📚 Continue your journey with ☕ The Coffee Lexicon and 🌍 The Coffee Atlas.

📚 Explore Terminology:

• 💡The Coffee Lexicon A–Z Hub
• 💡First Edition Hub Page
• 💡Second Edition Hub Page
  
• 💡Third Edition Hub Page
• 💡Fourth Edition Hub Page
• 💡Coffee Acronyms & Abbreviations