It’s almost routine to start your day off with a cup of coffee. And with out fast-paced lives, we often grab what’s available and just stick with it―instant coffee, frapuccinos, you name it.

But do you ever wonder what it takes to make a good cup? We may not notice it but not all coffees taste the same, and not all of them may be up to par to your taste. To know more about this, coffee specialist and owner of SGD Coffee Rich Watanabe gave us a rundown during a Coffee Sensory Workshop.

#1 Beans are better than instant coffee

We’re sorry, instant coffee drinkers (aka, me). Rich says that you get the most flavor by buying a bag of beans and grinding them yourself. This also allows you to inspect the beans for damaged ones—empty shells and cracked ones—and also get an initial idea of the coffee’s taste and aroma. “[Cafés and stores] sell pre-ground coffee so they can hide the defective beans,” Rich tells us. “This is why we always grind the beans here in the café during every order.”

One helpful advice when buying coffee beans is to not base flavor on the aroma. “Don’t buy based on smell because it doesn’t say anything about the taste,” Rich says. This is why it’s important to read where the beans came from and when it was roasted and packed.