Which Coffee Bean Varieties Are the Best? A Guide to Arabica Coffee Bean Flavors

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An Introduction to Arabica Coffee Varieties

The two main coffee varieties we are familiar with are Arabica and Robusta. Each has many sub-varieties, such as Typica, Bourbon, Caturra, Catuai and others.

Arabica: Premium Coffee Beans with Excellent Flavor and Aroma

Arabica is a representative variety native to Ethiopia, and it is also grown in southern Africa, other African countries and Asia. It accounts for 70% to 75% of world coffee production. Arabica resists pests and disease relatively poorly, so highland areas suit it better, and beans grown above 1,500 meters show the best quality.

The two ancient, pure sources of Arabica are Typica and Bourbon.

Typica

Typica is the original variety from which all Arabica varieties descend. It originates from southern Sudan, and its ripe fruit is red. Typica yields relatively poorly and resists disease very poorly, but its excellent cupping quality has made it popular worldwide.

Typica varieties include Geisha, Jamaican Blue Mountain, Hawaiian Kona, Maragogype and Sumatra Typica (Mandheling).

Geisha

Geisha, with slightly elongated fruit and leaves, is a genetic mutation of Typica originating from the Geisha Forest in southwestern Ethiopia. In the 1930s, Geisha seeds were carried to Tanzania; in the 1950s they traveled to Costa Rica; and in the 1960s they reached Panama. After nearly half a century, they made a stunning impact, defeating the perennial champions Bourbon, Caturra, Catuai and Typica and sweeping first prize in the 2005, 2006 and 2007 Panama National Treasure Bean cupping competitions. In 2007, Geisha won the championship at the International Famous Bean cupping competition hosted by the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA), with a bid of $130 per pound, setting the highest price record for competition beans in history. Geisha is a member of the Typica family, yet it gained fame more than seventy years after leaving Ethiopia, confirming that Ethiopia is a treasure trove of Arabica genetics: any variety casually sent abroad is enough to stir up the coffee market.

Geisha is grown in many regions worldwide and is the new king of specialty coffee, with particularly high quality and prices in Latin American countries such as Panama, Guatemala and Colombia.

Geisha possesses distinctive tropical fruit flavors, floral notes, citrus and tea-like characteristics.

Blue Mountain

Produced in the Blue Mountain range in eastern Jamaica, this Typica variety takes its name from the scene when the weather clears: the sun reflects off the blue sea, and the mountains mirror the brilliant blue light of the water. Blue Mountain's highest peak reaches 2,256 meters, the tallest in the Caribbean and a famous tourist destination. Set in an earthquake zone, it has fertile volcanic soil, unpolluted air and a humid climate with year-round fog and rain, with average precipitation of 1,980 mm and temperatures around 27 degrees Celsius. These conditions created the world-renowned Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, which is also the second most expensive coffee in the world.

Blue Mountain coffee has all the hallmarks of premium coffee. Not only is it rich and mellow, its sweetness, acidity and bitterness are so perfectly balanced that it shows no bitterness at all, only moderate and flawless acidity.

Hawaiian Kona

Kona is an ancient, pure Arabica Typica coffee produced in the western and southern parts of the Kona district on the island of Hawaii. The trees are scattered across the volcanic slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa, where elevation ranges from 150 to 750 meters. The volcanic ash soil is highly fertile, and the pairing of morning sunshine with afternoon cloud cover is ideal. There is no frost all year, making it excellent for coffee.

The finest Kona coffee is divided into three grades: Extra Fancy, Fancy and Number One. In flavor, Kona beans resemble Central American coffees, with cinnamon spice notes and a balanced, moderate acidity.

Maragogype

The best-known mutation of Typica, Maragogype was first discovered in 1870 in the Maragogype growing area of Bahia state in northeastern Brazil. Its beans are at least three times larger than regular Arabica beans, hence the name. Maragogype has poor flavor at low altitude but better flavor at high altitude, with mild acidity and a pleasant sweet aroma.

Sumatra Typica (Mandheling)

Mandheling is produced in Sumatra, Indonesia, in Asia. It is an ancient Typica variety coffee whose most distinctive traits are its rich flavor, fragrant and mellow taste, and mild, reserved acidity.

Mundo Novo

A natural hybrid of Bourbon and Sumatra Typica, first discovered in Brazil. It yields well and resists disease, and it was widely planted in Brazil in the 1950s, hailed as the new hope of the Brazilian coffee industry. Its trees, however, are tall and not easy to harvest.

Knowledge Extension

Arabica is used mainly for single-origin or specialty coffee. From the perspective of both coffee culture and genetics, Bourbon and Typica are the two most important branches of the Arabica family.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Since Sumatra Typica is one of the great pillars of the Arabica family, tasting Mandheling is a fine way to meet Typica head on. The FrontStreet PWN Golden Mandheling is the most refined example: PWN selects only high-quality green beans of 18 mesh and above, requires fewer than three defects per 300 g sample to meet the top G1 grade, and applies three rounds of hand sorting, producing uniform, plump, translucent beans with a low defect rate. A medium-dark roast leaves it clean and full-bodied with a rich roasted aroma, perfect for anyone who dislikes acidity, and it makes its fullest impression as a pour-over at 87 to 88 degrees Celsius with 15 g and a 1:15 ratio, poured in three stages.

If you want a wilder, earthier expression of the same island, the FrontStreet Lintong Mandheling from the Lintong region around Lake Toba is the classic. Its traditional wet-hulled processing and the local microbes give Mandheling its mysterious signature: a deep aroma, a generous body and a strong, lingering taste with clove, wood and herbal notes, low acidity and a spice-and-mint edge.