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What are the sub-varieties of Typica coffee beans? Characteristics and origin story of Typica variety coffee beans

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Kayon Mountain Farm is located in the Oromia region of the Guji zone in southern Ethiopia. Previously, Guji was classified as part of the Sidamo region, but although Guji coffee beans may look somewhat similar to Sidamo beans, they have their own unique style. After years of debate, Ethiopia

Introduction to Typica: The Treasure of Fine Coffee

Typica coffee variety can be described as the treasure of global specialty coffee. Typica is one of the oldest Arabica varieties. Almost all Arabica coffee bean varieties available today are derived from Typica, and these derived coffee varieties can inherit its excellent flavor genes.

FrontStreet Coffee's original mission is to taste coffee beans from around the world, understand every coffee variety, every coffee region, and every processing flavor, conduct comparisons, and establish a visual database. FrontStreet Coffee hopes that every coffee enthusiast can gain a deeper understanding of the coffee world and explore it together with FrontStreet Coffee. Currently, FrontStreet Coffee's physical stores and online Tmall store display more than 30 different coffee bean varieties, each with its own characteristics. Today, FrontStreet Coffee has selected several representative Typica variety coffees to share with everyone.

Typica Variety

Typica's flavor is elegant, but the plant is physically weak with low disease resistance, making it susceptible to leaf rust. Coffee bean yields are low, making it difficult to meet economic efficiency. In recent years, Typica in Central and South America has gradually been replaced by Catuai and Catimor. Therefore, Typica is becoming increasingly rare. Although Typica's flavor is elegant, it is not as popular as Bourbon. Typica beans are larger, with pointed-cone or slender-pointed shapes, different from the round beans of Bourbon variety. Typica coffee has its unique clean and elegant flavor, balanced characteristics, and high clarity in taste.

Planting History of Typica

The earliest commercial cultivation of Typica coffee originated from the Dutch passion for coffee. When Europe still showed resistance to coffee in its early days, the Dutch were already thinking about cultivating coffee to launch global trade. However, the Dutch didn't understand that coffee is a tropical crop that cannot tolerate cold temperatures. It wasn't until 1616 when the Dutch East India Company successfully cultivated coffee trees in a greenhouse, transplanting them successfully and creating the "mother coffee tree."

In 1658, the Dutch transported seeds from the "mother coffee tree" to warmer Sri Lanka, attempting large-scale cultivation. Unfortunately, local cooperation was too low, and the cultivation failed.

In 1690 and 1699, the Dutch East India Company shipped two batches of Typica seedlings from the Malabar territory in western India to Java for trial cultivation. Fortunately, Javanese farmers were very interested and worked hard to cultivate them, achieving immediate success.

Typica Tree Characteristics

Typica has distinct characteristics and may be the most easily recognizable variety. These plants have a conical shape with a main vertical trunk that can reach up to 5 meters in height. This height means that Typica, compared to other varieties, has longer distances between branches and between nodes on the same branch.

The side branches form an angle of 50 to 80 degrees with the vertical trunk. The trunk and branches are not very robust, and the leaves, fruits, and green beans are typically elongated. The tips of young leaves are bronze-colored. Compared to other Arabica varieties, Typica leaves have smoother surfaces and fewer wavy edges. Typical Typica fruits turn bright red when ripe.

The bronze color of Typica's top leaves is one of its characteristics. The beans are larger, shaped as pointed ovals or slender points, leading some to call it "red-topped coffee." Typica coffee has its unique clean and elegant flavor, balanced characteristics, and high clarity in taste. However, the drawback is insufficient yield, requirements for high altitude, susceptibility to leaf rust disease, and weak resistance to pests and diseases.

Leaf Rust Disease

FrontStreet Coffee believes that many coffee enthusiasts have heard about this disease that threatens coffee trees. Next, let's briefly understand this leaf rust disease that once caused serious losses to coffee growers. Leaf rust is the most serious coffee disease, first appearing in the Lake Victoria coffee region of East Africa in 1861. In 1867, it ravaged Sri Lanka, causing the destruction of Sri Lanka's coffee industry. It soon spread to many parts of Southeast Asia and eventually affected all coffee-producing regions in southern, central, and western Africa.

Before 1970, leaf rust had not been discovered in the Western Hemisphere until it broke out in Bahia, Brazil, in 1970. Since then, leaf rust has been found in all coffee-producing regions worldwide. Leaf rust is a parasitic fungus that infects coffee plants. It manifests as yellow spots, first affecting the tips of leaves, then developing into yellow-orange powdery particles, resembling rust on iron, easily spreading cross-contamination between plants. One of the difficulties in combating coffee leaf rust is its extreme ease of transmission. Because fungal spores are very light and powdery, they can easily spread through wind, rain, or even workers' clothes and tools. After a leaf rust outbreak, long-term monitoring and chemical prevention remain methods that treat symptoms rather than the root cause. Since the leaf rust outbreak, people have been vigorously researching coffee tree varieties with strong disease resistance to prevent leaf rust at its source while ensuring coffee bean yield and quality.

Typica: Rich Layers and Smooth Flavor

The variety closest to the original species, originating from Kaffa, Ethiopia, and Yemen. An ancestor of Arabica varieties, Typica exhibits excellent purity and consistency, with citrus-like acidity and a sweet aftertaste. Typica's top leaves are bronze-colored, with oval or slender-pointed beans; trees are 3-4 meters tall with a conical shape, with angles between the main trunk and branches of approximately 50-70 degrees. Leaves are narrow and bronze-colored. Berries are more oval than other varieties. In Central America, it is known as Arabigo or Criollo. Low resistance to leaf rust makes it difficult to cultivate, low fruit yield per tree, combined with a long harvesting period, results in low production.

Typica has genetically evolved, with many variant varieties better adapted to surrounding environments and developing new characteristics, often considered new varieties. For example, Mexican Typica differs slightly from Hawaiian Typica, thus having different names; Criollo (South America), Arabigo (Americas), Kona (Hawaii), Pluma Hidalgo (Mexico), Garundang (Sumatra), Blue Mountain (Jamaica, Papua New Guinea), San Bernardo & San Ramon (Brazil), Kent and Chickumalgu (India) all belong to Typica.

Famous Typica Variety Coffees

FrontStreet Coffee - Indonesia Golden Mandheling Coffee

Company: PWN
Region: Sumatra
Altitude: 1100-1600m
Variety: Typica
Processing Method: Wet-hulled

Golden Mandheling specifications are Typica variety with 19 mesh or larger, with fewer than 3 defective beans (300g green bean sample), belonging to the highest grade G1 level, with a color leaning toward dark green, and is a well-formed flat bean. After strict screening, FrontStreet Coffee found that not only does Golden Mandheling lack the typical earthy impurities of regular Mandheling, but it also tastes cleaner and more transparent, with stronger sweetness. FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling comes from PWN Company. Golden Mandheling is actually produced from Mandheling purchased locally in Indonesia by Pawani Coffee Company, which then registered the name Golden Mandheling. Therefore, Mandheling produced by this company is the authentic Golden Mandheling.

Roasting Suggestions

FrontStreet Coffee believes that Golden Mandheling belongs to green beans with higher moisture content, with a higher deviation value in moisture compared to sun-dried beans, so special attention should be paid during dehydration. For beans with high moisture content, you can immediately close the air damper after adding the beans, let them sit for 30 seconds, then open to level 3 until the beans turn light green or white, then open the air damper to level 4, and after first crack, open to level 5 (maximum).

Bean entry temperature 200℃, yellowing point at 5'40", first crack begins at 9'54", temperature 191.2℃, first crack development for 3'30", discharged at 204.5℃.

Brewing Parameters

Dripper: KONO dripper
Water temperature: 85-88℃ (higher temperature = more bitterness)
Dose: 15 grams
Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15
Grind size: Medium grind (70% pass-through rate on #20 standard sieve)

For daily brewing of Mandheling, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using a KONO dripper because it can produce a rounder, fuller-bodied taste and more direct flavor expression. The only exhaust area of the KONO dripper is the quarter ribs. When the water level surpasses the rib area, the water volume in the dripper continuously increases, creating pressure through the weight of the water. Since the outlet is relatively small, it can extend the contact time between coffee particles and water. As the water flow带动s this, it can more effectively extract soluble substances. This brewing method used by FrontStreet Coffee generally achieves the high body effects expected by customers.

Brewing Technique

Segmented extraction

Use 30g of water for blooming, blooming time about 30 seconds. Use a small stream of water to inject 95g in a center circle, i.e., segment at 125g of water. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue injecting water to 225g to finish. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper (timing starts from the beginning of blooming). Extraction time is 2'00".

Brewing Flavor:

Multi-layered, clean, balanced, with persistent caramel sweetness in the aftertaste. High sweetness, rich and full-bodied.

Yunnan Huaguoshan

At FrontStreet Coffee, you can find two types of Yunnan coffee beans: one is washed Typica, and the other is Catimor. At FrontStreet Coffee, Yunnan Typica is labeled as Yunnan specialty coffee, while Yunnan Catimor is labeled according to market custom as Yunnan small bean coffee. FrontStreet Coffee roasts both beans to medium roast because the Yunnan region is not an acidic region. Their flavors are relatively balanced, with base notes of nuts and brown sugar. FrontStreet Coffee chooses medium roast to showcase the balance of Yunnan coffee, nutty and brown sugar sweetness, as well as gentle fruit acidity.

FrontStreet Coffee's predecessor was "Dazhen Coffee," named because we wanted to grow coffee in a place called Dazhen in Guangdong. When we used Catimor to grow seedlings to 20cm, more than half a year passed before we finally understood: the relationship and sequence of variety, altitude, and processing method. Choosing the right variety, planting it at the appropriate altitude, and experimenting with processing methods after maturity that can express unique flavors is what FrontStreet Coffee believes is the only logical relationship for specialty coffee to have distinct regional flavors, and is also the work recently led by the Yunnan Agricultural Department: establishing a flavor map of Yunnan specialty coffee. Later, in the midst of confusion, FrontStreet Coffee chose the most difficult path: selecting high altitudes, cultivating Arabica varieties, and planting reasonably. Later, we began to cultivate and grow coffee seedlings in Yunnan.