Typica Coffee: Inheriting the Flavor Genes of Arabica Varieties

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Arabica and Typica Coffee

Coffee belongs to the Rubiaceae family, Coffea genus, which includes evergreen shrubs. There are about forty species under the Coffea genus, but only three have commercial value: Arabica (Coffea Arabica), Robusta (Coffea Robusta) [Note 1], and Liberica (Coffea Liberica). These three varieties are known as the "three major native coffee species." Arabica accounts for approximately 70-80% of world production and is in high demand for specialty coffee; Robusta accounts for 20-30% and is mainly used for instant and canned coffee, with caffeine content twice that of Arabica; Liberica, due to its susceptibility to leaf rust disease and poor flavor, is only traded domestically in West African countries like Suriname, Liberia, and Ivory Coast, and is not popular worldwide.

Coffee faces many challenges during its growth process, such as humidity, frost damage, pests and diseases, among which "leaf rust disease" causes the most damage. All natural things evolve through natural selection, and coffee trees are no exception. Therefore, the "Typica" and "Bourbon" varieties mentioned in this article belong to the "species" classification in biological taxonomy (kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species), and can be further classified down into "subspecies," "varieties," and "cultivars." Some are mutant varieties that appeared through natural evolution, while others are deliberately cultivated for special needs. The Arabica variety commonly seen on the market is just a general term, and the actual varieties are not specifically distinguished - we only know that their upstream ancestor is the Arabica species.

Below are the varieties evolved from the Arabica species.

Typica

The variety closest to the native species. The beans are slightly elongated, like stretched eggs, and are called Arabigo or Criollo in Central America. It has a clean lemon acidity with a sweet aftertaste, low resistance to leaf rust disease, making it difficult to care for. The trees have low fruit yield, coupled with a long harvest period (harvesting once every 2 years), resulting in low production.

Its flavor performance is excellent, and it is recognized as a specialty coffee variety, but with extremely low yield and susceptibility to rust disease, it requires more human management. Typica coffee originates from Ethiopia and southeastern Sudan, and is the most widely cultivated coffee variety in the Western Hemisphere. The plants are relatively robust but not tolerant to strong light. Typica's top leaves are reddish-bronze, giving it the name red-top coffee.

Knowledge expansion: Arabica coffee bean varieties originally come from Ethiopia, Yemen, and other parts of Africa, and were later transplanted to various parts of the world.

In short: FrontStreet Coffee is a coffee research center that enjoys sharing coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation only to help more friends fall in love with coffee. Additionally, we hold three low-discount coffee activities every month because FrontStreet Coffee wants to let more friends drink the best coffee at the lowest price. This has been FrontStreet Coffee's mission for six years!

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