Robusta coffee, also known as large-leaf coffee/big-fruit/large-grain coffee, is a tree species between shrubs and tall trees. It has long leaves and bright green color. The tree can reach a height of 10 meters, but its roots are very shallow.
The Arabica fruit is slightly rounder and smaller than the Arabica coffee fruit, while the coffee bean has an oblate body with straight pits in the middle, forming a "1" shape. (Arabica coffee beans are semi-elliptical, with an S-shaped pit pattern in the middle)
Compared with Arabica coffee beans, Robusta has the advantage of fast growth, strong disease and insect resistance, adaptability to lower altitudes and higher temperature environments, and high tolerance. However, the disadvantage is that the flavor is bright and strong. Some Robusta coffee beans grown at low altitudes, of poor quality, or sold commercially usually have a distinct earthy, rubbery, strong and bitter taste, making it difficult to simply taste them.
However, there are also some very good boutique Robusta coffee beans, which are usually grown in 1200m areas and have been carefully cared for, picked and processed, so the flavor can show pleasant flavors such as walnuts, peanuts, hazelnuts, wheat grains, etc.
But despite this, the taste of Robusta coffee beans is so strong that drinking it directly can make you sober. However, if a small amount of Arabica coffee beans can be added to blend together, the mellowness of the coffee can be further improved, and at the same time, the negative taste of Robusta will not be expressed too much.
How to mix Robusta with Arabica?
Due to the high caffeine content of Robusta and its rich oil, Robusta was often used in the formulation of Italian coffee beans during the period when Italian coffee was popular all over the world. At that time, a large part of the reason why people loved drinking coffee was to obtain caffeine; slowly, people began to pursue better taste and flavor, as well as the golden coffee oil, so Front Street designed an ingenious combination of Arabica and Robusta, namely Front Street Classic Blend and Front Street Commercial Blend.
The classic blend of Front Street uses the combination of Brazilian + Mandheling + Robusta, which gives the coffee a rich aroma of nuts and toasted bread, a mellow taste, and beautiful coffee crema, making it very suitable for beginners. For those who want to learn latte art at home, buy the Front Street Classic Blend, which is a medium-dark roasted Italian recipe composed of three production areas. Its design is inspired by the "Mamba" that was popular in ancient times.
How to drink robusta coffee powder?
Generally, the quality of Robusta coffee powder sold on the market is average, and it may be very bitter if you drink it directly. In this article, Front Street will teach you how to use Robusta to make Vietnamese coffee.
First we need to prepare a Vietnamese drip filter pot (sold online and very cheap~), then pick up the pressure plate of the filter cup, put in the coffee powder, and then lay it flat and install the pressure plate.
Then pour an appropriate amount of condensed milk into a heat-resistant glass.
4. Finally, pour hot water to steam and soak the coffee powder. Wait 20 seconds to add 1:10 hot water and wait for the drip filter to end.
Black coffee made in this way generally has a higher concentration, with a subtle graininess, obvious sweetness and bitterness, and also retains part of the oil. It has a burnt aroma and is thick. However, after being blended with condensed milk, the sweetness instantly turns into a smooth aroma.
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
