Is Robusta Considered Specialty Coffee? Why Are Robusta Beans So Inexpensive? What's the Price per Pound?

Understanding Coffee Varieties: Arabica and Robusta

Coffee is divided into three main varieties: Arabica, Robusta, and Liberica. Among these, only Arabica and Robusta hold significant commercial value. In the specialty coffee community, Robusta beans are rarely mentioned, while in daily life, we frequently see merchants proudly advertising their beans as "100% Arabica." This creates an impression where Arabica is portrayed as the beloved wealthy heiress, while Robusta is cast as the dirty poor child.

The Origins of Coffee Varieties

Both Arabica and Robusta originate from Africa. Arabica belongs to the small-seeded coffee species, originating from the high-altitude Ethiopian plateau. After leaving Ethiopia, coffee exported through the port of Mocha spread across the globe. Over centuries of cultivation, these seeds have developed more distinct varieties, such as the commonly heard Typica, Bourbon, Geisha, Caturra, and others—all belonging to the Arabica coffee species.

Robusta belongs to the medium-seeded coffee species, originating from the Congo Basin region on the west coast of Africa. According to strict botanical classification, it should be called "Coffea canephora" (Congolese species), corresponding to the same level as "Coffea arabica." Robusta is merely one variety within the Coffea canephora species, just as Typica is one variety within the Coffea arabica species.

The reason why the name Robusta has far overshadowed Canephora is that among its subspecies, only Robusta has been adopted for commercial cultivation by humans, while others remain in their original wild state. Therefore, medium-seeded coffee is now commonly referred to as Robusta coffee. However, in terms of domestication, Arabica predates Robusta by several centuries. Robusta was discovered in 1898 by a Belgian scholar in Congo, and subsequently, due to global leaf rust outbreaks, Robusta, with its excellent disease resistance, was introduced to affected areas.

The Rise and Fall of Robusta

Robusta once enjoyed its glory days. Due to its high caffeine content and rich oils, during the period when espresso became globally popular, Robusta was often used in espresso bean blends. At that time, a significant reason people drank coffee was to obtain caffeine.

However, with the emergence of the specialty coffee concept, people began to focus on origin-based flavors. Robusta's inherent bitterness, along with flavors of walnut, peanut, hazelnut, and smokiness, are considered undesirable characteristics in coffee. Most importantly, its counterpart Arabica, after undergoing origin-specific refinement, demonstrates flavor profiles that far surpass Robusta. This can be considered an inherent problem—Robusta's flavor performance is far less appealing than Arabica's, which is why people tend to choose Arabica.

Inherent Limitations and Challenges

FrontStreet Coffee believes that within the specialty coffee category, flavor comes first, and caffeine is no longer the sole purpose of drinking coffee. Robusta's advantages instantly become disadvantages. Light-roasted Arabica coffee exhibits floral and fruity aromas with acidity that leaves people lingering. However, if Robusta is light-roasted, the grainy, almond-like flavors and mixed acidity become repulsive. Generally speaking, with current Robusta beans, there's no hope in the light-roasting category.

What about the dark-roasting category? Robusta's bitterness is thoroughly expressed through dark roasting. Well, it's too bitter, but also very aromatic. For example, Vietnam frequently consumes Robusta coffee beans. They love the aroma of Robusta coffee but dislike the bitterness, so they add condensed milk or eggs to black coffee to balance the bitterness.

Some might argue that Robusta grows in worse environments than Arabica, and that Arabica grown at low altitudes also doesn't taste good. Therefore, some people have started planting Robusta in high-altitude areas, providing meticulous care in an attempt to eliminate the tormenting bitter and mixed flavors. India's "Coffee Royal" Robusta coffee beans, known as specialty Robusta, are cultivated using the same standards as specialty Arabica beans. This coffee bean demonstrates remarkable cleanliness, without the disturbing flavor defects found in cheap-grade Robusta. It offers a thicker, more stable mouthfeel, along with intense walnut, peanut, hazelnut, and wheat flavors reminiscent of peanut butter and hazelnut paste.

The Practical Applications of Robusta

Indeed, improving cultivation standards can enhance coffee flavor quality, but Robusta is Robusta—its genetics determine that its flavor cannot match that of Arabica. It's not that Robusta's taste is completely inferior to Arabica's, but when popular preferences still lean toward Arabica flavors, Robusta will never have its day. The public will only measure Robusta against Arabica standards, which, despite being unfair, is reality.

Since it doesn't taste good, what is Robusta used for? Robusta's advantage is its affordability. Taking Brazilian coffee as an example, ordinary Robusta costs only half as much as ordinary Arabica coffee. Secondly, its body and caffeine content both excel over Arabica. Therefore, when these three advantages are combined, becoming an ingredient for instant coffee becomes its best destination.

Of course, some relatively high-quality Robusta beans appear as espresso blends or whole Robusta coffee beans. To be honest, FrontStreet Coffee once tasted a Vietnam-produced Robusta, whose milk and cream aromas were very rich and pleasant, but its bitterness was truly shocking. (It's better to just add milk! 😓)

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