Why is coffee unique? Origin. The source of a coffee’s flavor is the coffee’s origin. Origin is the terroir experienced by a coffee-plant, it’s the microclimate of a farm. Origin is comprehended by observing the variety of ecological stresses a coffee-plant undergoes or is susceptible to. The stresses which a coffee-plant endures on a farm are what influence how the coffee-plant grows. By reciprocating with their exterior conditions coffee-plants respond to fluctuations in their microclimate by modifying their constitution via chemical reactions. The resulting adaptations made by a plant to pacify or adjust to the disturbances of a microclimate result in chemical compounds that are, in retrospect, the thumbprint of the coffee’s origin. Origin is what’s tasted through the unique flavors characterizing single-origin coffees.