Why has yunnan coffee long supplied instant coffee?

Yunnan's earliest planted variety was Typica, expanded on a large scale to repay debts to the Soviet Union, with the harvest purchased by a single department and shipped abroad. When domestic demand stayed weak, many farmers cut their trees for better-paying crops, and the region's coffee reputation settled into the commodity market.

Nestlé set up a coffee agriculture department in Yunnan from 1992 and introduced Catimor, a cross of Timor and Caturra with Robusta lineage, buying it at US spot market prices. Catimor brought rust resistance and yield but limited flavor. As specialty coffee grew, washed Catimor and natural Typica Yunnan lots began appearing as pour-over single origins suited to beginners.

Why has Yunnan small-bean coffee long been used as a raw material for instant coffee? This starts with its cultivation history and variety selection. From the early Typica to the later widespread promotion of Catimor, the fate of Yunnan coffee has gone through several twists and turns. Because Catimor has Robusta lineage, it offers disease resistance and high yield, but it also brings limitations in flavor. However, with the rise of the specialty coffee wave, Yunnan coffee is gradually shedding its stereotype, and more and more high-quality pour-over single-origin coffees are emerging. This article will sort through this history and recommend two Yunnan small-bean coffees from Front Street Coffee, representing washed Catimor and natural Typica respectively, suitable for beginners to try.

Why did Yunnan coffee become a raw material for instant coffee? The earliest coffee variety planted in Yunnan was Typica. Later, in order to repay debts to the Soviet Union, the local area began to expand Typica cultivation on a large scale, which was purchased by a unified department and shipped to the Soviet Union. Later, domestic coffee consumer demand remained sluggish, and coffee farmers cut down coffee trees one after another to switch to crops with higher economic returns.

However, Yunnan's natural conditions are very friendly to coffee cultivation, as it lies between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, and its altitude also meets the growing requirements of coffee trees. Nestlé took a fancy to this land and, starting in 1992, established a coffee agriculture department specifically to guide and research the improvement and cultivation of Yunnan coffee, and introduced the high-yield, highly disease-resistant Catimor, purchasing it at U.S. spot market prices.

In 1959, the Portuguese moved the Brazilian Bourbon mutant Caturra to East Timor, where it was crossed with Timor, which has Robusta lineage, successfully breeding Catimor with outstanding disease resistance and productivity. At that time, leaf rust was sweeping through coffee-producing countries around the world, and promoted by international organizations, producing countries vigorously promoted Catimor to resist disease and increase yields.

Catimor is not of pure Arabica lineage, but a descendant of Timor (a hybrid of Arabica and Robusta) and Caturra (a Bourbon mutant), and therefore contains about 25% Robusta genes. This also leads to shortcomings in its flavor: the aroma is not rich enough, and the bitterness is relatively heavy.

The most commonly planted variety in Yunnan today is Catimor and its improved varieties, which are what the market often calls Yunnan small-bean coffee. The reason for large-scale cultivation of Catimor is that it carries Robusta genes, has better disease resistance than a single old variety, and also has higher yield. By contrast, traditional varieties are both delicate and low-yielding, so farmers are naturally more willing to plant Catimor, and thus a wave of Catimor planting swept through Yunnan.

This is also why when Yunnan coffee is mentioned, many people first think of it as a raw material for instant coffee.

However, with the increasing popularity of specialty coffee culture and the growing demand for coffee among domestic consumers, Yunnan coffee has received government attention in recent years, and coffee cultivation and green bean processing methods have also become more scientific. Today, we can encounter more and more Yunnan pour-over single-origin coffees. Below are two very popular Yunnan small-bean coffees:

Front Street Coffee Yunnan Small-Bean Coffee Beans Region: Baoshan, Yunnan, China Altitude: 1200m Variety: Catimor Processing method: Washed

Flavor: nutty notes, herbs, chocolate, caramel, with a light fruity acidity in the finish.

Recommended reason: Can be used for pour-over and moka pot; at an affordable price, you can taste the typical Yunnan small-bean flavor.

Front Street Coffee 2013 Natural Typica Coffee Beans Region: Lincang, Yunnan, China Altitude: 1300m Variety: Typica Processing method: Natural

Flavor: berry-like acidity and aroma, nutty tone, brown sugar sweetness, with a tea-like finish.

Recommended reason: Can be used for pour-over, cold brew, and American-style drip machines; high cost performance, with an authentic Yunnan small-bean Typica flavor.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.