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Is Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Delicious? Let's Brew a Real Yunnan Typica Coffee!

Published: 2026-01-28 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/28, For professional coffee knowledge and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style). 01|Introduction to Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Growing Region Yunnan small bean coffee is suitable for growing on mountainous land at altitudes of 800~1800 meters. If the altitude is too high, the taste becomes sour; if too low, it becomes bitter. Yunnan small bean coffee

01 | FrontStreet Coffee Yunnan Arabica Growing Region Introduction

Yunnan Arabica coffee is suitable for cultivation in mountainous areas at altitudes of 800-1800 meters. If the altitude is too high, the taste becomes sour; if too low, it becomes bitter. Most Yunnan Arabica coffee is planted in dry, hot valley areas around 1100 meters altitude, resulting in moderate acidity with rich and mellow aroma. Many regions in Yunnan possess unique environments suitable for growing small-variety coffee, producing Yunnan Arabica coffee of exceptional quality.

The main growing areas are distributed in Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, Dehong, and other prefectures. Baoshan has an average temperature of 21.5°C, reaching highs of 40.4°C, and is essentially frost-free year-round, making it the recognized premier region for Yunnan Arabica coffee. The Yunnan Arabica coffee cultivated here is renowned both domestically and internationally for being rich without bitterness, aromatic without harshness, featuring small yet uniform beans with rich, mellow aroma and fruity notes. International coffee organization tasting experts have evaluated Yunnan Arabica coffee as comparable to Colombian wet-processed small-variety coffee, ranking it among the world's highest-quality coffees.

Altitude of Cultivation

For Arabica, 1200 meters is the quality dividing line. You'll notice that Hainan coffee, which few people discuss, remains non-mainstream and is sold only as tourist souvenirs for two reasons: firstly, it's Robusta, and secondly, Hainan's terrain is at sea level, with most areas below 300 meters. The Wuzhishan mountain peak reaches 1800 meters, while the city area is only 320 meters. Hainan can grow some souvenir coffee, but lacks sufficient capability to cultivate quality Arabica.

Since cultivation altitude is a fundamental factor, large areas of Yunnan's mountains can reach above 1000 meters. Kunming has an altitude of 1895 meters, Baoshan 1653.5 meters, Dali 1976 meters, Chuxiong 1773 meters, Dehong averages 800-1500 meters, and Diqing averages 3380 meters. With higher altitudes, temperature must also be considered. Generally, the coffee belt lies between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, because beyond these latitudes, the probability of frost increases significantly, and coffee trees die when exposed to frost. However, Yunnan benefits from the Gaoligong Mountains north of Baoshan, which block the direct impact of Siberian cold air currents in winter, and its numerous mountains create protective microclimates suitable for coffee cultivation.

02 | Processing Method

The harvested cherries are processed using a depulping machine to separate most of the fruit flesh from the coffee beans, then the parchment beans are guided to a clean water tank and soaked for fermentation to completely remove the remaining fruit pulp layer. In the past (about five years ago), the washed method was often the preferred processing choice for high-quality coffee beans.

Through water processing, unripe and defective beans are selected out due to buoyancy differences, and the fermentation process is more easily controlled. Therefore, unlike natural-processed beans that may have impurity flavors, washed coffee presents distinct fruit acidity, slightly stronger complexity, and cleaner cup characteristics (without any negative flavors such as astringency or sharpness). However, because it's too "clean," the flavor richness is slightly weaker.

03 | Green Bean Analysis

FrontStreet Coffee Yunnan Arabica Coffee

Yunnan Arabica coffee belongs to the Rubiaceae family, Coffea genus, with growing areas mainly distributed in Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, Dehong, and other prefectures. The Arabica variety originates from Ethiopia or the Arabian Peninsula.

Variety

Typica: The oldest original variety from Ethiopia, grown in southeastern Ethiopia and Sudan. All Arabica varieties are derived from Typica. It offers elegant flavor but has weak constitution, poor disease resistance, and low yield. Excellent estate beans like Jamaica Blue Mountain, Sumatra Mandheling, and Hawaii Kona all belong to the Typica family. Typica has bronze-colored terminal leaves, earning it the name "red-topped coffee." Typica belongs to the Arabica species.

Coffee trees have opposite leaves that are long-oval with smooth surfaces. The terminal branches are long with few side branches. The flowers are white, blooming at the base where petioles connect to branches. Mature coffee cherries resemble cherries, appearing bright red with sweet flesh, containing a pair of seeds - the coffee beans.

Typica is one of the oldest original varieties of Arabica coffee discovered today. Typica has bronze-colored terminal leaves, and the beans are oval or slender-pointed in shape. It offers elegant flavor but has weak constitution, poor disease resistance, and low yield.

Typica is one of the oldest varieties of Arabica coffee species discovered today, another being Bourbon. Arabica originates from Ethiopia, where this species still grows naturally in the local primitive rainforest highlands. The Typica planted in Java was a gift from the Dutch to honor France's Louis XIV, surviving in the Persian Garden, with its seeds brought by the French to the French colony of Martinique in 1720.

Typica beans are slender and long, the trees are tall and elegant, the fruits are oval, and the branches are slightly inclined. Typica has four slender branches in an spreading posture with an inclination angle of 50-70 degrees. The coffee yield per tree is very low, but cupping scores are very high.

04 | FrontStreet Coffee Yunnan Arabica Roasting Analysis

This FrontStreet Coffee Yunnan Huaguoshan coffee is best roasted using a medium-slow roasting method to best showcase its rounded, smooth characteristics while maintaining rich floral and fruit aromas.

Roasting machine: Yangjia 600g semi-direct flame

Preheat the roaster to 200°C and load the beans, with the damper set to 3. After 30 seconds, adjust heat to 160°C, keeping the damper unchanged. The return temperature point is reached at 1'33", adjust heat once at 168°C. At this point, the bean surface turns yellow, the grassy smell completely disappears, dehydration is complete, adjust heat to 130°C, and damper to 4.

At 8'45", ugly wrinkles and black spots appear on the bean surface, and the toasted bread smell clearly transforms into coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this moment, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. At 9'07", first crack begins, reduce heat to 80°C, fully open the damper to 5 (adjust heat very carefully, not too small to stop the cracking sound). Three minutes after first crack, unload at 198°C.

Cupping:

Dry aroma: Pear-like fruits, vanilla-like notes, honey-like sweetness, peach tea, ripe orange, jasmine hints

Wet aroma: Nutty, milky chocolate, herbal-floral notes

Flavor: Smooth entry with Asian herbal plant aromas, lively and bright acidity, mouth-watering sensation on both cheeks. The acidity is soft, with good balance between richness and body, showing rich layers. The aftertaste has distinct black chocolate, honey, and cane sugar notes. After complete cooling, brown sugar flavors emerge.

05 | FrontStreet Coffee Yunnan Arabica Brewing Analysis

Recommended brewing methods: Siphon, pour-over

Grind size: 4 (Japan Fuji R440)

Water temperature: 90°C

V60 dripper, 15g of coffee, water temperature 90°C, grind size 4, water-to-coffee ratio close to 1:15

30g of water for bloom, bloom time 30s

分段: Pour water to 99ml, pause, then slowly pour to 230ml

即 31-99-100

Other drip extraction suggestions:

French press: recommended grind size 3.5-4, water temperature 90°C

AeroPress: recommended grind size 2.5, water temperature 88°C

Pour-over: grind size 3.5, water temperature 89°C

FrontStreet Coffee: A roastery in Guangzhou with a small shop but diverse variety of beans, offering both famous and lesser-known varieties, as well as online services. https://shop104210103.taobao.com