Which Coffee Beans Are the Most Bitter with the Worst Taste? Is Robusta Coffee Worth Drinking? Why It's Actually Essential

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Robusta Coffee Beans

What is Robusta?

Robusta is a natural variety from West Africa, grown in regions with lower altitudes and higher temperatures. Essentially, it accounts for the remaining coffee production in the world. Its coffee beans are small and round, but their caffeine content is nearly twice that of Arabica. This high caffeine serves as a natural insect repellent, helping to deter most pests, making Robusta coffee relatively inexpensive and easier to cultivate. Additionally, because brewing produces more crema, Robusta is often used in coffee blends.

Despite Robusta's quality advantages, it is not a popular coffee among the general public. In fact, most coffee enthusiasts reject Robusta, mainly because it is commonly used in instant coffee or lower-quality blends, resulting in products with relatively low prices and quality. Once roasted and brewed, Robusta coffee is often described as bitter, sharp, with woody and rubbery flavors. Although Robusta is unpopular among most coffee enthusiasts and not the first choice for mass consumption, it still has its supporters.

The bitterness in Robusta coffee dominates, and its flavor is not pleasant. Excellent Robusta coffee presents a pleasant barley tea fragrance and sweetness; however, common Robusta coffee beans have a distinct "Robusta flavor" - an aroma similar to burnt barley tea, accompanied by earthy and moldy smells.

In coffee, mixed beans generally refer to blended coffee beans. What we typically call blending is "combining coffee beans with different characteristics from various origins." So, does Robusta blending mean using Brazil blended with Congo? Or Indonesia blended with Vietnam and Brazil?

Take a sip of coffee extracted from 100% pure Robusta beans, and you'll find that the bitter, spicy taste is harder to swallow than the worst traditional Chinese medicine you've ever tasted. Therefore, we generally blend Robusta beans with Arabica coffee beans. For example, the famous coffee brand Lavazza leads the coffee market with its classic 70% Arabica to 30% Robusta 7:3 blend ratio.

Adding Robusta coffee beans to blends not only enhances the coffee's concentration and body but also reduces costs. As a powerful tool for price adjustment, Robusta is considered somewhat of a treasure by roasters.

Knowledge Point: "Arabica" is not synonymous with good coffee. Even among Arabica varieties, there are grade differences.

In Summary

FrontStreet Coffee is a research-focused coffee establishment, happy to share coffee knowledge with everyone. Our unconditional sharing is solely to help more friends fall in love with coffee. Additionally, we hold three discounted coffee events monthly 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 six years!

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