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The Historical Story of Yemeni Coffee: What Are Yemen's Coffee Regions? What Coffee Varieties Does Yemen Have?

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information. Please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style). When it comes to Yemeni coffee, one immediately thinks of full-bodied and wild natural process beans. Since ancient times, Yemeni coffee farmers have continued to follow the ancient cultivation methods passed down from their ancestors. Due to Yemen's rugged terrain that makes cultivation difficult and scarce rainfall, Yemen's coffee

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Cafe Style (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

When it comes to Yemeni coffee, one immediately thinks of full-bodied and wild sun-dried beans. Since ancient times, Yemeni coffee farmers have followed traditional cultivation methods passed down from their ancestors. Due to Yemen's rugged terrain that makes cultivation difficult and scarce rainfall, Yemeni coffee farmers mostly select terraced fields or low-lying areas for cultivation, choosing locations that are less exposed to intense sunlight. Additionally, most Yemeni farmers are poor and cannot afford pesticides, almost exclusively using natural organic cultivation methods.

It possesses the world's most unique, rich, and fascinating complex aromas: "red wine fragrance, wildness, dried fruit flavors, blueberry, grape, cinnamon, tobacco, sweet spices, woody notes, and even chocolate flavors..." You can see various adjectives used to describe Yemeni Mocha coffee...

The Homeland of "Mocha" - Yemen

When discussing Yemeni coffee, one must mention "Mocha." Everyone has heard of "Mocha coffee," but what exactly is "Mocha"?

There are many answers to this question. Some say Mocha is a specific origin, while in others' impressions, Mocha refers to sweet chocolate-flavored coffee. In fact, authentic "Mocha coffee" is only produced in the Republic of Yemen, located on the southwestern Arabian Peninsula, and grown on steep mountain slopes at altitudes ranging from three to eight thousand feet. It is also the world's most ancient coffee.

As early as over five hundred years ago, Yemen produced coffee using ancient methods. In the early 17th century, the first Yemeni coffee sold to Europe was exported through the ancient small port of Mocha, astonishing Europeans who began calling the delicious coffee from Mocha port "Mocha coffee"—the origin of this term.

Ethiopia, Yemen's neighboring country across the Red Sea, also exported coffee through Mocha port, so Ethiopian sun-dried processed coffee is often called Mocha as well (such as Mocha-Harrar Ethiopia Harrar). Today, the old port of Mocha has long been abandoned due to sedimentation (now known as Al Makha), with exports now handled by the northwestern port of Hodeida. However, people have long become accustomed to the Mocha name, which has become renowned worldwide.

Dark-roasted Yemeni coffee often exhibits chocolate-like bittersweet notes, influencing today's flavored coffee with chocolate sauce to also be called "Mocha." Therefore, when you see the term "Mocha coffee," it might refer to pure Yemeni coffee, neighboring Ethiopian coffee, or simply mean "flavored coffee with chocolate sauce." Regardless, for discerning coffee connoisseurs, only genuine Yemeni coffee is qualified to be called "Mocha coffee."

The term "Mocha" has various spellings: Moka, Moca, and Mocca are all common variants. On Yemeni coffee sacks and documents, I've seen up to four local spellings: "Mokha," "Makha," "Morkha," and "Mukha"—all representing the same meaning.

Yemeni Mocha is the originator of the world coffee trade, making invaluable contributions to spreading delicious coffee worldwide. In the 17th century, Yemeni Mocha, then called "Arabia Coffee" (which is also the origin of the later "Arabica" species name!), crossed oceans to reach Catholic countries in Europe such as Italy. For more than 150 years thereafter, Yemeni coffee remained the only coffee origin exported to Europe.

In ancient times, in conservative Catholic countries, extraordinarily wonderful things were often considered evil, once burdening coffee with inexplicable guilt. Until the coffee-loving Pope of the Vatican declared coffee a Catholic beverage and blessed those who drank it, coffee began to spread widely throughout Europe. Although Ethiopia was the first country to discover coffee, it was Yemen that truly made coffee flourish.

A Living Relic in the Coffee World

To this day, Yemeni coffee farmers still use the same methods from 500 years ago to produce coffee. Coffee cherries grow naturally on trees without any artificial fertilizers or pesticides, receiving moisture from mountain mists and rain during summer months to flower and fruit. During the dry winter, mature coffee cherries are left to air-dry naturally on the trees—a very unique and rare practice made possible only by Arabia's extremely dry climate and intense sun. In other coffee-producing regions, the same method might cause coffee cherries to rot on the trees.

Ripe or dried coffee cherries naturally fall from the trees or are shaken down and harvested. Coffee farmers, who constitute nearly a quarter of Yemen's total population, spread the fruit-covered cherries on their rooftops, in short sheds before their homes, or even directly on the ground to dry under the intense dry winter sun. After the fruit skin and pulp dry, old-fashioned stone mills (two stones stacked together) are used to grind away the dried hard shells and pulp—the coffee beans are now processed!

To this day, a small number of Yemeni coffee farms still use animals (such as camels, donkeys) as power sources for their stone mills. Compared to Central and South American countries that use advanced machinery to process large quantities of coffee beans, or even neighboring Kenya with its relatively short coffee history, Yemeni Mocha is practically a living relic in the coffee world! Did you know? The Yemeni coffee you drink today is fundamentally not very different from the "Arabia coffee" that European nobles and merchants enjoyed hundreds of years ago in Europe's oldest cafes at St. Mark's Square in Venice, Italy.

Fascinating and Unique

Unlike the washed processing methods used in most coffee-producing regions worldwide, Yemeni coffee is exclusively natural sun-dried. The dehulling process using stone mills (grinding with two stones) creates broken beans mixed in, resulting in uneven appearance. Raw beans often contain small branches, small stones, and even dried insects (which are screened out during roasting). It also possesses the world's most unique, rich, and fascinating complex aromas: "red wine fragrance, wildness, dried fruit flavors, blueberry, grape, cinnamon, tobacco, sweet spices, woody notes, and even chocolate flavors..." You can see various adjectives used to describe Yemeni Mocha!

Because they are dried with the fruit pulp still attached, the coffee cherries' flavors have the opportunity to "infuse" into the coffee beans. When coffee fruits fall on the dry soil of the African highlands, they also absorb flavors from surrounding organic matter. Combined with the "sun flavor" imparted by the intense Arabian winter sun (you can detect similar aromas on sun-dried quilts), the natural fermented mature fruit flavors from the pulp, subtle earthy notes... the 300,000 coffee farms spread across altitudes from 3,000 to 8,000 feet, along with ancient, 100% organic processing methods, create the world's unique Yemeni Mocha.

Diverse Flavors, Distinct Characteristics

Among common Yemeni Mochas, Mokha Mattari is the most renowned. Produced in the Bani Matar (also known as Bany Mattar) province, Mattari is a high-altitude coffee that typically possesses excellent red wine fragrance, dried fruit flavors, full body, and often exhibits chocolate bittersweet notes when dark roasted.

Due to Yemen's unstable political situation and sharply reduced production in recent years, the renowned Mokha Mattari has become a target for adulteration, with reports of it being mixed with lower-grade inferior beans. Today, even when labeled as Mattari, it's no guarantee of high quality. Good quality Mattari beans are small in size, with noticeable sweet wine aroma and moderate mature fruit fermentation in their raw state. Excellent Mattari will never disappoint coffee connoisseurs!

Mokha San'ani is a blend from tens of thousands of small farms on mountain slopes near the capital San'a (grown at slightly lower altitudes than Mattari, generally with lighter body than Mattari, lower acidity, but good fruit aromas, often possessing better mature fruit and wild flavors than Mattari). Based on experience, San'ani quality varies greatly, with occasional inferior specimens showing flat flavors, earthy notes, or excessive fermentation. Careful cupping and selection is essential work for coffee importers—absolutely no cutting corners allowed.

Mokha Ismaili is one of the traditional ancient varieties, grown at very high altitudes above 6,500 feet. Its characteristic is more rounded bean shape, smaller than Mattari, with full body and high complexity. Generally, it often performs even better than Mattari. This is the lowest-production and most expensive Yemeni Mocha (Yemeni Mocha is already not inexpensive). Quality Mokha Ismaili comes from the Hirazi region (though not as famous as Bani Matar, it's considered the best-producing area by local Yemeni standards) on high mountain slopes, with Hirazi region's highest altitude reaching 8,000 feet!

Mokha Rimi is produced in the Djebel Remi (also known as Raimi, Rayma) region, with quality similar to San'ani. In my experience, Mokha Rimi typically has slightly stronger fermentation notes, occasionally presenting astonishingly rich raisin sweetness. When properly roasted, the coffee beans smell like opening a jar of rich fruit preserves.

Mokha Yafeh is produced in Yemen's southern Yafeh (also known as Yaffe) province. It's an uncommon Yemeni Mocha, Yemen's only "southern flavor," with limited production that is almost entirely exported to neighboring United Arab Emirates, rarely seen in the specialty coffee market today.

A coffee expert once said: "Yemeni Mocha flavors are so diverse that not only do different origins, varieties, and batches differ, but each sack, and even each cup, can taste different." Because of its complexity and variability, how to roast Yemeni Mocha to bring out its best flavors presents a significant challenge for coffee roasters! Light to medium roasts reveal fruity sweetness, gentle, warm sun-dried fermentation notes; dark roasts present rich red wine fragrance and bittersweet chocolate aftertaste—all worthy of repeated savoring, with "lingering aroma that remains for days." This explains why so many enthusiastic coffee connoisseurs list Yemeni Mocha as their favorite!