Coffee Varieties
Coffee varieties can be overwhelming. Why you would ask? Well, currently the number of different varieties that exist in the world is unknown. Ethiopia alone has more than 10,000 accessions collected and growing and that’s not even including the rest of the coffee Countries that grow coffee and experiment with different types of varieties. But the nice thing about them is that when you get to know what types of varieties you like, you can experiment with the flavors of different varieties from different regions, different processes, roast profiles, and brewing methods. We will look at a few arabica and robusta varieties that are mostly known out there.
Bourbon and Typica Group
Arabica coffee is significant in specialty coffee production, with Bourbon being one of the varieties that take center stage. The World Coffee Research Organization (WCR) even refers to it as “one of the most culturally and genetically important… varieties in the world”. The WCR describes the Bourbon variety as a tall, medium-yielding plant with green leaf tips, which has the potential to produce a good quality coffee at high altitudes. It is a natural mutation of the Arabica plant, which has grown wild in Ethiopia for many centuries.
As a result of transportation and migration, Typica and Bourbon was first cultivated as crops in Yemen. In the 18th century, Typica was transported to Southeast Asia by the Dutch, while the French transported Bourbon to Île Bourbon, an island off Madagascar’s coast. In the 19th century, French missionaries began introducing Bourbon across Africa and the Americas.
Typica is one of the most important varieties of Arabica coffee. First, it’s a variety in itself. From Blue Mountain in Jamaica to Arábigo in Central America, you’ll find Typica varieties all around the world. Second, it’s a parent to some of today’s popular varieties such as Mundo Novo and Pacamara. Typica is identifiable by its tall size, standing at around 5 meters/16.5 feet tall. It has a thin trunk, with thin branches which, due to its height, are spaced far apart. Typica can also be identified by its large leaves with bronze tips and the elongated shape of its cherries
The history of Typica can be traced back to southwestern Ethiopia, like other Arabica coffees. Arabica was taken to Yemen between the 15th and 16th centuries and on to India by 1700. The seeds that were sent to the Malabar coast in India and onto Java in Indonesia are what we know now as the Typica variety.
The Bourbon variety had followed a similar path to Typica until Yemen, and instead of being shipped further east, the seeds were introduced to Bourbon Island (now La Réunion) off the coast of Madagascar. Bourbon, like Typica, is integral to the coffee variety family tree. It’s still grown worldwide and is a parent to popular coffee varieties such as Mundo Novo (natural breeding of Typica and Bourbon) and Caturra, a natural mutation of Bourbon.
These varieties are associated with standard or high cup quality but are susceptible to major coffee diseases. Today, coffee production in Latin America is still based to a large extent on cultivars developed from Typica and Bourbon varieties, contributing to a significant genetic bottleneck for C. arabica. In Brazil, which accounts for 40% of world production, 97.55% of coffee cultivars are derived from Typica and Bourbon.
Introgressed (Catimor/Sarchimor)
Introgressed varieties are those that possess some genetic traits from another species mainly, C. canephora (Robusta), but also sometimes C. liberica. (“Introgressed” means “brought over.”) In the 1920s, a C. arabica and a C. canephora plant on the island of East Timor sexually reproduced to create a new coffee now known as the Timor Hybrid. This Arabica variety contains Robusta genetic material that allowed the plant to resist coffee leaf rust. Coffee experts realized the value of this disease resistance and began using the Timor Hybrid in experiments to create new varieties that could resist leaf rust. They selected many different lines of Timor Hybrid and then crossed them with other varieties, most commonly the high-yielding dwarf Arabica varieties Caturra and Villa Sarchi. These crosses (Timor Hybrid x Caturra, and Timor Hybrid x Villa Sarchi) led to the creation of the two main groups of introgressed Arabica varieties: Catimors and Sarchimors. It’s important to note that, contrary to common belief, neither Catimors nor Sarchimors are themselves distinct varieties. Instead, they are groups of many different distinct varieties with similar parentage. Other introgressed varieties, like Batian, were created from complex multiple crosses involving the Timor Hybrid; RAB C15 is the only introgressed variety in this catalog that was not created using the Timor Hybrid — it originates from a controlled cross made by Indian breeders between C. canephora and the Arabica Kent variety. Many introgressed varieties are covered in this catalog. These varieties have traditionally been associated with lower cup quality than others, but they have been essential for coffee farmers for whom coffee leaf rust and coffee berry disease are a major threat.
Heirloom
In Ethiopia in particular, the word “heirloom” is often used to refer to varieties that are native to the country, many of which are still found in the wild today. It is estimated that there are between 10,000 and 15,000 heirloom varieties in Ethiopia today, the majority of which have not been formally genetically identified.
While many heirloom varieties begin life as a wild plant, some are later brought to various specialty coffee farms across the country, where they are cultivated, harvested, and processed.
Heirloom varieties are typically classified into two groups: JARC varieties and regional landraces. JARC varieties are those developed and researched by the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre (for desirable characteristics, such as greater resistance to disease or increased yield). Regional landraces, however, are coffee trees that grow completely in the wild.
Generally, Ethiopian heirlooms tend to have a floral and fruity cup profile, but the specific characteristics do vary heavily from region to region.
The links below are there for you to explore more and go deeper in the coffee varieties.
If you have ever been to a cafe or coffee shop, you know that the drink menu can often times be overwhelming. As a coffee shop owner, there are so many types of coffee drinks you can offer your customers that it can be difficult to understand the difference between them. We explore the most popular coffee drinks and their recipes so you can get familiar with them and keep up with the current coffee trends.
We also offer recipe tastings, to help you understand the ratio differences and discover which drink best suits your pallet.