How Does the Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Typica Variety Taste? How to Brew it Perfectly at Home with Pour-Over?

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FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan Small Bean Typica Variety: How Does It Taste? How to Brew Perfect Pour-Over at Home? FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan Small Bean Pour-Over Process?

Typica is one of the oldest native varieties from Ethiopia. Typica plants have bronze-colored young leaves and oval or slender-pointed beans. They offer elegant flavors but are physically weak, disease-resistant, and produce low yields.

Typica is one of the oldest discovered Arabica coffee varieties, along with Bourbon. Arabica originates from Ethiopia, where this variety still grows naturally in the local primitive rainforest highlands. In the 13th-14th centuries, this variety was brought to Yemen. Around 1700, Typica was cultivated at the Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam. Typica seedlings were the first seedlings brought from the Dutch Royal Gardens to Central and South America and the New World for cultivation. Typica is a precious pure-blooded variety with oval fruits, bronze leaves, and ever-changing fruity flavors.

Typica is one of the oldest varieties of Arabica and has derived many other variant species. Typica beans are slender, the plants are tall, the fruits are oval, and the branches are slightly inclined. Typica has four slender branches that spread out at a 50-70 degree angle. The coffee yield per tree is very low, but the cupping scores are very high.

The original name of Typica was Arabica Typica. Scottish regiments brought this variety from Yemen to Kenya, where the leaves turned copper-colored after cultivation. Hawaii's Typica was introduced from Guatemala and renamed Kona, with leaf tips showing bronze color. Due to geographical reasons, Typica planted in other coffee regions around the world differs. Typica has genetically evolved with many variant species better adapted to the surrounding environment, producing new characteristics and often considered new varieties. For example, Mexican Typica and Hawaiian Typica are slightly different, thus having different names: Criollo (South America), Arabigo (America), Kona (Hawaii), Pluma Hidalgo (Mexico), Garundang (Sumatra), Blue Mountain (Jamaica, Papua New Guinea), São Bernardo & San Ramón (Brazil), Kent and Chickumalgu (India).

Typica trees have a characteristic feature - their leaf tips are copper-colored, earning them the name "red-topped coffee." The opposite leaves of the coffee tree are long oval, with smooth leaf surfaces. The terminal branches are long with few branches, while the flowers are white, blooming at the base where petioles connect to branches. Mature coffee cherries look like cherries, are bright red, have sweet pulp, and contain a pair of seeds - the coffee beans.

Typica was the first coffee variety planted in the New World. The Typica planted in Java was a gift from the Dutch to French King Louis XIV, survived in Persian gardens, and its seeds were brought by the French to the French colony of Martinique in 1720.

Typica is the ancestor of many coffee derivatives. Like other Arabica varieties, Typica has oval fruits and slightly inclined branches. Typica trees reach 3.5-4 meters, with branches inclined at 50-70 degrees. Typica yields are very low, but cupping quality is very high.

Typica Cultivars

Java

Java has long fruits and bronze young leaves, believed to be descendants of coffee introduced from Yemen to Java Island. This variety was first brought from Java Island to neighboring islands (Timor), then to East Africa (Cameroon), and began cultivation in 1980. It was introduced to Central America by CIRAD (International Center for Agricultural Research and Development). In Cameroon, this variety is known for moderate yield rates and good resistance to coffee berry disease.

Maragogype

Elephant Bean, a mutant of Typica, first discovered in Brazil in 1870. The fruits are large, long, and slightly twisted, with plants having long internodes and large leaves. Yields are relatively low.

Kent

A tall Typica variety from the Kent region of India. Since 1930, this variety has been widely cultivated in India. There is a variety called K7 within this species, more common in Kenya, which is one of the best rust-resistant coffee bean varieties.

Typica Coffee Beans

Typica: Oval in shape, appearing thin and flat from the side. Even when cultivated at different altitudes, the thickness difference of green beans from the side won't vary significantly.

Typica was first brought by Yemenis from Ethiopia to Malabar, India, then by the Dutch to Indonesia. Later, it was brought from the West Indies to the French colony of Martinique.

Subsequently, it grew in other planting areas, deriving many variant species: Criollo (South America), Arabigo (Central America), Kona (Hawaii), Pluma Hidalgo (Mexico), Garundang (Sumatra), Blue Mountain (Jamaica, Papua New Guinea), San Bernardo & San Ramon (Brazil), Kents & Chickumalgu (India).

All of these belong to the Typica variety.

Tasting Notes

FrontStreet Coffee · Jamaica Blue Mountain (Typica)

Roast Level: Medium-dark roast

Dry Aroma: Roasted peanuts, hazelnuts, melon, chocolate-like

Wet Aroma: Oolong tea, caramel, honey, dark chocolate, almond skins, silky mouthfeel, brightness

Taste: Sweet and rich, lightly bitter, well-balanced and mellow, with rich layers. The aftertaste has distinct dark chocolate, honey, and cane sugar flavors, with a viscous texture. When completely cooled, it has a strong oolong tea aroma. When touched with fingers, it surprisingly has the sticky feeling of caramel syrup.

Recommended Brewing Method: Pour-over

Grind Size: 4 (Japanese Fuji R440)

Water Temperature: 88°C

Other Drip Extraction Recommendations:

French Press: Recommended grind size 3.5-4 / Water temperature 90°C

AeroPress: Recommended grind size 2.5, water temperature 88°C

Siphon: Grind size 3.5

FrontStreet Coffee · Yunnan Huaguoshan (Typica)

Roast Level: Medium roast

Dry Aroma: Pear-like fruits, vanilla-like, honey-like, peach tea, ripe orange, jasmine hints

Wet Aroma: Nutty, milky chocolate, herbal-floral

Taste: Smooth entry, Asian herbal plant aroma, lively and bright acidity, mouth-watering on both cheeks. The acidity is soft, with good balance and richness. The aftertaste has distinct dark chocolate, honey, and cane sugar flavors. When completely cooled, brown sugar flavors emerge.

Recommended Brewing Methods: Siphon, Pour-over

Grind Size: 4 (Japanese Fuji R440)

Water Temperature: 90°C

Other Drip Extraction Recommendations:

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

FrontStreet Coffee · Papua New Guinea Bird of Paradise (Typica)

Roast Level: Medium-dark roast

Dry Aroma: Nutty, woody, spicy

Wet Aroma: Sugarcane sweetness, hazelnut, toast-like

Taste: Sweetness of toasted bread, nutty sweetness, slight fruit acidity brings a pleasant sweet-sour sensation, creating nice layers. The spiced sweetness in the aftertaste is quite special.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommended Brewing Method: Pour-over

Grind Size: 4 (Japanese Fuji R440)

Water Temperature: 89°C

Other Drip Extraction Recommendations:

French Press: Recommended grind size 3.5-4 / Water temperature 90°C

AeroPress: Recommended grind size 3, water temperature 85°C

Siphon: Grind size 4.5, water temperature 91°C

Important Notice :

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