Natural decaffeinated coffee varieties-- is the once-extinct pointed bourbon delicious?

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Pointed bourbon is a natural low-caffeinated variety, which is academically called "Coffea Laurina", but it is commonly known as "Bourbon Pointu". It is mainly named because the bean shape of the pointed bourbon is longer and narrower and slightly pointed at both ends.

Unlike other artificially treated decaf coffee, pointed bourbon is due to genetic degradation, resulting in lower caffeine content and better flavor than ordinary bourbon coffee trees, but extremely low yield. this also makes pointed bourbon more rare and expensive.

The pointed body bourbon was once extinct.

To mention the story of the extinction of pointed bourbon, we have to start from 1715 when the French transplanted the round mocha of Yemen to Bourbon Island (later called Reunion Island) on the Indian Ocean on the east coast of Africa, and the soil, water and climate were different from those of Yemen. so the variant bourbon is derived, the caffeine content becomes lower, and you can get a good night's sleep if you drink too much. Therefore, it is loved by French King Louis XV and famous French writers and scholars.

However, due to some natural disasters and diseases, the yield of the pointed bourbon of the variety became extremely low, and all the islanders who originally grew coffee turned to crops such as sugar cane, and gradually, sharp bourbon became the legendary coffee beans at that time. The coffee industry also recognized sharp bourbon as "extinct coffee beans."

Sharp body bourbon-- reappear in the world

Decades after the pointy bourbon disappeared, Yoshihiro Kawashima, a coffee expert at UCC Coffee in Japan, repeatedly heard coffee farmers in El Salvador mention that "decaf trees may still be alive on the French bourbon island", prompting him to look for the pointy bourbon.

So in 1999, he had the opportunity to visit Africa and stop by the island of Bourbon in search of the legendary decaf tree. However, things did not go as smoothly as expected. None of the young people on the island had heard of coffee crops in Bourbon, so they had to leave their contact address to local farmers and officials before leaving.

Finally, two years later, in 2001, Kawashima received a call from farmers on Bourbon Island, saying that more than 30 unknown coffee trees had been found in the wild. Later, it was also identified by experts and confirmed to be the Bourbon pointed coffee tree at that time, so French scientists cooperated with Japan's Shangdao Coffee and launched a natural low-caffeine coffee tree restoration program. Finally, in 2006, there were a small number of bourbon pointed coffee beans, which were screened and sold in 2007, but only for the Japanese market, the price is as high as RMB 4 yuan per gram, which is four times more expensive than the top blue mountain.

The excellent flavor of pointed bourbon

What is the flavor of such a high-priced pointed bourbon? According to Coffee Studies, people who drink coffee think that it is different from the general coffee flavor, there is no bitter taste, with a strong citrus aroma and elegant acidity, and even some litchi fragrance.

However, no matter how well it is said in the book, you still need real proof of your record. At the 2018 World Coffee Brewing Competition, Emi Fukahori from Switzerland became another memorable chapter in coffee competition history by hammering over a group of Panamanian roses with a semi-carbon dioxide impregnated bourbon from Brazil.

The bean she chose at the time was a Laurina bourbon pointed body (or Bourbon Pointu) from Cerrado Region, Brazil's Daterra estate, and explained that this breed of coffee had 50% less caffeine and 20% chlorogenic acid than other Arabica varieties, so it tasted much less bitter. The flavors and aromas described by Emi Fukahori at that time were red grapes, orange blossoms, pineapples, lime and green apples. Ability to beat a lot of rosy summer, and finally won the WBrC crown, sharp body bourbon this breed can not be ignored.

Conclusion

In fact, the price of pointed bourbon is not as high as it was then, and it is easier to obtain, but it is of course rare compared with other coffee beans. Therefore, if you have a chance to see this coffee bean, you must seize the opportunity to try this legendary coffee bean!

If you are extremely sensitive to caffeine but want to have a cup of coffee in the afternoon or evening, consider this naturally decaffeinated pointed bourbon.

Reference:

New version of Coffee Science

A Coffee Legend: sharp Bourbon

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