What Are the Different Varieties of Specialty Coffee? Did You Know That Specialty Coffee Growing Regions Span the Globe?

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Specialty Coffee Growing Regions and Varieties

Coffee trees are cultivated in the equatorial zone between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, known as the "Coffee Belt."

There are 62 coffee-growing countries in the world, with three main coffee-growing regions. Each growing region has its unique topography, climate, and coffee flavors, which in turn affect local coffee cultivation and processing.

Coffee is divided into three major regions: Latin America, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region.

Latin America

Its coffee growing areas include countries in Mexico, Central America, and South America. Latin American coffees often have balanced flavors of cocoa or nuts, with refreshing and pleasant acidity.

Africa

The homeland of exotic coffee, establishing high standards for coffee quality. Most African coffees are rich and juicy, with flavors including floral and citrus notes, berry aromas, and spice undertones.

Asia/Pacific

Its coffee growing regions include the Indonesian archipelago, East Timor, South Asia, and Papua New Guinea. Often processed using "semi-washed" methods, Asia-Pacific coffees are full-bodied, sweet, and smooth, with herbal and earthy aromas.

Arabica has many subspecies, all derived from Ethiopia's most ancient Typica and Yemen's Bourbon, which were transplanted to Central and South America or Asia and later mutated; the varieties are numerous and too many to enumerate. However, specialty coffee mainly refers to carefully cultivated high-altitude Arabica, so there aren't too many types. They are roughly classified as follows.

Ancient Native Varieties

Typica

The oldest native variety from Ethiopia, all Arabica varieties are derived from Typica. Typica has bronze-colored new leaves and oval or slender-pointed beans; the flavor is elegant, but the plant has weak constitution, poor disease resistance, and low fruit yield. Excellent estate beans like Jamaica Blue Mountain, Sumatra Mandheling, and Hawaii Kona all belong to the Typica family.

Bourbon

A variant of Typica that was transplanted to Yemen in early times (pre-coffee history), with bean shape changing from slender-pointed to round. In 1715, France transplanted the round beans from Yemen Mocha to Bourbon Island on the east coast of Africa (renamed Reunion Island after the French Revolution), and it was then named Bourbon. The round Bourbon beans were passed to Brazil and Central/South America in 1727, and in 1732, Britain transplanted Yemen Mocha to St. Helena Island (where Napoleon was later imprisoned), which was also round Bourbon beans. Bourbon is the frequent champion in American specialty coffee cuppings.

The bronze-colored new leaves of Typica are one of its characteristics.

Genetic Mutants

Bourbon Pointu

Discovered on Bourbon Island in 1810, with beans changing from round to pointed, and caffeine content only half that of regular beans; however, production is low and the plant is weak, making it extremely precious (mostly cultivated in laboratories).

Maragogype (Elephant Bean)

The most famous variant of Typica, first discovered in 1870 in the Maragogype coffee-producing region of Bahia state in northeastern Brazil. The beans are at least three times larger than regular Arabica beans, hence the name. Maragogype has poor flavor in low-altitude areas, but better flavor in high altitudes, with mild acidity and pleasant sweet aroma.

Geisha

A derivative variety belonging to the Typica family, exported from Mount Geisha in southern Ethiopia in 1931 (Geisha has the same pronunciation as the Japanese "geisha"). It remained obscure in many countries until it was transplanted to Panama in the 1960s, only to frequently win cupping competitions starting in 2005.

Knowledge Point

In terms of coffee flavor, the taste from commercial beans is much inferior to that from specialty coffee beans. Generally, commercial beans are chosen for blending, and after blending, they can be used to make espresso coffees such as lattes and cappuccinos.

In Summary

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Important Notice :

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