How to Drink Yemen Mocha Coffee Beans? Yemen Coffee Characteristics and Varieties

Introduction to Yemen Coffee

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Yemen was the first country to use coffee as a cash crop. Legend has it that in the 6th century, Islamic Sufi pilgrims introduced it from Ethiopia. The most correct spelling should be Al-Mahka, which is the Arabic spelling. It grows on steep terrain with little rainfall, poor soil, and insufficient sunlight. These unique and harsh conditions unfavorable to coffee cultivation have nurtured the irreplaceable Yemen Mocha. Wild Yemen coffee is mostly unmanaged, naturally growing, maturing, falling, and drying. Farmers only do the work of gathering. The overall style is "wild" or "natural" with earthy flavors and extremely high complexity. For some people, the spicy aroma is pungent, but regardless, you must find time to try it. If you fall deeply in love with it, it will be the beginning of a brand new coffee journey.

Yemen Mocha can be said to be the only living relic in the coffee world.

The Origin of "Mocha"

When it comes to Yemen coffee, "Mocha" must be mentioned. 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 some people's impressions, Mocha is sweet chocolate coffee. In fact, authentic "Mocha coffee" is only produced in the Republic of Yemen on the southwestern Arabian Peninsula, growing on steep mountain slopes at altitudes of 3,000 to 8,000 feet. It is also the world's oldest coffee. As early as more than 500 years ago, Yemen was already producing coffee in ancient ways. In the early 17th century, the first batch of Yemen coffee sold to Europe was exported through the ancient small port of Mocha, which amazed Europeans. They called the delicious coffee from Mocha Port "Mocha coffee," which is the origin of the term "Mocha coffee."

Ethiopia, the neighboring country across the Red Sea, also exported coffee through Mocha Port, so Ethiopian natural-processed coffee is often called Mocha (such as Mocha-Harrar Ethiopia Harrar). Today, the old port of Mocha has long been abandoned due to sediment deposition (now called Al Makha), and exports are handled by the northwestern port of Hodeida. However, people have long been accustomed to the name Mocha, and the name of Mocha resonates far and wide. Deep-roasted Yemen coffee often exhibits chocolate-like bittersweet flavors, influencing today's flavored coffee with chocolate sauce to also be labeled with "Mocha." Therefore, when you see the words "Mocha coffee," it could refer to pure Yemen coffee, neighboring Ethiopian coffee, or simply mean "flavored coffee with chocolate sauce." Regardless, for discerning coffee connoisseurs, only true Yemen coffee is qualified to be called "Mocha coffee."

The term "Mocha" has multiple spellings: Moka, Moca, and Mocca are all common spellings. On Yemeni coffee sacks and documents, I have seen as many as four local spellings: "Mokha," "Makha," "Morkha," and "Mukha," all representing the same meaning.

Yemen Mocha's Historical Significance

Yemen Mocha is the originator of the world coffee trade and has made indelible contributions to spreading delicious coffee worldwide. In the 17th century, Yemen Mocha, called "Arabia Coffee" (this is also the origin of the later "Arabica species" name!), crossed the sea to Italy and other European Catholic countries. For more than 150 years thereafter, Yemen coffee was the only coffee origin sold to Europe. In ancient times, in conservative Catholic countries, extraordinarily wonderful things were often considered evil, which once made coffee bear inexplicable guilt. It wasn't until the Vatican Pope, who also loved coffee, declared coffee to be a Catholic beverage and blessed those who drank it that coffee began to spread widely throughout Europe. Although Ethiopia was the first country to discover coffee, it was Yemen that made coffee flourish.

Traditional Yemen Coffee Production

To this day, Yemeni coffee farmers still use the same methods to produce coffee as they did 500 years ago. Coffee berries grow naturally on trees without any artificial fertilizers or pesticides. In summer, they receive moisture from the mountain slopes' small amount of rain and mist, flowering and bearing fruit. In the dry winter, mature coffee berries are allowed to hang on the trees to naturally air-dry—this is a very unique and rare practice, as only the extremely dry climate and intense sun of Arabia allow this. In other coffee origins, the same practice could cause coffee berries to rot on the trees. Ripe or dried coffee berries naturally fall from the trees or are shaken down and picked. Yemeni coffee farmers, who constitute nearly a quarter of Yemen's total population, spread the berries with pulp on their rooftops, in front of their homes in low sheds, or even directly spread on mud ground, exposed to the intense dry winter sun. After the peel and pulp dry, old-fashioned stone mills (two stone mills stacked together) are used to grind away the dried hard shells and pulp, and the coffee beans are processed! It is precisely this traditional coffee processing method that gives Yemen coffee a touch of wildness. FrontStreet Coffee's Yemen Mocha is like this—those who like it love it very much, while those who don't like it hate it intensely.

Brewing Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee suggests brewing parameters for Yemen Mocha:

V60/1:15/89°C/Time: 1 minute 50 seconds

Flavor notes: Spices, chocolate, grapes

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