Is Catimor Coffee Bean an Arabica Coffee Variety? Flavor Profile of Yunnan Catimor Coffee Beans

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Southern Yunnan happens to be located in low-latitude, high-altitude regions with large temperature differences between day and night. These unique natural conditions are particularly suitable for the growth of small-grain coffee, making it the most suitable area in the country for producing high-quality coffee. Most Yunnan coffee is grown in the dry-hot valley areas at altitudes of 1,000-2,000 meters, resulting in moderate acidity, rich aroma, and smooth flavor.

Over 90% of Yunnan coffee varieties are Catimor coffee beans (Catimor = Caturra x Timor). Although this contains Robusta genes, after more than 20 years of optimization, the coffee beans have not only eliminated miscellaneous bitterness and grassy flavors, but also possess high-level floral and fruit notes with a broad flavor profile. It is believed that they will soon officially enter the specialty coffee world and shock the globe!

Han Huaizong: "In fact, China is now the world's 17th largest coffee-consuming country, surpassing Australia. I predict that in 16 years, China will hopefully rank among the world's top three coffee-consuming countries, keeping pace with the United States and Brazil!"

Yunnan Coffee

When Yunnan coffee is mentioned, many people's first reaction is small-grain coffee. In fact, the name "small-grain" is still debatable, and there are various versions of the origin of this term. A more credible version is that compared to Robusta's "medium-grain," Arabica was called "small-grain." When first introduced, to avoid the difficulty of remembering "Arabica," it was simply called Yunnan small-grain coffee. Later, possibly due to various misunderstandings, small-grain coffee was regarded by many as a variety, when in fact there is no such variety as "small-grain."

Speaking of varieties, the most widely cultivated coffee variety in Yunnan is Catimor coffee beans, a hybrid variety introduced by Nestlé. The Robusta lineage is often criticized, but its disease resistance, high yield, and suitability for instant coffee have led to its vigorous promotion in Yunnan. Moreover, with continuous improvements, quality has significantly improved, and some decent beans have been produced. Besides Catimor coffee beans, Yunnan also grows small amounts of Typica, which is an old tree variety that existed before the introduction of Catimor coffee beans. Overall, its flavor is better than Catimor coffee beans, and the price is also higher. Additionally, there are some Bourbon varieties.

As for evaluations of Yunnan coffee, there are still some controversies; some think it's good, while others scoff at it. My personal feeling is that although Yunnan has good beans, the overall quality still lags behind the world's high-quality beans. The flavor is generally flat and thin, with weak layering.

In fact, Yunnan's climate is quite suitable for coffee cultivation: high altitude and large temperature differences between day and night. However, the biggest problem is the uneven overall quality. Most coffee farmers lack quality awareness, excessively pursue yield, and harvesting, processing methods, and grading systems still lag behind. Many practice mixed harvesting followed by simple self-grading, process raw beans themselves, and Yunnan beans have another characteristic of uneven moisture during roasting, which places higher demands on roasting. The market for Yunnan coffee is also quite complex, with more cases of passing off inferior goods as high-quality ones than other coffees. However, now more and more coffee producers are beginning to focus on quality, introducing excellent varieties and estate-style management. In short, development has been quite rapid in recent years, occasionally giving me some pleasant surprises. From Baoshan's Lujiangba to Pu'er's Manlaojiang basin, I have tasted some quite decent beans. As domestic products, I still hope Yunnan coffee continues to develop better and better.

FrontStreet Coffee: A roastery in Guangzhou with a small shop but diverse bean varieties, where you can find various famous and lesser-known beans, while also providing online shop services. https://shop104210103.taobao.com

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