Yunnan Arabica Coffee Bean Variety Characteristics, Flavor Profile, and Tasting Notes - Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Price

The Relationship Between Coffee Varieties and Flavor

The flavor quality of coffee is fundamentally related to its variety. Arabica coffee has always been considered specialty coffee, while Robusta varieties carry bitterness that is not easily accepted, so they are typically used for espresso blends.

Yunnan Coffee: From Typica to Catimor

Yunnan small-bean coffee initially started with small-bean varieties, which are also known as Arabica coffee. Yunnan small-bean originally got its name from Typica, as Typica is a small-bean Arabica variety. The oldest coffee variety in Yunnan is Typica. Later, when Nestlé entered Yunnan, due to Typica's poor disease resistance and to increase coffee bean yields, coffee farmers were asked to cut down the flavorful Typica coffee trees and plant varieties with inferior flavor but better disease resistance and higher yields. Initially, the rust-resistant S288 was introduced, followed by the higher-yielding Catimor. This means that the coffee trees currently planted in Yunnan are mainly Catimor varieties, and Yunnan small-bean coffee is essentially Catimor variety coffee.

"Small-bean" refers to the smaller-sized Arabica varieties in coffee, contrasting with Hainan's medium-bean Robusta coffee beans. Yunnan initially introduced and planted Typica and Bourbon, two pure Arabica varieties. The ancient Typica is recognized as a high-quality variety. The famous Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee belongs to the Typica variety, featuring rich aroma and delicate, diverse flavors, but with extremely low yields and susceptibility to rust disease, requiring more human management. Coffee is ultimately a cash crop for Yunnan farmers' livelihoods. If yields are too low to meet income requirements, it becomes difficult to maintain cultivation. Therefore, most Yunnan farmers chose to switch to higher-yielding varieties: Catimor.

As an agricultural crop, coffee flavor is always closely related to factors such as variety, climate, altitude, soil, and management, representing a natural and authentic expression of the variety and local terroir. The Yunnan small-bean coffee currently on the market is Catimor variety, so naturally its flavor is not as good as Typica varieties. However, Yunnan coffee beans are also Asian beans and naturally possess the basic flavors of Asian beans, such as herbal notes, some nutty undertones, and fruity acidity. Overall, it's neither bitter nor sour, making it quite an excellent coffee!

Typica

The oldest native variety of Ethiopia, discovered around the 15th to 16th centuries AD. Typica is characterized by taller coffee trees with bronze-colored top leaves, and coffee beans that are larger, longer, and pointed at both ends, somewhat egg-shaped. Typica coffee often has citrus acidity with a sweet aftertaste, praised by many as an elegant and clean coffee bean. Unfortunately, due to its low yield and poor resistance to leaf rust disease, it has gradually been replaced by farmers with other hardier varieties.

Typica was introduced to this country by Sir Nicholas Lawes in the 18th century and soon spread to Blue Mountain cultivation, with over two hundred years of history. The Blue Mountain Typica has adapted to the local island tropical rainforest climate, evolving stronger disease resistance, particularly against coffee berry disease. FrontStreet Coffee believes that the delicate and clean flavor of Blue Mountain is inseparable from Jamaica's commitment to careful Typica cultivation, allowing Typica to integrate into the local terroir, while the excellent terroir and unique microclimate of the Blue Mountains are also indispensable. FrontStreet Coffee uses medium-dark roasting to maximize the presentation of chocolate and nutty aromas while preserving soft acidity and sweetness, creating an overall balanced taste.

Catimor

Most coffee varieties currently planted in Yunnan are Catimor, because Typica variety coffee trees are susceptible to coffee leaf rust disease and have lower yields. Therefore, local coffee farmers reluctantly cut down the flavorful Typica variety and switched to planting Catimor varieties with higher yields and resistance to coffee leaf rust disease.

In Han Huaizong's "Specialty Coffee Studies" book, which introduces Chinese coffee-producing regions, it is mentioned that in 1998, over 90% of Yunnan's coffee varieties were Catimor.

Catimor is a new variety hybridized from Timor and Caturra by the Portuguese Coffee Leaf Rust Research Center CIFC in 1959. Catimor varieties are characterized by high productivity, short plants suitable for dense planting, and good disease resistance. However, because Catimor varieties carry Robusta genes, they exhibit more obvious bitterness and grassy flavors than pure Arabica varieties, and are slightly disadvantaged in terms of cleanliness, fruity notes, and richness. Robusta has good leaf rust resistance, rich oils, high yields, and is easy to cultivate. After hybridizing with Arabica Typica, Catimor acquired 25% Robusta genes, improving its leaf rust resistance while retaining rich oils and maintaining some of the rich flavors of the original Typica variety. Therefore, most Yunnan estates have now begun large-scale Catimor cultivation, while Typica cultivation areas have begun to shrink.

Arabica Coffee

Arabica (scientific name Coffee Arabica) is also known as small-bean coffee, originating from Ethiopia. Initially, Arabica coffee was mainly used as medicine for consumption. Later, people developed the habit of roasting and drinking it. In the 16th century, it was spread worldwide through Arab trade, gradually developing into today's popular beverage. Many of the specialty coffee beans we know belong to the Arabica variety, such as Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, Panama Geisha coffee, Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee, and so on.

Arabica varieties are large shrubs, suitable for cultivation in mountainous environments at altitudes of 600-2200 meters (in Ethiopia, they can also be cultivated at extremely high altitudes up to 2350 meters with excellent quality), temperatures between 15°-24°C, and annual rainfall of 1200-2200 mm. The leaves are elliptical and dark green, and the fruits are also elliptical, generally containing two slightly flattened beans. The beans are rounded, with a long oval front face, narrow and curved S-shaped cracks in the middle, and a relatively flat curved back.

Arabica has lower chlorogenic acid content, approximately 5.5% to 8%. Chlorogenic acid not only provides antioxidant properties but is also an important component for resisting pests. Therefore, Arabica is more susceptible to pest damage and climate effects. It is generally planted at higher altitudes, producing fewer and slower-maturing fruits, resulting in lower coffee bean yields per hectare compared to Robusta, making Arabica cultivation much more costly.

Flavor of Arabica Coffee

The bitterness we taste when drinking coffee mainly comes from chlorogenic acid in coffee. Robusta has higher caffeine, amino acid, and chlorogenic acid content. Therefore, Robusta naturally lacks the elegant, flowing aroma unique to Arabica beans, replaced instead by a richer, deeper bitterness. Arabica has lower caffeine content, approximately 0.9% to 1.2%, and 60% more fat content than Robusta coffee. Compared to the strong-tasting Robusta beans, Arabica has lower caffeine content and twice the sugar content of Robusta beans, making Arabica coffee taste smooth, sweet, with rich layered acidity and aroma, thus becoming the first choice for coffee drinkers.

(Left: Arabica, Right: Robusta)

Main Coffee Growing Regions in Yunnan

Currently, Yunnan coffee is mainly grown in the southern and western parts of Yunnan, including Pu'er, Wenshan, Baoshan, Dehong, and Lincang.

Dehong: Known as the "Hometown of Chinese Coffee." Coffee cultivation altitudes in Dehong Prefecture are all above 1000 meters, with 30,000 mu planted on mountainous areas above 1600 meters altitude. Additionally, Dehong Prefecture mainly uses organic fertilizers and organic pesticides for coffee cultivation, resulting in higher coffee quality, making it one of the world's rare high-quality coffee producing regions.

Baoshan: Coffee cultivation in Baoshan began in the mid-1950s, with the first coffee seedling introduced from Southeast Asia by the late patriotic overseas Chinese Mr. Liang Jinshan. In recent years, with the expansion of international trade, the small-bean coffee from Lujiangba has become renowned. European, American, and Arab countries, especially Britain, America, Egypt, and merchants from Hong Kong and Macau, regard it as premium coffee, with supply unable to meet demand. In December 2010, after review by China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, it was decided to implement national geographical indication product protection for "Baoshan Small-Bean Coffee."

Lincang: Lincang City is located in the southwestern part of Yunnan Province. The Tropic of Cancer passes through its southern part. It borders Pu'er to the east, Dali to the north, and Baoshan to the west, with Myanmar to the southwest. Therefore, it is also known as Lancang River, a brilliant pearl on China's southwestern border. The average annual temperature in Lincang City ranges between 16.8°C and 17.2°C. Dry and wet seasons are distinct, with abundant sunshine. Due to its unique geographical location and climatic conditions, Lincang City has become a focus of attention for many coffee enterprises. High-quality coffee seedling bases of 200 mu and 100 mu were respectively established in Mengding Town, Gengma Dai and Yi Autonomous County, and Lincang Happy Farm, with coffee cultivation carried out in Gengma, Zhenkang, Yunxian, Cangyuan, and Yongde.

FrontStreet Coffee has established its own estate in the Lincang producing region of Yunnan. FrontStreet Coffee selected Typica, a pure Arabica variety with superior flavor compared to the Catimor varieties currently planted in Yunnan. From seedling to first fruiting takes at least 4-5 years, which is why Yunnan coffee farmers, despite knowing that Catimor varieties have inferior flavor, are unwilling to replant. The first batch of self-produced Yunnan coffee beans from FrontStreet Coffee in 2020-21 was named "Frontsteet 2013" and received unanimous praise.

Processing Methods for Yunnan Coffee Beans

Yunnan's weather is rainy and foggy, so washed processing has become the most common processing method for Yunnan coffee. Of course, there are also natural processed coffees, such as FrontStreet Coffee's natural Catimor coffee and Frontsteet 2013 natural Typica coffee.

Washed Processing: The harvested cherries are processed through a depulping machine to separate most of the fruit pulp from the coffee beans, then the parchment beans are guided to a clean water tank and soaked in water for fermentation to completely remove the residual pulp layer. Through washed processing, unripe and defective beans are selected out due to buoyancy differences, and the fermentation process is easier to control. Therefore, unlike natural processed beans which may have impure flavors, washed coffee presents distinct fruit acidity, slightly stronger complexity, and cleaner cup characteristics.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Parameters for Yunnan Coffee:

To preserve the sour-sweet characteristics and tea-like qualities of Yunnan coffee, FrontStreet Coffee applies medium roasting. When brewing, you can use a V60 dripper with a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, medium grind (approximately coarse sugar size / 75% passing rate through China #20 standard sieve), and 88°C water temperature.

Use segmented extraction, blooming with twice the coffee powder amount of water (i.e., 30g water blooming for 30 seconds). The blooming process is necessary to allow the coffee powder to release internal carbon dioxide gas, making the subsequent extraction more stable. Use small circular water flow to inject water to 125g for segmentation, continue injecting water to 225g then stop. After the water from the dripper finishes dripping, remove the dripper. Time from the beginning of water injection, extraction time is 2'00". Next, pick up the entire cup of coffee and shake it evenly, then pour into a cup for tasting.

[FrontStreet Coffee Washed Yunnan Small-Bean Coffee Flavor]: Herbal, nutty aroma, chocolate, caramel, with a hint of light fruity acidity in the aftertaste.

[FrontStreet Coffee Yunnan Natural Catimor Coffee Flavor]: Nuts, chocolate, spices, caramel, plum.

[FrontStreet Coffee 2013 Natural Typica Coffee Flavor]: Nutty tones, with a more robust texture than washed Yunnan coffee, slightly lower acidity than washed Typica Yunnan coffee, but slightly higher sweetness, better balance, berry-like acidity, mixed with brown sugar, and a slight tea-like sensation.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Suggestions:

To brew a delicious cup of coffee, attention to the freshness of coffee beans is still necessary. FrontStreet Coffee has always believed that coffee bean freshness greatly affects coffee flavor, so FrontStreet Coffee ships coffee beans roasted within 5 days. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "Freshly Roasted Good Coffee," ensuring that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee when it arrives. The coffee resting period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive it, it's at peak flavor.

For friends who need ground coffee, FrontStreet Coffee kindly reminds: if coffee beans are ground in advance, there's no need for further resting, because during transportation, the pressure from carbon dioxide in the package can also help the coffee flavor become mellow, so you can brew a cup immediately upon receiving the coffee powder. However, coffee powder needs to be brewed promptly, because coffee powder oxidizes quickly when exposed to air, meaning the coffee flavor will dissipate relatively quickly, and the coffee won't taste as good. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends purchasing whole beans and grinding fresh before brewing to better taste the coffee's flavor.

As FrontStreet Coffee's daily brew bean, washed Yunnan small-bean coffee naturally represents the flavor characteristics of Yunnan coffee beans. Tasting Yunnan small-bean coffee gives you an understanding of the general flavor profile of Yunnan coffee. FrontStreet Coffee's daily brew beans are flavor representatives from various producing countries, offering excellent value. FrontStreet Coffee established daily brew beans to allow everyone to taste the flavor characteristics of coffees from different producing countries, thereby choosing their favorite single-origin coffee beans. This also helps determine what kind of flavors they prefer through the daily brew beans. For example: some people like the fresh and light floral-fruit tones of Ethiopia, some prefer the nutty dark chocolate with soft fruit acidity of Colombia, and of course, there's the citrus tones of Panama Geisha coffee, and so on.

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