Introduction to ancient native species of boutique coffee

In plant taxonomy, coffee belongs to the Genus Coffea family of Rubiaceae, and there are at least a hundred varieties of coffee under it.

In the "healthy Life" post "falling in love with boutique coffee", I mentioned that the more common types of coffee are Arabica (Arabica, elegant flavor, is the main boutique coffee) and Robusta (coarse beans, rough flavor, high caffeine content, not boutique coffee).

In addition to these two species, there are two small species, namely Liberica (tall trees, mainly grown in Malaysia and West Africa) and Excelsa;, but these two small species are very rare in the market (even the official Chinese translation is not found).

Arabica also has many subspecies, all derived from the oldest Typica in Ethiopia and Bourbon in Yemen, which have been transplanted into Central and South America or Asia. But boutique coffee mainly refers to the carefully cultivated high-altitude Arabica, the variety is not too many. The rough classification is listed below.

Ancient native species:

Typica: the oldest native variety in Ethiopia, all Arabica are derived from Tibika. The top leaf of Tiebika is bronzed and the bean body is oval or thin in shape; the flavor is elegant, but the physique is weak, the disease resistance is poor and the fruit yield is less. Excellent manor beans such as the Blue Mountains of Jamaica, Manning of Sumatra and Kona of Hawaii all belong to Tibika.

Bourbon: a variant of the early (prehistoric coffee) Tibika that changed its shape from thin to round after it was transplanted to Yemen. It was named bourbon in 1715 after France transplanted round beans from Yemeni mocha to the island of Bourbon on the east coast of Africa (renamed Reunion after the French Revolution). Bourbon beans spread to Brazil and Central and South America in 1727, and the British transplanted Yemeni mochas to St. Helena Island (where Napoleon was later imprisoned) in 1732. Bourbon is the winner of the American boutique coffee cup test.

One of the characteristics is that the top leaf of Tibica is bronzed.

Gene mutant

Pointed Bourbon (Bourbon Pointu): found in Bourbon Island in 1810, beans changed from round to pointed, with only half the caffeine content, but in small amounts, weak and extremely precious (mostly cultivated in the laboratory).

Elephant bean (Maragogype, or Elephant Bean): Tibica's best-known variety of beans, first discovered in 1870 in the Maragogype bean-producing region of the state of Bahia in northeastern Brazil, is at least three times larger than the average Arabica, hence the name. The taste of elephant bean is poor in low altitude area, but it has better flavor at high altitude, mild sour taste and sweet fragrance.

Geisha (Geisha): a derivative of the Tibika family, it was exported from the Geisha Mountains of southern Ethiopia in 1931 (Geisha is synonymous with Japanese geisha). After being unknown in many countries, it was transplanted to Panama in the 1960s and did not begin to win cup tests until 2005.

Kenyan "SL28" and "SL34": the bourbon line, screened and cultivated by French and British missionaries and researchers in Kenya in the early 20th century, has adapted to Kenya's high-concentration phosphate soil for a century, giving birth to Kenyan characteristics of sour elves; top Kenyan coffee comes from these two varieties, but it loses its flavor when transplanted elsewhere.

Yellow bourbon (Bourbon Amarello, or Yellow Bourbon): a bourbon variety endemic to the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo, where the coffee fruit does not turn red and is orange when ripe. It was later found that the pericarp of other local bourbon-derived varieties also turned yellow.

Kaddura (Caturra): a single genetic variant of bourbon, discovered in Brazil in the 1950s. The long-term ability and disease resistance are better than bourbon, and no shade tree is needed; the flavor is equal to or slightly worse than bourbon.

Pacas (Pacas): the bourbon variety found in El Salvador, which was transplanted into El Salvador coffee farmer Pacas in 1935, yielded more results than other coffee trees of the same species in 1956. Experts were asked to identify and confirm that there was a genetic mutation.

The bourbon variety, which was first discovered in Costa Rica in the Villa Sarchi:1960 era, has often appeared on the cup test list of excellence in recent years.

From left to right: Kenya round beans, elephant beans, Kenya AA

Arabica intraspecific hybridization (Intraspecific Hybrid)

New World (Mundo Novo): a natural cross between Bourbon and Sumatra Tibica, first found in Brazil. Because of its high yield and resistance to diseases and insect pests, it was widely planted in Brazil in the 1950s and was praised as the new hope of the Brazilian coffee industry, but the trees were tall and difficult to harvest.

Catuai: a hybrid of New World and Kaddura; short, wind-resistant, but monotonous.

Pacamara: a hybrid between Pacas (Pacas) and elephant bean (Maragogype), with a large bean body, second only to elephant bean, is an excellent variety produced in El Salvador in the 1950s, and has achieved good results in cup test in recent years.

Kent: the Tibica hybrid found in India has high yield and strong disease resistance, but has not achieved good results in the cup test.

Arabica hybridized with stout bean (Interspecific Hybrid)

Timor: a natural hybrid found in East Timor with 44 chromosomes, close to Arabica, but with a mediocre flavor.

Catimor: in 1959, the Portuguese mixed Brazilian Kaddura and Timo to develop a disease-resistant Cartimo. But the flavor is also poor, and it is an important variety of commercial beans at present.

Icatu: a Brazilian variety that has been improved for many generations and has been in the top ten of Brazil's Outstanding Cup.

Ruyilu 11 (Ruiru 11): a hybrid variety developed in Kenya in 1985 with heavy yield and low quality.

There are no varieties of Arabica and sturdy beans that can be regarded as boutique coffee so far, so they are not available in many suppliers that specialize in freshly roasted boutique coffee, such as fresh. However, many even imported specialty coffee suppliers mix the hybrid beans with Blend to reduce costs.

In addition, from the above gene mutants (whether natural or scientific research products), their flavor has a lot to do with specific regional conditions. Even in the same country, coffee beans produced by different estates can vary widely. For example, the Blue Mountain of Wallenford Manor, a national treasure of Jamaica, is more than twice as expensive as the super-high mountain Blue Mountain of Jamaica.