Coffee beans are divided into three major categories: Arabica, Robusta, and Liberica. Because the two types of coffee beans currently circulating on the market are Arabica and Robusta, a friend sent a private message to ask what the difference is between these two coffee beans?
In order to let everyone know more about these two coffee beans, today we will take a look at the differences between Arabica coffee beans and Robusta coffee beans.
1. Harvest period and yield
Arabica coffee trees are planted from seedlings and take five years to bear fruit. The main harvest period is from May to September in Brazil and from April to June in Colombia. The total output accounts for about 70-75% of the global market. Robusta coffee trees only take two to three years to bear fruit. The harvest period in Indonesia is from April to August every year, and in Vietnam from October to April of the following year. The total output accounts for about 20% to 25% of the global market.
2.Characteristics and uses
Arabica has a milder taste, a fragrance and wine-sour taste, and is of higher quality, so its commercial value is higher. Moreover, the coffee brewed from Arabica coffee beans at various roasting degrees has different flavors and is very playable. For example, among the half-hundred coffees on the Front Street Bean List, more than 95% are single Arabica varieties.
Robusta has strong resistance to diseases and insect pests. The coffee beans produced have less aroma, strong bitterness (due to more caffeine), and insufficient acidity. Therefore, they are mostly used for instant coffee, canned coffee, or brewed three-in-one coffee. Compared with Arabica, the price of Robusta is relatively low.
Arabica tastes more refined, has a smoother mouthfeel, and is of better overall quality. It is rare to find single-origin Robusta coffee on the market today (although some specialty coffee importers do have this product). Washed Robusta is of higher quality and can be used in blending to increase taste and richness, complementing the advantages of Arabica. The three well-known coffee beans: Hawaii Kona, Jamaica Blue Mountain and Yemen Mocha, all belong to the Arabica variety. Arabica green beans have a dark, narrow appearance and are known as the highest quality highland Arabica variety. They are characterized by rich flavors such as sweetness, sourness and aroma.
Generally speaking, Arabica is mainly used in single-origin or specialty coffee, while Robusta is used to make instant coffee. Although Arabica can be defined as high-end coffee and Robusta as inferior, it does not necessarily have to be classified in this way. It is more appropriate to distinguish based on your favorite taste. From the perspective of taste orientation, the United States and Japan more often drink light coffee brewed from Arabica, while Europe prefers espresso made from a mixture of Arabica and Robusta.
[Difference in shape]
The fruit of Arabica coffee beans is oval, usually with two slightly flat beans. The bean body is small and round, the front is oblong, the middle crack is narrow and curved in an S shape, and the arc shape on the back of the bean is relatively flat. The main producing areas are South America, Central American countries, Africa, and Asia. A small amount of Arabica coffee beans are also grown in China's Yunnan, Hainan, and Taiwan.
(Arabica on the left, Robusta on the right)
Robusta coffee beans are oval in shape, small in size, and relatively round. The side with the crack in the middle is slightly swollen, with straight grooves, weak aroma, and strong bitterness. It is reminiscent of soybeans. It is mainly used to make instant coffee. Since it is produced in Africa, most Africans drink Robusta coffee.
Different flavor characteristics
[Arabica] coffee has a varied and broad potential flavor profile. Arabica coffee produced in different regions, different altitudes, and different climates usually has its own characteristics and can show completely different individual flavors. "Arabica" coffee smells like grass when it is not roasted. After proper roasting, it shows "fruity aroma" (medium light roast) and "caramel sweet aroma" (dark roast). Generally speaking, it has a better aroma and flavor than Robusta beans. This makes it the only coffee among these native species that can be drunk directly and alone, either as a single product or as an Italian blend.
[Robusta] Coffee usually has a rather ordinary, dull, and pungent flavor, and because most of the world's Robusta is planted in low-altitude areas (currently only India grows rare high-altitude, high-quality, washed Robusta coffee beans), the flavor differences in different regions and different climates are not too big, and it is relatively lacking in personality. When unroasted, it smells like raw peanuts. The taste of cheap Robusta coffee beans after roasting is usually between "wheat tea smell" (medium light roast) and "rubber tire smell" (dark roast), making it difficult to express a detailed flavor.
Is Yunnan arabica coffee Arabica?
99% of domestically produced coffee comes from Yunnan. Yunnan coffee is a variant of the original Arabica species. It has been cultivated and domesticated for a long time. It is generally called Yunnan small-grain coffee and has a cultivation history of more than 100 years. Today we will talk about “the secrets you don’t know about Yunnan coffee”.
First, Yunnan coffee is definitely not the worst coffee in Asia. Indonesian Luo beans and East Timor mixed beans are at the bottom;
Second, Yunnan coffee is not the worst in the country, because Hainan Xinglong’s Luodou is at the bottom; (Okay, let’s not compete with Luodou)
Third, Yunnan’s coffee is not the best in the country. The best is in Taiwan (an integral part of our country).
What is Yunnan arabica coffee?
Yunnan arabica coffee is relative to Vietnam's medium-grain coffee. This is due to different planting varieties. The variety grown in Yunnan is Arabica, and its particles are smaller than those of Robusta coffee grown in Vietnam, so it is called small. The varieties grown in Yunnan and the most expensive Blue Mountain coffee belong to the Arabica species. Yunnan is the largest Arabica coffee planting area in China, so the Arabica coffee produced in Yunnan is also called arabica coffee.
What varieties of Yunnan arabica coffee are there?
Typica and Bourbon, two classic high-quality coffee varieties, are the main cultivated varieties of coffee in Yunnan. In 1991, the Catimor series of varieties (with stronger virus resistance and higher yield) were introduced from Kenya, which are variants of the Arabica species (also known as small-grained species). Because the two varieties have similar shapes and habits, they are often cultivated together.
Typica coffee is native to Ethiopia and southeastern Sudan and is the most widely cultivated coffee variety in the Western Hemisphere. Typica has stronger plants, a tall and thin tree shape, and copper-colored top leaves, so it is commonly known as red-top coffee. However, this variety is intolerant to light, has poor disease resistance, and has low yields. Therefore, many coffee farmers who pursue high yields are unwilling to plant it, and instead plant other varieties with better yields. This is the main reason why Typica is becoming increasingly rare today. However, the flavor of Typica is mellow and elegant, and is suitable for a variety of production methods. The Yunnan coffee grown in Front Street uses the Typica variety. You can place an order at Front Street Taobao store or Front Street Tmall flagship store.
Bourbon is derived from the natural mutation of Typica, and its bean shape becomes thin and pointed and becomes round. It was first discovered in Reunion, a Bourbon island on the east coast of Africa. In 1715, France transplanted the round-bodied beans from Yemen Mocha to Bourbon Island on the east coast of Africa (renamed Reunion after the French Revolution) and then named it Bourbon. Bourbon round-bodied beans were introduced to Brazil in 1727 and began to be cultivated.
Although the yield is not high, the Bourbon variety is more resistant to rust leaf disease than the frail Typica variety. The Bourbon coffee grown at high altitudes has a rich and delicate flavor, a strong smell, and a soft acidity. Generally, the bourbon fruit we see changes from green to light yellow, orange, red, and finally turns into fully ripe dark red, which is what we refer to as red bourbon. There is also a rare type of yellow bourbon, with the ripe fruits showing bright yellow color. Front Street Brazilian Queen Manor Coffee belongs to the yellow bourbon variety.
Katim is a combination of Arabica and Robusta. Robusta has good leaf rust resistance and rich oil, high yield, and is easy to plant. After crossing with Arabica Typica, Katim has 25% Robusta genes, which improves its ability to resist leaf rust, retains rich oil, and has the rich taste of some native Typica species. Therefore, most Yunnan manors have begun to plant Katim on a large scale. Front Street believes that Catim coffee grown in Yunnan has a nutty, brown sugar, and plum-like flavor, but its overall cleanliness is not as good as the Typica variety.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
