Updated: Dec 15, 2020
The taste notes of coffee beans vary according to:
the variety of the coffee tree (there are 200 plus variants discovered and counting)
the micro climate of the location, of which altitude is an important factor. Note that coffee only grows between the tropics of Cancer & Capricorn, known as the coffee belt.
the soil aka the terroir,
and finally by the method of coffee beans processing after harvesting.
These factors vary from country to country and therefore result in the myriad of taste or flavour notes possible in a humble coffee bean. So much so, that coffee trading organisations have had to develop coffee tasting lexicons or flavour wheels to describe all the possible taste variants.
Here is an example from The Coffee Collective:
The last mile, before it reaches your cup, is the method of roasting and brewing the coffee. The good folks at your local speciality cafe ensure that you get to taste as much of these flavour notes as possible and is the final make or break part of a coffee bean’s nearly year long journey!