Starbucks Yunnan Coffee Story: Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Cupping, Pour-Over Flavor Characteristics

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In recent years, Starbucks China has been continuously launching Yunnan Reserve Coffee and introduced their first Yunnan Reserve Blend coffee bean—Pu'er Baoshan Comprehensive Coffee Bean. This Yunnan coffee bean represents the fruitful collaboration between Starbucks China and Yunnan coffee farmers, showcasing the charm of high-quality Yunnan coffee to the world. Not only Starbucks, but an increasing number of coffee merchants are turning their attention to Yunnan coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee is also very focused on Yunnan coffee and has established its own coffee plantation in Baoshan, Yunnan, so we have a clearer understanding of the challenging journey of Yunnan coffee. In this article, FrontStreet Coffee would like to discuss Yunnan coffee with everyone.

Yunnan's Geographic Advantages for Coffee Cultivation

Many people have heard of coffee-producing countries like Kenya, Brazil, and Guatemala. These coffee-producing countries are all located in the equatorial regions between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, which we call the Coffee Belt. The Yunnan region introduced by FrontStreet Coffee in this article is also within this range! Besides Yunnan, Taiwan and Hainan in China are also located in the golden zone for coffee cultivation and all produce coffee.

Among these, Yunnan, known as the "Land of Colorful Clouds," is not only famous for its fragrant tea but is also an important global coffee bean-producing region! Yunnan's coffee cultivation area covers 1.8 million acres. The 2015-2016 harvest season has ended, and according to preliminary statistics, the province's coffee production reached 139,000 tons, with its cultivation area and production accounting for 99% of China's coffee and 1% of the world's coffee production. And one of Starbucks' offerings—the Phoenix Dance Auspicious Cloud Coffee Bean™—is made from high-quality Arabica coffee beans from Yunnan.

So when did Yunnan start growing coffee? According to FrontStreet Coffee's research, the most accurate account is that in the 30th year of the Guangxu Emperor's reign during the Qing Dynasty (1904), French Catholic missionary Alfred Tisdale was sent to Zhukula Village in Binchuan County and planted the first coffee tree for his own consumption. Subsequently, coffee cultivation spread to Dehong, Baoshan, Lincang, Pu'er, and other regions in Yunnan, with Baoshan and Pu'er coffees being the most famous.

The Flavor Profile of Yunnan Coffee

So how does Yunnan coffee taste? From being largely ignored a decade ago to today's booming popularity, FrontStreet Coffee believes this reflects the progress of Yunnan coffee. Although Yunnan coffee cannot be compared with high-quality coffee-producing countries like Colombia, the quality of Yunnan coffee beans has been continuously improving in recent years. FrontStreet Coffee also offers coffee beans from Baoshan, Yunnan, including Huaguoshan Coffee Beans, Sun-dried Catimor, and Yunnan Small Bean Coffee.

Both the Sun-dried Catimor and Yunnan Small Bean Coffee varieties are Catimor, which is the most common coffee variety in Yunnan. FrontStreet Coffee's Huaguoshan Coffee variety differs from these two coffee beans—it is the Typica variety. In fact, Yunnan initially did not grow Catimor varieties but rather Typica and Bourbon varieties. Because Typica has poor disease resistance and low yields, Yunnan coffee farmers spent significant time cultivating Typica and Bourbon varieties but ultimately couldn't recoup their costs. Meanwhile, Catimor coffee not only has high disease resistance but also very high yields, so Yunnan coffee farmers widely switched to Catimor to replace Typica varieties. However, some regions in Yunnan still grow Typica varieties, and FrontStreet Coffee's plantation is also cultivating Typica varieties.

Yunnan Coffee's Growing Conditions

With the progress of our times, Yunnan coffee has gone global, and with last year's promotion of the movie "Go Home," everyone wants to try the legendary "Pu'er coffee." Yunnan contributes 98% of China's coffee production, and approximately 60% of Yunnan coffee is indeed produced in Pu'er, which is what people often refer to as small bean coffee. Yunnan's small bean coffee is rich but not bitter, aromatic but not strong, with a unique flavor that carries a hint of fruitiness. Yunnan's small bean coffee plants require 3-4 years to begin bearing fruit.

Plants of this coffee type have very demanding environmental requirements. They need high temperatures but are not accustomed to direct sunlight exposure. For example, many coffee plantations in coffee-producing countries have shade trees. For instance, the shade trees for FrontStreet Coffee's Honduras Sweet Orange Estate Coffee Beans are sweet orange trees, and the estate is named after these shade trees.

In addition to extremely high climate requirements, coffee trees also have specific altitude requirements for cultivation. Fortunately, Yunnan's altitude also meets coffee cultivation needs. Yunnan's altitude is higher compared to other coffee-growing regions, reaching approximately 2,000 meters. In such environments, the temperature difference between day and night is relatively large. Vigorous photosynthesis during the day creates sugars, while the lower night temperatures slow down sugar metabolism and decomposition. This allows sufficient sugars to accumulate.

Coffee beans grown in such high-altitude environments will have very high sweetness. Besides coffee beans, you'll find that Yunnan's fruits also have high sugar content for this reason. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends that when traveling to Yunnan, you should also try Yunnan's fruits. FrontStreet Coffee has also conducted cupping sessions on the Yunnan coffee beans we offer. Regarding the taste of Yunnan's "Distant Mountain Forest" flavor, FrontStreet Coffee finds it to be quite balanced, with nutty and brown sugar flavors as the base notes.

Below are FrontStreet Coffee's cupping and brewing processes for these two coffee beans.

Cupping and Brewing Yunnan Coffee

Before listing these Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Beans, FrontStreet Coffee conducted cupping sessions. FrontStreet Coffee's barista used a 200ml standard cupping bowl with 11.3g of coffee grounds and water temperature of 94 degrees Celsius. First, they ground the coffee to smell the dry aroma. FrontStreet Coffee's Yunnan Small Bean Coffee has a nutty aroma in its dry fragrance, but when tasted, it reveals more chocolate, nut, and cream flavors, with a prominent brown sugar sweetness. The overall mouthfeel is quite balanced.

FrontStreet Coffee will brew the cupped Yunnan Small Bean Coffee Beans to ensure their flavor. Frontsteet recommends using a V60 conical filter. The V60 has a large opening, and its unique spiral ribbed design allows air to be discharged more easily, thereby improving extraction quality. The mouthfeel might not be as rich, but its high concentration that brings out Yunnan coffee's fruit acidity and distinct aroma is its major characteristic.

Filter cup: V60
Water temperature: 90-92°C
Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15
Grind size: Medium-fine, equivalent to fine sugar granules (VARIO 50: 57% pass-through rate on China standard #20 sieve)

FrontStreet Coffee uses segmented extraction, starting with 30g of water for a 30-second bloom. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring water in a circular motion until reaching 225g, then stop pouring. Wait until the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed again, then remove the filter cup. (Timing starts from the beginning of the bloom) Total extraction time is 2'05".

Brewing flavor description of Small Bean Coffee: It has a strong nutty aroma, with herbal, chocolate, and caramel notes, and the aftertaste carries a subtle fruit acidity.

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on private WeChat, ID: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473