Introduction to the Historical Origins of Yemeni Coffee Variety Udaini - Yemeni Coffee Was Originally Iron Skin

The Aromatic Legacy of Yemeni Coffee: From 16th-Century Ports to Global Recognition

Yemen's aromatic coffee captivated the world in the 16th century, and in 2017, Mokhtar Alkhanshali, founder of the Port of Mocha project, put Yemeni coffee back among the world's finest. Coffee is an indispensable cultural symbol of the nation, and "Mocha" has become all but synonymous with Yemeni coffee itself.

The Origin of the Name Mocha: Fame Through a Port

The name actually comes from Yemen's port of Al-Mokha. Yemen was the first country to commercialize coffee cultivation, and since its coffee was shipped to the world through that port, people gradually began calling coffee from every region of Yemen "Mocha." But that collective label is not the true name of any Yemeni variety.

For a long time, Yemeni coffee was named by production region instead. Names like Mattari (from the Bani Mattar region) and Ismaeli (from Haraaz) still surface occasionally on the market, though many other place names have slowly been forgotten.

Mokhtar, founder of the Port of Mocha project, in Haraaz, Yemen.

Udaini: The Main Variety of Yemeni Coffee

This habit of naming by place obscured the varieties behind the beans. In 1993, the scholar Ali published a research and classification report on Yemeni coffee, collecting and studying its varieties. Today four main varieties are recognized in Yemen: Udaini, Dawairi, Tufahi, and Burra'i (with their characteristics detailed in the table below).

Compiled from the "Promoting Yemeni Coffee Development" report (2005).

Later studies have proposed a fifth or even sixth variety, but across numerous papers scholars have consistently identified Udaini as the most common and most ancient variety in Yemen. That strongly suggests the seeds Yemen spread to the rest of the world were most likely Udaini.

Yemeni Udaini coffee trees.

The photo above was taken near the small town of IBB in Yemen, 172 kilometers from the port of Mocha - also the hometown of Mokhtar, founder of the Port of Mocha project.

The data points to a practical reason why most local farmers choose Udaini: its relatively concentrated harvest period. Biennial or year-round harvesting is simply hard to run as a commercial operation.

Udaini: An Ancient Typica Variety

If Udaini is Yemen's main variety, where do the four major varieties sit in the Arabica family tree? In genetic research on Arabica, scholars pinpointed Yemeni coffee's lineage by comparing the genes of Yemen's four major varieties against a diverse panel of African landraces (Anthony, F., Combes, M., Astorga, C. et al. Theor Appl Genet, 2002). The conclusion: Yemen's main coffee varieties descend from ancient Typica stock.

Coffee variety family tree.

Multiple sources agree that "Yemen Mocha" is merely a long-standing collective term, and that the actual varieties of Yemeni coffee are the four major types, led by Udaini.

*The information above comes from research reports and scientific papers. Traceable records of ancient coffee varieties are scarce, so this article is for reference only - fellow lovers of Yemeni coffee are welcome to discuss further.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If Yemen's Typica heritage sparks your curiosity, the best way to understand what ancient Typica can taste like is to brew one. FrontStreet Coffee grows and roasts Typica itself: the FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan Typica comes from trees FrontStreet has cultivated in Lincang, Yunnan since 2013 - site selection, breeding, planting, and management every step of the way. This Arabica classic is naturally processed, and after a medium roast it shows remarkable dried-fruit sweetness with plum, raw sugar, and chocolate.

Two more FrontStreet beans pair beautifully with an interest in variety history:

• FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry - from Ethiopia's most famous region, one of the earliest coffees to use fully red-cherry natural processing. At a medium-light roast it offers ripe-fruit aromas, a clear fermented sweetness with berry notes on entry, then citrus acidity and creamy smoothness as it cools, finishing with the juiciness of ripe grapes.
• FrontStreet Queen Estate Yellow Bourbon - from a respected Brazilian specialty estate. Natural processing gives it outstanding sweetness, and it is a versatile all-rounder for pour-over, French press, moka pot, or espresso, showing nuts, cream, cane sugar, and soft fruit acidity at a medium roast.

A single variety, traced from Yemen across the world - then tasted in the cup. That is one of the quiet pleasures of specialty coffee.