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Introduction to the Three Major Coffee Bean Varieties: Is Arabica Coffee Bean Black Coffee?

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Professional coffee knowledge exchange. For more information about coffee beans, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style). FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Three Major Coffee Bean Varieties. Arabica - Arabica beans offer exceptional flavor, but have low yield and are susceptible to diseases and pests. They require high standards for growing conditions such as climate and soil. Generally, specialty coffees are Arabica. Arabica originates from the highlands of Ethiopia.

Professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information. Please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style).

FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Three Major Coffee Bean Varieties

Arabica

Arabica offers excellent flavor but has low yield and is susceptible to pests and diseases. It has high requirements for growing conditions such as climate and soil. Generally, specialty coffees are Arabica.

The origin of Arabica is the Ethiopian highlands. It was introduced to Europe via the Arab region in the 16th century. Among all coffees, Arabica varieties account for 75%-80%. Its excellent aroma has made it a coffee variety loved by people worldwide. World-famous coffees like Blue Mountain and Mocha are almost entirely Arabica. These coffee bean varieties are not resistant to pests and diseases, making their development conditions relatively harsh, but their taste and caffeine content are superior to Robusta.

Robusta

Robusta's flavor is not as good as Arabica's, but it has high yield, fast growth, good resistance to pests and diseases, and less demanding growing requirements than Arabica. It is often used as commercial coffee beans.

High-temperature, humid regions unsuitable for Arabica coffee growth are where Robusta coffee thrives. Robusta has a unique aroma and bitterness. Just 2%-3% in a coffee blend makes the entire cup taste like Robusta, so its flavor is particularly distinctive.

It is generally used in industrial coffee production such as instant coffee, canned coffee, and liquid coffee. Its caffeine content is around 3.2%, much higher than Arabica's 1.5%. Major producing countries include Indonesia, Vietnam, and West African countries centered around Côte d'Ivoire, Algeria, and Angola.

Liberica

Liberica, also known as the large-bean variety, originates from Liberia, Africa, and is found in a few other countries like Malaysia. It has strong adaptability to various environments, whether high or low temperatures, humid or dry conditions. Its flavor is somewhat inferior to Arabica, so it is only traded domestically in some West African countries (Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire, etc.) or grown for research purposes.

Many friends who are new to coffee don't know what black coffee is. In fact, it's just pure coffee - any coffee without added flavorings is called black coffee.

Knowledge Point: High-altitude growing regions are typically between 4,000 to 6,000 feet. Growing temperatures need to be between 15-25 degrees Celsius, with annual rainfall reaching 1,500-2,000 millimeters. Additionally, the timing of rainfall must align with the flowering cycle of coffee trees.

In summary: FrontStreet Coffee is a specialty coffee research center dedicated to sharing coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation to help more friends fall in love with coffee. Every month, we hold three coffee promotion events with significant discounts because FrontStreet Coffee wants to let more friends enjoy the best coffee at the lowest possible price. This has been FrontStreet Coffee's mission for the past 6 years!