Typica Coffee Beans Belong to Premium Coffee Varieties - The Ancient Pioneer in Typica and Bourbon Coffee World

FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Typica and Bourbon Varieties

In Ethiopia, the recognized homeland of Arabica coffee, there are as many as 2,000 known coffee varieties, with more still waiting to be discovered in the wild coffee forests. Most are grouped together as "heirloom varieties." The Geisha variety, which we know and love, is widely considered to be one such Ethiopian heirloom.

Today we turn to Typica and Bourbon, the two oldest families among these heirloom varieties. They ventured out of Ethiopia and spread across the world, carrying the mission of bringing delicious coffee to a global audience.

Typica

Within Ethiopia's native stock, Typica stands as the most ancient and outstanding. It has given rise to numerous excellent varieties: Mandheling, Blue Mountain, Elephant Bean, Kona and others are all derived from Typica.

Typica itself, however, has a relatively weak constitution despite its fine flavor. It resists disease poorly, is susceptible to leaf rust and yields little fruit, which makes it economically disadvantageous. In recent years it has gradually been replaced by Caturra and Catuai, both Bourbon variants, in Central and South America, and it is becoming increasingly rare.

Bourbon

Alongside Typica as an ancient and superior variety is Bourbon. Some sources suggest that Bourbon is a variant of Typica transplanted to Yemen at an earlier date. The varieties derived from Bourbon are also extremely rich: Pacas, Red Bourbon, Yellow Bourbon, Kenya's SL28 and SL34, Caturra and Villa Sarchi are all direct derivatives.

Bourbon itself is vigorous, with better leaf rust resistance than Typica, yet its flavor is at least as good and often superior, frequently winning in cupping competitions. Its yield is also slightly higher than Typica's.

These two ancient ancestors have already achieved remarkable results as parent varieties on their own. When combined, they underpin almost everything: apart from Ethiopia, the origin of Arabica, most of the mutant or hybrid varieties currently grown or discovered in Central and South America, India and East Africa are based on Typica and Bourbon.

In other words, aside from their respective mutations, the rest are their hybrids. It is remarkable that their descendants now dominate the specialty coffee world.

Key Takeaway: These two ancient varieties, Typica and Bourbon, have propagated across the diverse terroirs of the New World for three hundred years, producing thousands of variants and hybrids.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Typica and Bourbon sit behind a great many of the beans FrontStreet Coffee carries, but nowhere is the Typica line more recognizable than in Sumatra's Mandheling. FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling is the top of that line: PWN selects beans of 18 mesh and above and requires fewer than 3 defective beans per 300 g sample to meet the highest G1 grade, then hand-sorts three times to remove defects entirely, lifting the cup's cleanliness and sweetness. Supply is limited, since most of it goes to the Japanese and American markets.

After a medium-dark roast, Golden Mandheling shows clear wood and caramel notes over a clean, full body, making it a fine choice for anyone who dislikes acidity. FrontStreet Coffee's Lintong Mandheling, from the Lintong area around Lake Toba in North Sumatra, offers a more affordable everyday version of the same wet-hulled character, with clove-like spice, woody aroma, low acidity and a persistent, thick sweetness. The wet-hulled process was developed for Sumatra's wet climate: the parchment is stripped while the beans are still half-dry, exposing them to the air to speed drying and lending the wild, earthy character the region is known for.

To brew, FrontStreet Coffee suggests 15 g of coffee at a coarse-sugar grind, 87-88°C water and a 1:15 ratio, poured in three stages. Pour 30 ml to wet all the grounds and let them degas, then 100 ml to lift the bed and release the golden foam, and finally a gentle 95 ml center pour, which raises the sweetness and rounds out the caramel, chocolate and nut flavors.