Taste Profiles and Brewing Methods for Chinese Small Bean Coffee: Yunnan Varietal Guide

Yunnan Coffee: A Century of Excellence

Yunnan coffee, standing at the forefront of modern coffee culture, has undergone a century of refinement. As domestic demand for coffee continues to grow, Yunnan coffee quality has been steadily improving. The small-bean coffee variety from Yunnan belongs to the Arabica species, with some Robusta genetics mixed in. FrontStreet Coffee also offers Yunnan coffee beans.

This Yunnan small-bean coffee variety is the Catimor type, cultivated in the Baoshan region of Yunnan. Yunnan is one of the few regions in China capable of growing coffee, ideally located within the golden coffee cultivation belt between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. Yunnan's small-bean coffee has a long historical lineage, originating from wild coffee produced in Africa and later introduced to Europe through Arab traders, where it became widely known. It was introduced to China's Dali Binchuan County Zhu Kula in the 1890s, taking root and developing on the Chinese mainland since then. The characteristics of Yunnan coffee beans have become representative of Chinese coffee, hence Yunnan coffee is also known as "Yunnan small-bean coffee."

Regional Comparisons

China's Hainan province also produces coffee beans, with those from Wanning and Xinglong being the most famous. Hainan's climate conditions are similar to Yunnan's - warm and humid, with average annual temperatures between 22-26 degrees Celsius and annual rainfall reaching up to 1,600 millimeters. Although Hainan has suitable growing conditions, its coffee production is very low. However, FrontStreet Coffee understands that Hainan's coffee terrain differs from Yunnan's. For instance, Hainan Island contains fertile volcanic ash soil - loose, fertile, and rich in organic matter, which is very suitable for coffee tree cultivation. However, Hainan's sunlight is too strong, which is undoubtedly unfavorable for coffee trees. This can be addressed by planting taller plants like rubber trees near coffee trees to provide shade. In contrast, Yunnan's often foggy weather naturally provides good shade for coffee trees.

Coffee Varieties in Yunnan

There's also great interest in Yunnan's coffee varieties. Currently, Yunnan primarily grows the Catimor variety. If you're familiar with Yunnan coffee, you'll find that small amounts of Typica and Bourbon coffee are also cultivated there. These two ancient coffee varieties are the "pioneers" of Yunnan Arabica. FrontStreet Coffee understands that Yunnan initially introduced the Typica variety, but since Typica is susceptible to leaf rust disease and has low yields, farmers were unwilling to grow it. Coffee trees take at least three to four years from planting to harvesting, and the low yield of Typica couldn't sustain local livelihoods. Consequently, the higher-yield Catimor coffee naturally became more popular among farmers.

Moreover, Catimor coffee possesses genes from both Arabica and Robusta coffee, inheriting Robusta's disease resistance while also producing very rich coffee oils during extraction. FrontStreet Coffee offers Yunnan small-bean coffees: the Typica "FrontStreet 2013" and Catimor small-bean coffee. Both can be called small-bean coffee. "FrontStreet 2013" is the coffee that FrontStreet Coffee began growing in Yunnan in 2013, with the Typica variety, which officially entered mass production in 2021, hence the name "FrontStreet 2013" for this Yunnan Typica coffee bean. The Catimor small-bean coffee represents the flavor characteristics of the Yunnan growing region.

Cupping and Quality Assessment

FrontStreet Coffee conducts cupping within 8-24 hours after roasting Yunnan sample coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee typically uses 200ml ceramic cupping bowls marked with 150ml and 200ml measurement lines. Following SCAA standards, the cupping water temperature is 94 degrees. According to SCAA cupping standards, the grinding degree is controlled so that 70%-75% passes through a #20 standard sieve (0.85 millimeters). The ratio is 11 grams of coffee powder to 200 milliliters of hot water, precisely 1:18.18, which extracts coffee with concentration exactly within the golden cup range of 1.15%-1.35%, with an immersion time of 4 minutes.

Brewing Methods

FrontStreet Coffee uses a three-stage method to brew this Yunnan coffee bean. First, use 30 grams of hot water to fully moisten the coffee powder layer. The second water injection can begin when the electronic scale shows 30 seconds. Starting from the center, inject with a small water stream to the bottom of the powder layer. To concentrate the water stream's penetrating power, keep the circular movement range small before moving outward.

This process requires careful control of water flow speed - avoid fluctuating between fast and slow, and try not to interrupt the flow. Insufficient water can lead to incomplete moistening of the coffee powder, resulting in noticeable rough astringency and short aftertaste. Too much water means the hot water from the initial bloom stage doesn't extract enough coffee components, producing coffee with relatively singular flavor characteristics, with prominently突出ing acidity from the initial extraction that masks other flavors. FrontStreet Coffee believes that stable water flow and circular movement patterns - from inside to outside, from outside to inside, or center injection diffusion - can be adjusted according to personal preference.

For the third water injection, FrontStreet Coffee suggests carefully observing the water level drop and beginning the third injection before the coffee bed becomes exposed. Again, start from the center with circular water movement, keeping the water level below the powder layer height. Stop injection at 1 minute 50 seconds, with filtration completed by 2 minutes.

Flavor Profiles

Through tasting, FrontStreet Coffee has reached the following conclusions about the flavor characteristics of these two Yunnan coffee beans:

Yunnan Huaguoshan coffee bean cupping results: Rich melon and fruit aromas, herbal notes on entry, smooth mouthfeel, nutty and chocolate flavors in the middle section, vibrant plum acidity in the finish, with black tea and brown sugar notes in the aftertaste.

Yunnan small-bean coffee cupping results: Bright acidity, soft acid feel, well-balanced body, rich layers, with distinct black chocolate, honey, and cane sugar flavors in the aftertaste, displaying brown sugar flavors when completely cooled.

Taste Characteristics

Yunnan small-bean coffee is relatively neutral in taste - neither too acidic nor too bitter. It's truly fragrant without bitterness, rich without intensity, with comfortable micro-acidity, making it quite suitable for popular tastes. If you prefer fruit acidity, specifically choose Yunnan small-bean coffee grown at high altitudes with lighter roasting - these beans have high acidity and weak bitterness. If you simply dislike acidity, then choose dark-roasted beans, though the bitterness will be somewhat higher.

Cold Brew Method

FrontStreet Coffee's method for making cold brew with Yunnan small-bean coffee is actually quite simple - we just need to find the right parameters.

FrontStreet Coffee's cold brew recipe uses 50 grams of coffee powder, restoring the powder-to-liquid ratio to 1:10, therefore adding 600 milliliters of cold water. The coffee powder's water absorption rate is twice its own weight. After stirring evenly, seal and refrigerate for 24 hours. Then remove and filter the coffee grounds using filter paper, then seal the coffee liquid in a clean bottle and refrigerate for more than 12 hours.

The extracted cold brew can be kept fresh in the refrigerator for 5 days. During this preservation period, the coffee liquid continues to ferment in the bottle, and this fermentation process creates different layers of mellow flavor changes. It's generally recommended to drink the cold brew coffee after storing it in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 days, because during the 24-36 hour overnight period, the coffee liquid achieves full mellowing, resulting in better flavor.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473