Timor Coffee Beans - What is the Timor Variety? Flavor Profile and Brewing Guide

Professional coffee knowledge exchange. For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style).

What is the Timor variety of East Timor coffee beans? What are the flavor and taste of East Timor coffee? How to brew it?

Hibrido de Timor (or Timor hybrid) coffee is the result of a spontaneous interspecific hybrid between Coffea arabica (Arabica coffee) and C. canephora (Robusta coffee). Arabica coffee accounts for more than 60% of global coffee production and is the source of dozens of specialty varieties due to its superior quality. Unfortunately, it is also highly susceptible to coffee leaf rust (a fungal infection caused by Hemileia vastatrix) and other diseases. Robusta coffee makes up most of the other global products. While lower in quality than Arabica, it has the advantage of being resistant to many diseases, including rust. Hibrido de Timor likely comes from a single Robusta mother plant and has disease resistance, but its quality is closer to Arabica. These characteristics make it popular among coffee growers, cultivators, and drinkers.

East Timor coffee is a small independent island located on the eastern edge of the Indonesian archipelago, typically blended between two major growing regions, Maubesse and Ermera. This means that crop quality fluctuates annually because buyers cannot know what's in each bag. When coffee is identified and isolated by growing village (such as Timor Atsabe), the cup can be rich, slightly nutty, and very aromatic. This is one worth finding for the true Javatrekker!

Hibrido de Timor was discovered in 1927 on a plantation that had grown coffee (various Arabica coffees) since its establishment in what is now East Timor in 1917. Coffee farmers in Timor began planting hibrido de Timor in the 1940s. In the late 1950s and 1960s, seeds were distributed to other Indonesian islands, then to research institutions in the coffee-producing world, where breeders crossed them with Arabica to produce rust-resistant varieties such as Catimor and Sarchimor.

The Portuguese introduced coffee plantations to East Timor in 1815. However, many East Timorese communities were displaced during the Indonesian invasion in 1975. As a result, much land was abandoned, and coffee plantations have since grown and thrived in the country's rich mountainous environment.

Despite the obvious importance of hibrido de Timor to the global coffee industry, there has been little research on the geographic range and genetic characteristics of the original East Timor plants. This is partly because many of the plantations where this genetic hybrid occurred were abandoned after the Indonesian invasion in 1975 and are now in semi-wild conditions. Coffee is fundamental to East Timor's economy (almost half the population relies solely on coffee for their livelihood) and to dozens of other developing countries. The ability of coffee growers and cultivators in these countries to combat leaf rust and other diseases—likely to become more severe and widespread due to climate change—may depend heavily on genetic resources from Timor.

Most of East Timor's coffee is wet-processed. In rural households, beans are roasted in pans over open fires, then ground into powder. The powdered coffee is then placed in cloth filters, and boiling water is poured over it. On the other hand, in the capital Dili, mass-produced and instant coffee are becoming increasingly popular. This, combined with young people's lack of interest in becoming coffee growers, poses a threat to East Timor's coffee industry. Fortunately, young baristas have shown interest and pride in high-quality Timor coffee.

Another factor that makes East Timor notable in coffee is that it has its own hybrid - the Timor Hybrid - which dates back to the pre-World War II period. Timor Hybrid (often called Tim Tim or HDT) was born from the spontaneous mating of Robusta and Arabica plants and is a highly disease-resistant and high-yield variety now grown worldwide. The Timor Hybrid is also the backbone of the famous Catimor and Sarchimor varieties.

East Timor's coffee production conditions are unsatisfactory in many ways. The dry climate and short rainy season further naturally reduce soil fertility in many of the country's coffee regions. Nevertheless, the country is rapidly improving quality and productivity. Most of the country's coffee is passively organic because fertilizers and pesticides were never introduced, and 100% of the coffee is shade-grown. Additionally, even the smallest improvements can have tremendous effects. Currently, several programs—many funded by international development organizations—are underway that will fundamentally change how East Timor coffee is harvested and processed.

Coffee Information

Typical Harvest Time: May to October

Main Coffee Regions: Maubesse, Aifu, Ermera, Liquica, Aileu, and Ainaro

Flavor: Black chocolate, cola, and spice notes

Certifications: Organic, Fair Trade

Processing: Washed

Acidity and Brightness: Moderate acidity, slightly sweet

Varieties: Bourbon and Timor Hybrid (Hibrido de Timor)

FrontStreet Coffee's Recommended Brewing Method:

Dripper: KONO dripper

Water Temperature: 88°C

Grind Size: Fuji grinder setting 4

Brewing Method: Water-to-coffee ratio 1:14, using 17g of coffee grounds. First pour 25g of water and let it bloom for 30 seconds. Second pour to reach 238g total water, with extraction time around 2:30 minutes.

Analysis: The KONO dripper has relatively few ribs at the bottom, causing the filter paper to adhere closely to the dripper and restrict airflow. This allows for longer contact and infusion time between water and coffee grounds in the dripper, ensuring adequate extraction time and extraction rate for coarse grinds. This enables the coffee grounds to be fully extracted, enhancing the rich mouthfeel and making the flavor more concentrated.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473