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History · Culture

Eras and waves of coffee

The “first, second and third wave” story of coffee – where the terms came from, what each wave is said to stand for, the dated milestones behind it, and why historians call the model too narrow.

Across the chain: History · Cafés & retail

Source-checkedby Coffearium verification pass· Last source-checked 21 Oct 2026· Prepared with AI assistance· 17 sources (4 tier A)· 5 contested· Updated 21 Oct 2026
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Contents
  • The wave model tells recent coffee history in steps: mass-market coffee (first wave), espresso-bar chains (second), origin-focused craft coffee (third).1,2
  • The term “third wave” is credited to the roaster Trish Rothgeb (then Skeie); sources date her article to 2002 or 2003.1,3
  • Sources date the waves differently: the second wave starts in the 1960s in one account and in the early 1990s in another.2,6
  • A “fourth wave” has no agreed meaning: capsule coffee in one proposal, quality and sustainability for the mass market in another.1,6
  • Historians call the model reductive: it fits Anglo-American markets but not Italy, Japan, the Nordic countries or Australia.1,5

What the wave model says#

Coffee people often tell recent coffee history as a sequence of “waves”. A coffee historian sums up the story as a journey in three steps.1 First came commodity coffee for the mass market. Then came gourmet espresso drinks in coffee-shop chains. Then came single-origin coffees in small artisan cafés, roasted and brewed with care to show their flavour.1

Each wave is linked to typical products. A coffee trade textbook chapter ties the first wave to vacuum-packed and soluble (instant) coffee, sold as an undifferentiated commodity.7 The second wave added grades, some traceability and roasting styles.7 A 2017 discussion paper sees the second wave at its peak in the spread of Starbucks.4

The third wave is described as an independent subculture of coffeehouses, roasters and home hobbyists.2 It values craft, expertise and direct contact between barista and customer.2 Its buyers want to know where and how a coffee was grown and processed.7 The specialty movement promotes the idea that specialty coffee expresses its quality through a distinctive flavour in the cup.1 A lot is a batch from one origin and process, traded as a unit. According to the 2017 discussion paper, almost all third-wave coffees are washed arabicas from high altitudes, sold as micro-lots from single estates.4

The model is a story the trade tells about itself, not a research finding. The 2015 study that describes it says this history might be revisionist, imprecise and focused on North America.2

Where the terms came from#

The phrase “third wave” is credited to Trish Rothgeb, an American roaster who published it as Trish Skeie.1,3 She used it in The Flamekeeper, the newsletter of the Roasters Guild, after seeing how coffee quality was pursued in Norway.1 A coffee historian dates the article to spring 2003; a 2018 peer-reviewed study gives 2002 (see Contested).1,3 The original newsletter could not be opened for this entry.

According to the historian, Rothgeb described the third wave as a reaction to those who wanted to automate or homogenise specialty coffee – the second-wave chains.1 The term was invented to contrast artisanal roasters and coffeehouses with the forms of coffee drinking before them.2 The first and second waves serve as that contrast.2

The older term “specialty coffee” is traced to the coffee importer Erna Knutsen in the 1970s.8,9 She used it for coffees of the best flavour from special microclimates.9 The sources disagree on the exact year (see Contested).

Before the waves: older eras#

The three-wave story starts late. A coffee historian notes that it squeezes six centuries of recorded coffee history into a single first phase.1 He reports a five-wave proposal that splits the first wave into a “pioneering” period and an “industrial” period, the latter beginning at the end of the 19th century.1

In the pioneering phase, coffee spread from Arabia through the Ottoman Empire to Europe, and the first coffeehouses appeared. That history has its own entry: Coffeehouses from Mecca to Europe. For most of this time, consumers bought green coffee and roasted it themselves.1

The industrial era moved that work to the roaster. According to the historian, roasting became a stand-alone business in the late 19th century.1 Packaged, branded, pre-ground coffee followed, then soluble coffee and ready-to-drink products after the Second World War.1,7 Cheapness, consistency and convenience were what the mass market demanded.1

Espresso belongs to this era too. In 1905 Desiderio Pavoni put the first espresso machine into industrial production, the La Pavoni Ideale.1,14 Achille Gaggia introduced the spring-lever machine in 1948.1,14 Both are described in Espresso machine.

Institutions and milestones#

The specialty trade built its own institutions alongside the wave story. The Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) was founded in 1982 and the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) in 1998.8,10 In 2017 the two unified as the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA).10

Competitions followed. The first World Barista Championship was held in 2000.10,11 According to the SCA’s magazine, it took place in Monte Carlo and was won by the Norwegian barista Robert William Thoresen.11 The Cup of Excellence, a competition and online auction for top coffees from one producing country, began in Brazil in 1999, according to its organiser; a 2013 conference paper places its origin in the late 1990s.12,13

Shared tasting systems came too. An SCAA education foundation became the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI), which developed the Q Coffee System for cupping and grading on the SCAA protocol.16 As of October 2026, CQI states that it has ceased to administer this programme.17 How the SCA’s cupping form developed is told in Cupping.

19001920194019601980200020202040YearEspresso machines, Italy19051,14 19481,14 SCAA · SCAE · unified SCA19828,10 · 19988,10 · 201710 First World BaristaChampionship200010,11 “Third wave” in print2002 or 20031,3 Studies questioning themodel20105 · 20152 · 20171,4
Data table
PointYearSource
Espresso machines, Italy190519051, 14
Espresso machines, Italy194819481, 14
SCAA · SCAE · unified SCA198219828, 10
SCAA · SCAE · unified SCA199819988, 10
SCAA · SCAE · unified SCA2017201710
First World Barista Championship2000200010, 11
“Third wave” in print2002 or 20032002–20031, 3
Studies questioning the model201020105
Studies questioning the model201520152
Studies questioning the model201720171, 4
Milestones with dates confirmed by a university or peer-reviewed source, by the organiser’s own record, or by two independent trade sources. The last row shows the publication years of studies opened for this entry that question the wave model.1,2,3,4,5,8,10,11,14

Other coffee cultures, other paths#

A coffee historian argues that the wave story fits the Anglo-American markets but not mature coffee cultures elsewhere.1

  • Italy. Espresso, rather than espresso-based drinks, has stayed central.1 Coffee-shop chains did not develop there, partly because maximum prices for coffee at the bar kept margins low.1
  • Nordic countries. The third wave was first named after a visit to Norway, before coffee-shop chains reached the region.1 Light roasts predominate, and Nordic barista contests set the precedent for the World Barista Championship.1
  • Japan. The café in Japan dates from the late 19th century, according to a university-press history.15 The historian notes that Japanese café culture shaped many practices later called third wave, and that third-wave cafés adopted Japanese drippers such as the V60.1
  • Australia. A 2010 study rejects the wave analogy for Australia.5 It questions the idea that post-war Italian migrants brought coffee drinking to Australia. It dates espresso as known in 2010 to late in the 20th century.5

Coffee-drinking customs around the world are compared in Coffee drinks around the world.

Reference dates#

Dates are listed only where a university or peer-reviewed source, or two independent trade sources, support them. Folmer textbook chapters count together as one source.

Milestone Date Basis Source
First espresso machine in production (La Pavoni Ideale) 1905 Historian’s chapter and museum exhibition agree 1,14
Spring-lever espresso machine (Gaggia) 1948 Historian’s chapter and museum exhibition agree 1,14
Term “specialty coffee” first used (Erna Knutsen) 1970s; 1974 or 1978 Sources disagree on the year 8,9
SCAA founded 1982 University archive; textbook chapter 8,10
SCAE founded 1998 University archive; textbook chapter 8,10
Cup of Excellence begins, Brazil 1999 Organiser’s own history; conference paper: late 1990s 12,13
First World Barista Championship, Monte Carlo 2000 Organiser’s trade-body magazine; archive rankings start in 2000 10,11
Term “third wave” in The Flamekeeper 2002 or 2003 Sources disagree; original not opened 1,3
SCAA and SCAE unified as the SCA 2017 University archive 10

How the sources date the waves#

The waves have no fixed dates. Each source draws the lines in a different place, and the 2015 study warns that its own dating is imprecise.2

Source First wave Second wave Third wave Fourth wave
Coffee trade textbook chapter, 20177 From the 1800s; vacuum-packed and soluble coffee Roasters differentiate; specialty beans “A recent phenomenon”; interest in how and where coffee is produced Not discussed
Five-wave proposal, as reported by a historian, 20171 Split: pioneering, then industrial from the end of the 19th century Coffee-shop chains Artisan outlets, single origins Capsule coffee, early 21st century
Ethnomethodological study, 20152 1950s to early 1990s From the early 1990s; coffeehouse chains such as Starbucks Independent and small-chain shops, field to cup Not discussed
Newspaper column of 2008, quoted in the 2015 study2 19th-century surge of branded coffee From the 1960s, at Peet’s Beans sourced from farms rather than countries Not discussed
Consumer study, 20236 End of the 19th century; coffee becomes an industrial good 1990s; coffee becomes a specialty beverage From the new century Higher-quality coffee for the masses; internationalised local coffeehouses; higher sustainability standards

The 2017 discussion paper adds its own dating of the second wave: Peet’s and Zabar’s as pioneers, with Starbucks as the peak.4 No source opened for this entry gives a definition of the fourth wave that others share.

Critiques of the wave model#

Four lines of criticism recur in the sources opened for this entry.

1First wavemass market 1,7 2Second waveespresso chains 1,4 3Third waveorigin and craft 1,2 4Fourth wave?no agreed meaning 1,6 5Older eras left outcenturies before 1900 1,2 6Dates differby source 2,4,6,7 7Who defines quality?value and power 4 8Other culturesother paths 1,5 the wave story, as toldwhat the sources opened here addSchematic. Numbers refer to the legend below the figure.
  1. First wave. Commodity coffee for the mass market: vacuum-packed and soluble coffee, little quality differentiation.1,7
  2. Second wave. Gourmet espresso drinks in coffee-shop chains; Starbucks as its peak.1,4
  3. Third wave. Independent shops and roasters; single origins, craft and expertise.1,2
  4. Fourth wave. Capsule coffee in one proposal; quality and sustainability for the mass market in another.1,6
  5. Older eras left out. Centuries of coffee history before the industrial era fall into one phase, or none.1,2
  6. Dates differ. The first wave starts in the 1800s or the 1950s, the second in the 1960s or the 1990s, depending on the source.2,4,6,7
  7. Who defines quality? Roasters, baristas and marketers set the language of quality; producers carry the risk.4
  8. Other cultures. Italy, Japan, the Nordic countries and Australia followed other paths.1,5
The wave model told as one straight line, with the critiques raised by the sources opened for this entry. Schematic.1,2,4,5,6,7

History and geography. A coffee historian calls the narrative “somewhat reductive” and says it can be challenged on both geographical and historical grounds.1 Within the United States, the specialty movement began with small roasters who sold whole beans and roasted dark to contrast with mass-market blends, according to the historian.1 He reads the American third wave as a return to the spirit of these pioneers, and he warns against seeing it through a national lens, because it has become a transnational community of enthusiasts.1

Imprecision. The 2015 study uses the first-to-third-wave sequence only as its participants’ own account. Its author says the account might be revisionist, imprecise, North-American-focused and generally unsatisfactory as history.2 He notes that coffee and coffeehouses existed for centuries in many countries before the American 1950s.2

Value and power. The 2017 discussion paper studies the third-wave market in the United States. It argues that roasters, baristas and marketers have built a new vocabulary of quality around provenance and exclusivity, and that this vocabulary creates much of the value added in the trade.4 Smallholder producers own land and trees but lack the cultural capital to capture much of that value; the author sees older patterns of dependency reproduced.4 Certification schemes and other claims about how coffee is produced are covered in Certifications and labels.

National paths. A 2010 study of Australia dismisses the wave analogy as an explanation of the country’s coffee culture.5 It describes Australians as predominantly tea drinkers across all classes until the Second World War, Greek and Italian roasters setting up in the post-war decades, and espresso as known in 2010 established only late in the 20th century.5

Waves and the coffee price#

The wave story also describes a change in how coffee is priced. A coffee trade textbook chapter argues that in the first and second waves, quality was handled as a premium on top of the exchange reference price.7 In the third wave, it says, new business models of roasters have challenged how coffee is referenced to the exchange price.7 According to the same chapter, buyers of second- and third-wave roasters seek coffee from exporters or cooperatives, and third-wave buyers often call their purchasing direct trade.7 How exchange prices and premiums combine is explained in Differentials.

The capsule market shows a different path. The historian reports that capsule systems share the convenience and consistency of industrial-era coffee but sell at a premium, and that some present themselves as a route into connoisseurship in ways that parallel the third wave.1 Switzerland’s role in capsule exports is covered in Switzerland and the coffee trade.

Open questions#

  • Origin of the term. The 2002 and 2003 dates both rest on secondary citations of The Flamekeeper.1,3 No archived copy of the newsletter could be opened for this entry, and an earlier use of “third wave” claimed by others was not checked against a primary text.
  • A fourth wave. No source opened for this entry gives a definition of the fourth wave that other sources share.1,6
  • Producing countries. A coffee historian names rising coffee consumption within producing countries as the most significant development for the global market.1 No study opened for this entry tests whether the wave model describes coffee cultures in producing countries.
  • Measuring the waves. No study opened for this entry measured market shares of first-, second- and third-wave coffee with a shared definition.

Key studies#

Morris, 2017 – We consumers: tastes, rituals and waves. A historian traces coffee drinking from Arabian coffeehouses through industrial taste communities in the United States, Europe and Italy to the specialty “quality turn”. He treats the three waves as an internal narrative of the specialty movement and shows where it fails outside Anglo-American markets.

In: Folmer (ed.), The Craft and Science of Coffee, ch. 19 · doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-803520-7.00019-0

Manzo, 2015 – Third-wave coffeehouses as venues for sociality. An ethnomethodological study of independent coffeehouses and their baristas. It finds face-to-face sociality thriving there and records how members define the three waves, while calling that history imprecise and North American.

The Qualitative Report 20(6), 746–761 · doi:10.46743/2160-3715/2015.2141

Fischer, 2017 – Quality and inequality. A case study of the high-end third-wave market in the United States. It argues that control over the language of quality, held by roasters, baristas and marketers, captures much of the value, while smallholder producers carry the risk.

MPIfG Discussion Paper 17/4 · RePEc:zbw:mpifgd:174

Adams, 2010 – Thoroughly modern coffee. Examines how Australians have related to coffee across the 20th century and dismisses the wave analogy as an explanation of Australian coffee culture. It also questions the story that post-war Italian migrants brought coffee drinking to Australia.

TEXT, special issue ‘Rewriting the menu’ · full text (PDF)

Boaventura et al., 2018 – Value co-creation and the third-wave movement. A study of value co-creation along the specialty coffee chain in Brazil. Its background section summarises the three waves and dates the naming of the third wave to 2002.

Revista de Administração de Empresas 58(3), 254–266 · doi:10.1590/S0034-759020180306

Contested
  • Year the term “third wave” first appeared in print: a 2018 peer-reviewed study, citing a 2016 Brazilian paper, gives 20023; a historian’s textbook chapter gives 2003 and cites the article as The Flamekeeper, Spring 2003.1 The original newsletter could not be opened for this entry.
  • First use of the term “specialty coffee”: an International Coffee Organization (ICO) document gives 1974, in the Tea & Coffee Trade Journal9; a coffee science textbook chapter gives 1978.8 Both name the importer Erna Knutsen.
  • Start of the waves: a coffee trade textbook chapter traces the first wave to the 1800s7; a 2023 study places it at the end of the 19th century and the second wave in the 1990s6; a 2015 study sets the first wave from the 1950s to the early 1990s and the second from the early 1990s2; a 2008 newspaper column quoted in that study starts the second wave in the 1960s.2
  • Meaning of the “fourth wave”: a five-wave proposal reported in a history chapter equates it with single-portion capsule coffee1; a 2023 study describes it as bringing higher-quality coffee to the masses, with internationalised local coffeehouses and higher sustainability standards.6
  • Founding of the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) line: a textbook chapter says the SCAA set up its Specialty Coffee Institute in 1995 and renamed it CQI after the 1998 price crisis16; CQI’s own page says it has worked “since 1996”.17
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Change log

  • – Adams 2010 moved from Tier A to B; its decade dates for Australian coffee history replaced by centuries. Reason: Verification pass; the article does not state that it was refereed.
  • – Cup of Excellence start given as 1999; the 2023 consumer study removed from the timeline row of studies questioning the wave model. Reason: Verification pass; the organiser’s page counts for its own founding year, and the 2023 study does not question the model.
  • – “First espresso machine” changed to first espresso machine in industrial production; the 2015 study’s critique now keeps its “might be”. Reason: Verification pass; both sources are worded more cautiously.

Sources

  1. BMorris, J. (2017). We Consumers – Tastes, Rituals, and Waves. In: Folmer, B. (ed.), The Craft and Science of Coffee, Academic Press, ch. 19 (pp. 457–488 cited). doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-803520-7.00019-0 · other copies
  2. AManzo, J. (2015). “Third-Wave” Coffeehouses as Venues for Sociality: On Encounters between Employees and Customers. The Qualitative Report 20(6), 746–761. doi:10.46743/2160-3715/2015.2141 · other copies
  3. ABoaventura, P. S. M.; Abdalla, C. C.; Araújo, C. L.; Arakelian, J. S. (2018). Value co-creation in the specialty coffee value chain: The third-wave coffee movement. Revista de Administração de Empresas 58(3), 254–266. doi:10.1590/S0034-759020180306 · other copies
  4. BFischer, E. F. (2017). Quality and inequality: Taste, value, and power in the third wave coffee market (MPIfG Discussion Paper 17/4). Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, Cologne.
  5. BAdams, J. (2010). Thoroughly modern coffee. TEXT, special issue ‘Rewriting the menu: the cultural dynamics of contemporary food choices’ (eds Wessell, A.; Brien, D. L.), Australasian Association of Writing Programs.
  6. ASamoggia, A.; Busi, R. (2023). Sustainable coffee capsule consumption: Understanding Italian consumers’ purchasing drivers. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems 7, 1088877. doi:10.3389/fsufs.2023.1088877 · other copies
  7. BNadelberg, E.; Polit, J. R.; Orjuela, J. P.; Ranitzsch, K. (2017). Trading and Transaction – Market and Finance Dynamics. In: Folmer, B. (ed.), The Craft and Science of Coffee, Academic Press, ch. 9, pp. 205–223. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-803520-7.00009-8 · other copies
  8. BYeretzian, C.; Blank, I.; Wyser, Y. (2017). Protecting the Flavors – Freshness as a Key to Quality (chapter 14). The Craft and Science of Coffee (ed. B. Folmer), Academic Press, 329–353. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-803520-7.00014-1 · other copies
  9. BInternational Coffee Organization (2024). Existing definitions of specialty coffee (FGSC 03/24). International Coffee Organization.
  10. AUC Davis Library, Archives and Special Collections Specialty Coffee Association Records. University of California, Davis.
  11. A/BKudak, K. Calling the Shots: 20 Years of the World Barista Championship. 25 (Specialty Coffee Association), Issue 9.
  12. A/BAlliance for Coffee Excellence COE History. Cup of Excellence.
  13. BWilson, A. P.; Wilson, N. L. W. (2013). The Economics of Quality in the Specialty Coffee Industry: Insights from the Cup of Excellence Auction Programs. Selected paper, AAEA & CAES Joint Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (AgEcon Search).
  14. BMuseu do Café, with Museo della Macchina per Caffè (MUMAC) Design Espresso (online exhibition). Google Arts & Culture.
  15. BWhite, M. (2012). Coffee Life in Japan (book description). University of California Press.
  16. BLingle, T. R.; Menon, S. N. (2017). Cupping and Grading – Discovering Character and Quality. In: Folmer, B. (ed.), The Craft and Science of Coffee, Academic Press, ch. 8, pp. 181–203. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-803520-7.00008-6 · other copies
  17. A/BCoffee Quality Institute Championing the value of quality (About CQI). Coffee Quality Institute.

Tier A · authoritative · B · trade and expert · C · general. Supporting quotes for every source are in the data version of this entry. If a publisher’s site refuses access, try the doi link or “other copies”.

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