What is the Market Price of Yunnan Typica Coffee? How Much Does a Cup of Yunnan Typica Coffee Cost?

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01 | Introduction to Yunnan Typica Coffee Growing Region

Small-grain coffee (Arabica) is suitable for growing in mountainous areas at altitudes of 800-1800 meters. If the altitude is too high, the flavor becomes sour; if too low, it becomes bitter. Most small-grain coffee is planted in dry, hot valley areas around 1100 meters altitude, resulting in moderate acidity, rich fragrance, and mellow smoothness. Many regions in Yunnan have unique environments suitable for growing small-grain coffee, producing excellent quality beans.

The main Yunnan Typica coffee growing areas are distributed in Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, and Dehong. Baoshan has an average temperature of 21.5°C, reaching up to 40.4°C, with basically no frost year-round, making it recognized as the best small-grain coffee producing area. The small-grain coffee cultivated here is renowned both domestically and internationally for being strong but not bitter, fragrant but not harsh, with small, uniform beans, rich mellow aroma, and fruity notes. Coffee tasting experts from the International Coffee Organization have rated Yunnan coffee as Class 1 Colombian wet-processed small-grain coffee, representing one of the world's highest quality coffees.

Yunnan Typica Coffee Growing Altitude

For Arabica coffee, 1200 meters is the quality watershed. You'll find that Hainan coffee, which few people discuss, has always remained non-mainstream and can only be sold as a tourist souvenir. This is because, first, it's Robusta, and second, Hainan's terrain is at sea level, with most areas below 300 meters. The central Wuzhi Mountain peak reaches 1800 meters, but urban areas are only around 320 meters. Hainan can grow some souvenir coffee, but it truly lacks the capability to cultivate good Arabica.

Since growing altitude is a fundamental factor, large areas of Yunnan's mountains can reach above 1000 meters: Kunming at 1895 meters, Baoshan at 1653.5 meters, Dali at 1976 meters, Chuxiong at 1773 meters, Dehong averaging 800-1500 meters, and Diqing averaging 3380 meters. With higher altitudes, temperature must also be considered. Generally, the golden coffee belt lies between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, because once you go beyond these lines, 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 penetrating Siberian cold currents in winter, and the numerous mountains form protective microclimates for coffee growth.

02 | Yunnan Typica Coffee Processing Methods

The harvested cherries are processed using a depulping machine to separate most of the 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 remaining pulp layer. In the past (about five years ago), the washed method was often the preferred processing method for high-quality coffee beans.

Through water processing, unripe and defective beans are selected out due to buoyancy differences, and the fermentation process is easier to control. Therefore, the flavor doesn't have the miscellaneous notes found in natural processed coffee, but instead presents distinct fruit acidity, slightly stronger complexity, and cleaner cup characteristics (without any negative flavors like astringency or sharpness). However, because it's too "clean," the flavor richness is also somewhat weaker.

03 | Yunnan Typica Coffee Green Bean Analysis

Small-Grain Coffee

Yunnan small-grain coffee belongs to the Rubiaceae family, Coffea genus, with growing areas mainly distributed in Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, and Dehong. Small-grain coffee originates from Ethiopia or the Arabian Peninsula.

Varieties

Typica: The oldest native variety from Ethiopia, grown in 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 like Jamaica Blue Mountain, Sumatra Mandheling, and Hawaii Kona all belong to the Typica variety. Typica has reddish-bronze terminal leaves, known as red-topped coffee, and belongs to the Arabica species.

The opposite leaves of coffee trees are long-oval with smooth surfaces. The terminal branches are long with few branches, and the white flowers bloom at the base where leaf stems connect to branches. Mature coffee cherries look like cherries, bright red in color, with sweet pulp containing a pair of seeds - the coffee beans.

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

Typica is one of the oldest varieties of Arabica coffee trees discovered today, the other being Bourbon. Arabica originates from Ethiopia, where this variety still grows naturally in the local primitive highland rainforests today. The Typica planted in Java was a gift from the Dutch to France's Louis XIV, survived in the Persian Garden, and its seeds were brought by the French to the French colony of Martinique in 1720.

Typica beans are slender, the tree is tall and graceful, fruits are oval, and 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 | Yunnan Typica Coffee Roasting Analysis

This coffee is best roasted using a medium slow roast method to best express its round, smooth characteristics while maintaining rich floral and fruit aromas.

Roasting Machine: Yangjia 600g Semi-Direct Heat

Preheat the roaster to 200°C, set the air damper to 3. After 30 seconds, adjust heat to 160°C, keeping the damper unchanged. The temperature return point is at 1'33''. At 168°C, adjust the heat once. At this point, the bean surface turns yellow, grassy aroma completely disappears, and 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 toast aroma clearly transforms to coffee aroma. This can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. First crack begins at 9'07'', reduce heat to 80°C, fully open the damper to 5 (heat adjustment must be very careful, not so small that there's no cracking sound). 3'00'' after first crack, discharge 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

Flavor: Smooth entry, Asian herbal plant aroma, lively and bright acidity, mouth-watering sensation, soft acidity with good balance of mellow thickness, rich layers, aftertaste with distinct black chocolate, honey, and sucrose notes. After completely cooling, brown sugar flavor emerges.

05 | Yunnan Typica Coffee Brewing Analysis

Recommended Brewing Methods: Siphon, Pour-over

Grind Size: 4 (Japan Fuji R440)

Water Temperature: 90°C

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

30g water for bloom, bloom time 30s

Segmentation: Pour water to 99ml, stop, then slowly pour to 230ml

That is: 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

Yunnan Typica Coffee Brand Recommendations:

Baoshan is one of the four major coffee producing areas in Yunnan Province, China. Yunnan Typica Coffee - Baoshan Small-Grain Coffee is a specialty from Lujiang, Baoshan, Yunnan, a national geographical indication product, and one of the better quality coffees in the country and even globally. It's a pure Arabica ancient variety - Typica, with uniform and plump beans, fresh aroma, rich fragrance, mellow and thick taste, featuring strength without harshness, the same variety as the world-famous Blue Mountain coffee. It enjoys global reputation for its unique excellent quality: in the late 1950s, it was rated as first-grade in the London market and earned the beautiful name "Lujiang No. 1." In 1980, it was recognized as "the crown of national coffee" at the National Coffee Conference.

Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan Typica coffee has full guarantees in both brand and quality. More importantly, it offers extremely high cost performance - each 227-gram bag costs only 69 yuan. Calculating at 15 grams of coffee beans per cup, one bag can make 15 cups of coffee, with each cup costing less than 5 yuan.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473