Large Bean Coffee and Small Bean Coffee - Is Yunnan Small Bean Coffee a Small Bean Variety?

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It is understood that coffee tree varieties can be described as all-encompassing, with numerous varieties and diverse flavors that are breathtaking. However, not many are cultivated for coffee consumption. Originally from Africa, what secrets do coffee trees hold? Let FrontStreet Coffee explore them.

In plant taxonomy, coffee belongs to the Rubiaceae family, with at least one hundred coffee species beneath it. Approximately eighty coffee tree varieties have been identified, of which three are cultivated for coffee consumption: Arabica coffee, Robusta coffee, and Liberica coffee.

Coffee beans are divided into three main categories: small-seeded Arabica, medium-seeded Robusta, and large-seeded Liberica.

Large-seeded Coffee

Also known as the Liberica variety, it is an evergreen tree. The plant is tall, reaching over 10 meters in height, with thick and hard branches growing obliquely upward, and its branches lignify the fastest. The leaves are elliptical or circular, with glossy leathery surfaces, pointed tips, and no wavy edges. The fruits are large, oblong, with hard and thick skin and pulp, and large, protruding navels. This variety has deep taproots, is relatively drought-resistant, has moderate wind and cold resistance, is light-tolerant, but is most susceptible to rust disease. Individual plant yields are high, but yields per unit area are low. The flavor is intense and stimulating.

Large-seeded variety has elliptical or circular leaves.

Liberica was first discovered in Liberia, West Africa. Liberica coffee trees grow taller than both Arabica and Robusta, and the Liberica coffee variety has strong disease resistance and environmental adaptability. In terms of appearance, Liberica leaves are larger than those of general coffee tree varieties. In terms of coffee fruit appearance, they are much larger than regular coffee beans, and their thick skin makes it difficult to remove the coffee fruit skin and pulp, making the post-processing of coffee more troublesome.

Most coffee transactions are dominated by Arabica and Robusta, while Liberica currently accounts for only 1% of the world's economically cultivated coffee production, which can be said to be very small in quantity, with minimal cultivation almost exclusively in Malaysia. Due to its low commercial value, it is rarely discussed specifically and hardly circulates in the market.

Large-seeded variety has large, oblong fruits.

Medium-seeded Coffee

Refers to the Canephora coffee variety, which accounts for less than 30% of the world's total production, but has fewer sub-varieties, with the most representative being Robusta. The Robusta variety originated in central Congo, Africa, and belongs to the medium-seeded coffee variety.

Just as we often hear that Geisha belongs to the Arabica variety, but within the Canephora variety, only Robusta has been commercially cultivated and promoted, so Robusta has almost become synonymous with the Canephora lineage. Timor and Catimor, derived from natural hybrids of Robusta and Arabica, are now also widely cultivated and are classified under the broader Arabica category.

From a cultivation perspective, Robusta coffee trees can tolerate high temperatures, cold, drought, and humidity, with extremely high survival rates. Additionally, they have high caffeine content (1.7%-3.0%), approximately twice that of Arabica. Caffeine acts as a natural pesticide for plants, protecting Robusta from most insect damage. Individual Robusta plants yield high quantities of fruit, which are slightly rounder and smaller than Arabica coffee fruits, with flat, round beans and straight central grooves.

Precisely because of Robusta's strong vitality, advantages of high yield and fast maturation, coupled with strong environmental adaptability, it can generally be planted in low-altitude plains, allowing for direct mechanized unified management and harvesting. Therefore, Robusta cultivation requires lower production costs, making it more suitable for commercial mass production, and naturally cheaper to sell. For example, Hainan province in China predominantly grows Robusta beans.

Small-seeded Coffee

Arabica coffee variety accounts for approximately 70% of the world's total production. Arabica is the most prestigious and well-known classification, originating from Ethiopia, belonging to small-seeded coffee, and is one of the synonymous terms for "premium coffee" in the market.

Initially, after Ethiopians discovered coffee, they would chew coffee leaves to refresh themselves, and the fruits were also used as medicine. Later, through research by Arab scholars, people developed the habit of roasting and drinking it. It was spread worldwide through trade by Arabs in the sixteenth century, gradually developing into the popular beverage of today. Many of the specialty coffee beans we are familiar with belong to the Arabica variety, such as FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee's Panama Geisha coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee beans, and so on, all classified within this variety.

Ethiopia is the largest coffee-producing country in Africa. Here, coffee is not only an important source of income for the Ethiopian people but has also integrated into their entire national culture and life. Besides being used for export sales, a large portion of coffee produced in Ethiopia is consumed domestically. Regardless of wealth, every household has a set of coffee-making utensils. For Ethiopians, drinking coffee is a very ceremonial and important social activity.

In Ethiopia alone, the Arabica variety has over 2,500 sub-varieties. Due to its mild and elegant flavor and lower caffeine content, accounting for approximately 0.9%-1.5% of coffee bean weight, Arabica has higher commercial value and is the main species in today's coffee industry, accounting for 60%-70% of global coffee production and sales.

However, to exhibit diverse flavors, Arabica needs to be grown in highlands at altitudes of 800-2,200 meters without frost. The higher the altitude, the more significant the temperature difference, which slows the maturation of coffee fruits, allowing for better accumulation of flavor substances and more full aromatic development. The microclimates of various coffee-growing regions provide diverse growing conditions for Arabica, forming unique flavor profiles. Meanwhile, higher altitudes make coffee more susceptible to pests and climate impacts. Generally planted in higher altitude areas, the fruit yield is lower, and maturation is slower. High-quality Arabica coffee requires more investment in manual management and harvesting, resulting in higher production costs.

Is Yunnan Small-seed a Small-seeded Coffee Variety?

Most coffee cultivated in Yunnan consists of Arabica and its varieties/introduced species/cultivated varieties. From a lineage perspective, Arabica dominates, so they are collectively referred to as "Arabica variety" coffee beans.

Arabica coffee, also known as small-fruit coffee or "small-seeded coffee," originates from wild coffee produced in Africa and was later introduced to Europe through Arabia, hence its name. Arabica coffee beans account for over 70% of the world's coffee production.

As the "representative face" of China's coffee industry, Yunnan coffee also belongs to the Arabica variety. To distinguish it from the medium-seeded coffee of Hainan, farmers call it "small-seeded coffee." Adding the place name gives us exactly "Yunnan Small-seeded Coffee."

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