In the last post we talked about water and how it is so very important in making a great cup of coffee. In today’s post I want to talk with you about the coffee bean itself as it’s important to know what type of bean you are using to make that great cup of coffee at home.
Legend has it that a goat farmer in Ethiopia first discovered coffee after his goats ate some of the berries on the coffee tree and became very “spirited”. (I personally have felt “very spirited” after eating chocolate covered coffee beans – so I’m familiar with the feeling. 
) From that very early beginning the coffee tree and coffee spread throughout the world and has even been said to help create the Age of Reason, (Check out this YouTube video with Steven Johnson, author of the book, “The Invention of Air” until today where coffee is one of the most traded commodities in the world.
Photo By John Pavelka
So what types or species of coffee beans are there? Essentially there are three:
1. Arabica
2. Canephora
3. Liberica
We’ll focus on Canephora and Liberica first as these are probably not the type of coffee beans you’ll use to make that first great cup and the fact that one of these is actually pretty rare. (As a side note, in doing the research for this post, I did discover other species of coffee, but either they are no longer in existence or they are not available on the market)
Canephora – Also known as Robusta, and as the name suggest is hardier than other types of coffee trees and is easier to grow. It produces a large crop of beans and the beans have a tremendous amount of caffeine. It’s used in some cases in instant coffee and to blend into Arabica beans to make the production less expensive. Robusta has been and is used in making some espresso’s as it provides the caffeine boost that many coffee drinkers expect in the morning. Robusta coffee beans also have a stronger more harsh taste and as a result are not great for making straight black cup of coffee.
Liberica– As its name suggest, Liberica coffee is originally from the West African country of Liberia. This bean is primarily grown now grown in West Africa, Malaysia and the Philippines. From the research that I did, it apparently has a lot more caffeine than Arabica coffee (50% more) and has a stronger taste than Arabica. Apparently it taste more like Robusta than Arabica. I’ve not yet had this variety of coffee bean yet as it is extremely rare, but due to that very reason, I think I’d like to try it just to say I did J
Arabica – this is the most common type of coffee bean and is most likely the bean that you’ll be making your great cup of coffee from as most of the coffee in the world is made from it. Within the Arabica species there are many different types of cultivars, (that is the “type within a type”) and varieties. According to Coffeeresearch.org, some of the most common varieties are:
| Typica – Outstanding sweetness and Body (1) | Bourbon – Acidity and Balance (1) | Caturra – Bright acidity, low to medium body and less clarity and sweetness than Bourbon Beans. (1) |
| Catuai – When ripe, they can be either be red or yellow. I’ve never had these to my knowledge, but the folks at Stumptown don’t seem to be “friends” with the yellow variety as they describe it has having a petroleum like aftertaste as it begins to cool.(1) | Pache Comum – Cupping quality is smooth or flat (1) | Pache Colis –This is a hybrid of Caturra and Pache Comum. It combines the smooth character of Pache Comum and the soft citrus taste of Caturra (3) |
| Catimor –Cup quality for this bean is not a good as others due to the fact that the Robusta coffee tree makes is part of the family from which this bean comes from. (1) | Kent – Light/sweet, low acidity, hints of floral/spice flavors.(2) | Mundo Novo – Light body, somewhat bitter and not as sweet as Typica and Bourbon(2) |
| Maragogype –Body is heavy, buttery hints of floral/citrus flavors (2) | Blue Mountain –Light body, very balanced and mild |
Cupping quality descriptors adapted from:
2. Coffee Kind
A note on cupping quality – Although the process of cupping and the amazing experts in the coffee industry who perform this much needed activity, much like beauty is in the eye of the beholder, the desired coffee taste is in pallet of taster. So I would suggest that you use the above flavor descriptors as a starting point and work from there. Further, as might be expected, within these different varieties, depending upon where the coffee was grown, and how it’s roasted you will also get very different flavors and bodies for the coffee. So again, use this a guide to get you started and not as the end all to be all source. The taste is really up to you.
So there you have it – The different types of coffee beans and their flavors. Next we’ll discuss the general types of coffee roasts and storing of your coffee beans.
Until next time!
Best regards,
Island Mike