Is Yunnan Baoshan Coffee a Small Bean Variety? How Much Does Yunnan Baoshan Coffee Cost Per Jin?

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Yunnan small-grain coffee belongs to the Rubiaceae family and Coffea genus. The main planting areas are distributed in prefectures such as Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, and Dehong. Baoshan small-grain coffee originates from Ethiopia or the Arabian Peninsula.

Main Growing Regions

Small-grain coffee is suitable for growing on mountain slopes at altitudes of 800~1800 meters. If the altitude is too high, the taste will be sour; if too low, it will be bitter. Most small-grain coffee is planted in dry-hot valley areas at around 1100 meters altitude, so it has moderate acidity, rich fragrance, and mellow flavor. Many areas in Yunnan have unique environments suitable for growing small-grain coffee, producing excellent quality small-grain coffee.

The main planting areas are distributed in prefectures such as Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, and Dehong. The average temperature in Baoshan is 21.5°C, with a maximum of 40.4°C. It is basically frost-free throughout the year and is recognized as the best small-grain coffee producing area. The small-grain coffee cultivated here is famous both at home and abroad for being strong but not bitter, fragrant but not intense, with small and uniform particles, rich mellow aroma, and fruity notes. International Coffee Organization tasting experts have evaluated Baoshan coffee as being in the same category as Colombian wet-processed small-grain coffee, making it among the highest quality coffees in the world.

Varieties

There seem to be few authoritative reports published about Yunnan's coffee bean varieties, and it's believed that coffee farmers may not necessarily know them, while processing plants don't care much either. Therefore, tracing down to the most specific varieties is quite difficult (at least I don't know). So we can only classify them from major branches, which is also the most common classification method. Excluding Robusta, looking at the same major category, Baoshan coffee's altitude means Arabica is predominantly grown. The reason is simple: the altitude environment is suitable for growing Arabica. Although it has less chlorogenic acid and poor disease resistance, the altitude gives it living space, so there's no need to grow Robusta, which has more chlorogenic acid, strong disease resistance, but is bitter. Moreover, Arabica commands a better price. Among the Arabica varieties grown in Yunnan, more farmers grow Typica than Bourbon. So if someone mentions Yunnan Arabica, about eighty percent of the time they're referring to Typica. As for the third-level branches, fewer people mention them. Some say that part of it is Catimor, a hybrid of Arabica and Robusta; better ones include Caturra, a hybrid of Typica and Bourbon. Generally, where there's Caturra, there's also Catuai...

In reality, most of Baoshan coffee is Catimor, though Typica also exists, but Catimor remains the majority.

Typica

The oldest native variety from Ethiopia, originating from southeastern Ethiopia and Sudan. All Arabica varieties are derived from Typica. It has elegant flavor but weak constitution, poor disease resistance, and low fruit yield. Excellent estate beans such as FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1, FrontStreet Coffee's Indonesia Sumatra Mandheling, and FrontStreet Coffee's Hawaii Kona all belong to the Typica variety. The top leaves of Typica are copper-colored, called red-top coffee. Typica belongs to the Arabica species.

Catimor

In 1959, Portuguese people hybridized Brazilian Caturra with Timor to cultivate Catimor, which has strong disease resistance. It is currently an important variety among commercial beans.

Baoshan Coffee Growth Period

Baoshan coffee trees begin bearing fruit at 3~4 years of age.

Coffee is a short-day plant. Coffee has the characteristics of multiple flowering phenomena and concentrated flowering periods. Small-grain coffee in Yunnan has a flowering period from February to July, with the peak flowering period from March to May. Coffee flowering is greatly influenced by climate, especially rainfall and temperature. Coffee flowers have a short lifespan, lasting only 2~3 days. Baoshan coffee generally begins to bloom between 3~5 AM and reaches full bloom between 5~7 AM.

Coffee fruit development takes a relatively long time. Baoshan coffee fruit takes 8~10 months to mature, generally maturing from October to December of the same year. Rainfall has a greater impact on fruit development, and climatic conditions directly affect the fruit.

The new leaves at the tips of branches in the picture above are copper-colored, which is characteristic of Typica coffee trees. Typica is an old variety within the Arabica species. The well-known FrontStreet Coffee's Hawaii Kona and FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 are actually also Typica varieties. Among a vast expanse of Catimor, it's actually quite easy to recognize. After careful observation, you'll find that each variety has its own appearance. Catimor leaves all droop downward, and the tree shape appears to be wearing a cloak. Typica, on the other hand, has branches that grow upward, with copper-colored new leaves at the tree tips.

Looking at the overall picture, most of what's currently planted in Yunnan is Catimor. This variety is a hybrid between the Bourbon-lineage branch Caturra of the Arabica species and the Robusta species. The reason for planting this variety is that Catimor has Robusta genes, so its disease resistance is stronger than single old varieties, and its yield is also better. Compared to the delicate old varieties with poor disease resistance and low yields, farmers naturally prefer to plant Catimor, so a Catimor trend has now swept through Yunnan.

Catimor beans are round and thick, while Typica beans are thin and long. Catimor's center line is messy. Under the same conditions, Typica quality is superior to Catimor, and the price is also higher.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Suggestions for FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan Huaguoshan

Dripper selection: V60, Kalita wave, and cake drippers are all suitable

V60 demonstration

Parameters: 15g coffee grounds, water temperature 90°C, grind size 4, water-to-coffee ratio close to 1:15, total time around 2:00

Technique: 25-30g water for bloom, bloom time 30s. First pour to 120g, then stop pouring. Use vertical water flow, small water flow with slow circular motion. Second pour to 225g, water flow and circular motion speed slightly faster to reduce fine particles clogging the dripper, which would cause over-extraction.

Other extraction suggestions:

French Press: Grind size 3.5-4, water temperature 90°C
Siphon: Grind size 4, water temperature 89°C
AeroPress: Grind size 2.5, water temperature 88°C

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