How to Roast Laurina Bourbon: Is Laurina Bourbon a Decaf Coffee?

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FrontStreet Coffee's Laurina Coffee Roasting Experience

How many people are familiar with the name Laurina? Those who know it are undoubtedly the most discerning coffee enthusiasts and connoisseurs. Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, former French President Jacques Chirac, and renowned writer Honoré de Balzac were all devoted fans.

Laurina is undoubtedly one of the world's rarest and most expensive coffees. It grows exclusively on Réunion Island, a French overseas territory covering 2,512 square kilometers. Like a hidden dot on the world map, situated between Madagascar and Mauritius, you'd need a magnifying glass or Google Maps to discover its existence. Discovered by the Portuguese in 1513 and occupied by France in 1643, it was named Bourbon Island after the French royal Bourbon family. It became a French colony in 1767 and regained the name Réunion Island only after the fall of the restored Bourbon dynasty following the 1848 French Revolution.

Today, this island,遍布 with geological wonders, is a paradise for outdoor hiking enthusiasts. It features volcanoes, cirques, waterfalls, black sand beaches, and tropical forests, and is renowned for vanilla and rum production. Over 40% of its area is listed as UNESCO World Heritage. Recently, it gained worldwide attention because debris from the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 was discovered there after more than a year.

The first coffee trees on Réunion were imported from Mocha Port in Yemen in 1715, totaling just 40 trees. Unfortunately, only two survived. From 1719 to 1723, the government implemented strict measures, legislation requiring island residents to plant 200 Mocha coffee trees annually, with death penalty for anyone damaging coffee trees. At that time, it was still called Bourbon Island, so naturally the coffee produced there adopted this name.

Laurina is a variety derived from Réunion Island. We know that normal Bourbon varieties have short, round beans, but in 1810, a coffee farmer named Leroy on Bourbon Island discovered a dwarf coffee plant in his garden with smaller leaves resembling laurel leaves and sharper, thinner coffee beans. Its yield was lower than regular Bourbon. Confirmed by botanists of the time as a new variety, it was named "Leroy" after its discoverer. Due to its sharply pointed ends, it became commonly known as Laurina (literally "sharp-pointed Bourbon").

Beyond its unique appearance, Laurina possesses several distinctive characteristics that make it an exceptional variety. It is naturally semi-decaffeinated, with caffeine content only half that of typical Arabica—common Arabica contains about 1.2% caffeine, while Laurina has only 0.6%. Despite this, its rich aroma remains uncompromised, featuring abundant fruity notes.

In the first batch of roasting, we used a higher bean drop temperature of 200°C with relatively strong heat. During the roasting process, we discovered that these beans come from higher altitudes, have harder density, and higher moisture content. Therefore, we employed a roasting technique with extended dehydration, gradual heat reduction, and stable temperature rise. We adjusted the heat to finer settings when the beans reached the yellowing point, completed dehydration, and before first crack, avoiding surface scorching. We chose to extend the coasting period to 2 minutes and 50 seconds after first crack, prolonging the caramelization reaction to reduce excessive fruit acidity and enhance more nutty aftertaste notes.

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