What Are the Characteristics of the Three Major Types of Coffee Beans and Why Are Arabica Beans Considered Premium Coffee?

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Three Major Coffee Varieties

Coffee trees are only suitable for cultivation in tropical or subtropical regions. Today, there are three main native coffee species: Arabica, Robusta, and Liberica.

The origin of Arabica is Ethiopia, which has at least 2,500 varieties, not including hundreds of new varieties cultivated in Central and South America. Recently, new semi-decaffeinated varieties under Arabica have been discovered on Bourbon Island and in Ethiopia, which has shocked the coffee industry.

Those who often drink coffee must have heard of Arabica, Canephora, and Liberica. Among them, Arabica from Ethiopia has a mild and elegant flavor, making it the mainstay of specialty coffee. Its caffeine content is relatively low, accounting for about 0.9%-1.5% of coffee bean weight, and it has the highest commercial value. It is the main species in today's coffee industry, accounting for about 60%-70% of global coffee sales.

Four Sets of Chromosomes - A Rare Coffee Species

Arabica is the most special among the 103 species under the genus Coffee. It is the only tetraploid plant (with four sets of chromosomes) in the genus Coffee and is self-pollinating, characterized by lower caffeine content and a clean flavor profile. The other 102 coffee species are all diploid plants (with two sets of chromosomes) and are cross-pollinating. Because of this, Arabica is an extremely precious variety in the genus Coffee.

Arabica

Originally from Ethiopia, it accounts for about 70% of total world production. It belongs to tropical and subtropical high-altitude crops, so it is not resistant to high temperatures and dryness, excessive humidity, or low-temperature frost damage. It has a long growth period, solid beans, and small particles. It has charming aroma and gentle acidity.

Robusta

Robusta is a variety discovered in the Congo, Africa. It belongs to low-altitude growth, is disease-resistant, and tolerates high temperatures, growing in rainy and humid conditions. Moreover, it has obvious "three highs" characteristics: high bitterness, high caffeine, and high aroma. However, its aroma has a slightly musty smell, but after deep roasting, Robusta will present a special burnt aroma.

Most operators will use Robusta, so high bitterness in iced coffee will be countered with sugar and creamer, but high caffeine cannot be removed, which may be related to high content of chlorogenic acid. Because of this, many people experience palpitations, discomfort, and poor sleep after drinking it.

Liberica

Liberica is a tree species from Liberia in West Africa. It can tolerate various environments such as high and low temperatures, humidity or dryness, and has strong reproductive ability, but its flavor is not good. Another disadvantage is that it is susceptible to leaf rust disease, so it is difficult to survive in the market. It is generally used more for research and less suitable for large-scale cultivation and production.

Liberica coffee beans can use deeper roasting methods to cover their poor flavor problems, or add creamer to enhance the taste. This is Malaysian white coffee (Malaysian white coffee is actually two-in-one coffee with coffee and creamer; if sugar is added, it becomes three-in-one coffee).

Knowledge Point: "Arabica" is not synonymous with good coffee

Even among Arabica varieties, there are grade differences.

In Summary

FrontStreet Coffee is a coffee research hall, happy to share coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation just to let more friends fall in love with coffee. Every month, there are three low-discount coffee activities 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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