Is the Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Variety Catimor CIFC7963? Characteristics and Flavor Profile Introduction

Exploring Yunnan Coffee Varieties: From Catimor to Typica

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FrontStreet Coffee often mentions that the flavor of a cup of coffee is related to various factors, including but not limited to variety, growing terroir, management, harvesting, post-processing methods, roasting, brewing, etc. Among these, coffee variety is one of the most important factors. In this article, FrontStreet Coffee will discuss the Yunnan coffee variety—Catimor.

The "small-grain coffee" grown in Yunnan belongs to the Arabica variety. Currently, the most widely distributed variety in Yunnan is Catimor, accounting for 90% of total production, with other varieties making up only a small portion. The Yunnan daily coffee bean launched by FrontStreet Coffee is produced from the Catimor variety in Baoshan. Let's first understand what Catimor is.

Catimor CIFC7963 is a hybrid variety developed by the Portuguese Coffee Rust Research Center (CIFC) specifically to combat coffee leaf rust. In appearance, this variety features a compact tree form, dwarf growth, multiple branches, and short fruit nodes. It grows vigorously with extremely strong vitality, with its most notable characteristics being amazing rust resistance and high yield capacity.

Although Catimor is classified as an Arabica variety, genetically it is a hybrid between the Timor variety (which belongs to the Robusta species) and Caturra (a Bourbon variety mutant). Therefore, Catimor carries 25% Robusta genes. Robusta naturally contains higher levels of chlorogenic acid, is less susceptible to pests and climate impacts, is typically grown in low-altitude environments, and has high yields with rapid fruit maturation. Robusta coffee has a strong flavor, heavy bitterness, and can easily develop astringency and stimulating musty flavors when improperly processed.

In contrast, the "picky" Arabica variety has weaker plant disease resistance and relatively low yields per plant. High-altitude environments create significant day-night temperature differences, slowing the maturation of coffee cherries, allowing them to absorb more nutrients and develop richer aromas. Various coffee-growing regions with their microclimates provide diverse growing conditions for Arabica, creating unique flavor profiles.

Catimor inherits characteristics from both Robusta and Arabica, featuring strong disease resistance and high yield. When tasted after roasting, the coffee beans simultaneously possess fruity acidity and sweetness. However, the Robusta heritage also brings flavor defects, with dominant notes of nuts and brown sugar, lacking rich, elevated high-end flavors such as citrus, floral notes, or tropical fruits. Additionally, due to relatively rough green bean processing methods in the past, Yunnan coffee was often described as having a "devil's finish" and struggled to compete with pure Arabica varieties like Caturra in competitions. Furthermore, Catimor's rust resistance gradually diminishes after 20-30 years. For the Yunnan coffee industry to improve overall quality and maintain long-term development, it must gradually replace its varieties.

In recent years, many new varieties have also appeared in Yunnan, such as the world-famous Gesha. It is believed that in a few years, we will see more high-quality coffee varieties produced from Yunnan. In 2013, FrontStreet Coffee selected and cultivated coffee trees in Lincang, Yunnan—the "old variety" Typica.

The History and Characteristics of Typica

The first coffee variety introduced to Yunnan was Typica, brought in 1904 by French missionary Tian Deneng to Zhugula Village in Binchuan, Yunnan. Typica offers rich and diverse flavors, presenting various fruit acids and delicate textures, and is recognized as a high-quality variety. The world-renowned Blue Mountain coffee is a Typica variety. In appearance, Typica trees are tall with good cold resistance, but individual plant yields are low, disease resistance is poor, and they are highly susceptible to leaf rust, coffee berry disease, and nematodes. Therefore, they require more human management. Additionally, since the variety doesn't have significant price advantages in the market, many Yunnan coffee farmers have chosen to replace Typica with higher-yielding Catimor in recent years.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan Coffee Cultivation Journey

In 2013, FrontStreet Coffee began its coffee cultivation journey in Lincang, Yunnan. From site selection, variety selection, seedling cultivation, planting, harvesting, processing, to roasting, all aspects were handled by FrontStreet Coffee's team, from which we gained considerable experience and knowledge regarding varieties, altitude, and processing methods.

Lincang, Yunnan is influenced by the Indian Ocean warm-humid air currents and southwest monsoons. The distinction between seasons is not obvious, but dry and rainy seasons are clearly defined. There is abundant rainfall, long sunshine hours, short frost periods, and some areas are frost-free year-round. The three-dimensional climate is pronounced, making it very suitable for Arabica coffee cultivation. FrontStreet Coffee specifically chose the most original Typica variety. Typica has elegant and pure flavors, but is also known for low yields and poor resistance, so FrontStreet Coffee invested significant effort in cultivation management. After 5-6 years of cultivation, FrontStreet Coffee finally harvested its first batch in 2020, processed using natural sun-drying methods, and named it "FrontStreet Coffee 2013."

Whenever November arrives, the coffee cherries planted by FrontStreet Coffee mature one after another. FrontStreet Coffee arranges workers to hand-pick each red coffee cherry individually, then spreads the fresh cherries evenly under the sun for natural drying. They are turned periodically to ensure even dehydration and avoid over-fermentation flavors. Until the coffee beans dehydrate to a purplish-red color and reach the target moisture content, they are sent for hulling and roasting. Sun-dried Typica exhibits fuller fermentation flavors, prominent sweetness, with aromas of caramel, berries, and black tea.

Roasting and Brewing Philosophy

FrontStreet Coffee believes that the flavor of coffee produced from Yunnan terroir belongs to a neutral, balanced profile—meaning it has acidity, sweetness, and bitterness. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan coffees all use medium roasting to highlight the roasted aromas of chocolate and nuts while preserving some acidity. In cupping tests, FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan small-grain daily beans display nutty, herbal, and brown sugar aromas, melon-like sweetness, and plum acidity, with a balanced mouthfeel. The natural processed Typica shows fuller tropical fruit fermentation with a lasting sweet aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee uses corresponding parameters for brewing different coffee beans. For darker roasted beans like Mandheling coffee and Brazilian coffee, FrontStreet Coffee uses water temperatures of 87-88°C with medium-coarse grind. For lighter roasted beans like Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and Panama Gesha coffee, FrontStreet Coffee uses higher temperatures of 91-93°C with medium-fine grind to stimulate the aroma of high-altitude hard beans. Returning to today's Yunnan small-grain coffee from FrontStreet Coffee, FrontStreet Coffee uses medium water temperature and grind to highlight the neutral balance of Yunnan coffee.

Brewing Parameters:

Filter: Hario V60
Dose: 15g
Water Temperature: 90°C
Grind Size: 75% pass-through rate through #20 sieve
Water-to-coffee ratio: 1:15

Three-stage pouring: Use twice the weight of coffee grounds in water to moisten the coffee bed, forming a dome and let bloom for 30 seconds. Then use a small water stream to pour in circles from inside to outside until reaching 125g, then segment. Wait for the coffee bed to drop to half the filter cup's height, then continue with the same fine stream to pour the third stage to 225g. Until all coffee liquid has filtered through, remove the filter cup—time approximately 2 minutes. Gently shake the coffee liquid in the lower server, pour into the cup, and we can slowly taste the different layers of coffee flavor starting from high temperature.

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