Why Is Yunnan Small-Bean Coffee an Arabica Variety?

Yunnan small-bean coffee is essentially an Arabica variety. In early coffee classification, Arabica was called small-fruit coffee because its fruit is smaller than Robusta, the medium-fruit type, and Liberica, the large-fruit type. Any Arabica variety grown in Yunnan falls under that name, and quality lots come mainly from elevations of 1,000 to 1,500 meters.

In 2014, Yunnan's planted area and output each accounted for more than 99 percent of China's national total. Well-known lots include Natural Typica, Baoshan Washed Catimor, and All-Red-Cherry Natural Catimor, often brewed in a V60 with a 1:16 ratio. These beans show nutty, caramel, and plum notes tied to the growing region.

Yunnan small-bean coffee has performed impressively in international competitions and flavor evaluations in recent years, injecting strong momentum into China's coffee industry. Starting from variety definitions, growing region distribution, and historical changes, this article sorts out the development trajectory of Yunnan Arabica coffee and focuses on Front Street Coffee's experimental exploration of growing Typica and Bourbon in Lincang. The article also recommends three Yunnan beans currently sold by Front Street—Natural Typica, Baoshan Washed Catimor, and All-Red-Cherry Natural Catimor—and includes V60 brewing parameters and specific techniques to help enthusiasts present the nutty, caramel, and plum flavors unique to the Yunnan growing region at home.

In recent years, the attention received by Front Street Yunnan small-bean coffee has continued to rise, and it has achieved remarkable results in both international competitions and coffee flavor evaluations. Yunnan coffee has gradually entered the public eye, and China's coffee industry has also entered a fast track of development driven by the Yunnan growing region.

What is small-bean coffee?

The Yunnan small-bean coffee commonly seen in the domestic market is essentially an Arabica variety. In the early years, when coffee classification had not yet been refined, Arabica was called "small-fruit coffee" because its fruit size is smaller than that of Robusta (a medium-fruit variety) and Liberica (a large-fruit variety), while Liberica was called large-fruit coffee.

Yunnan coffee growing regions

Any Arabica variety cultivated within Yunnan can be classified as Yunnan small-bean coffee. The growing areas for high-quality Yunnan coffee are mainly concentrated in Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, Dehong, Nujiang, and other places at elevations of 1,000 to 1,500 meters. The higher the elevation at which coffee trees grow, the more significant the temperature difference between day and night, the slower the trees grow, and the richer the nutrients accumulated within them. The formation of sugars and aromatic substances is also more complete, and ultimately the flavor expression of the coffee beans is more outstanding.

Yunnan's advantageous geographical conditions have driven the rapid growth of its coffee industry. In 2014, both its planted area and output accounted for more than 99% of the national total. The average annual temperature in Lujiangba, Baoshan, is 21.5°C, with extreme high temperatures reaching 40.4°C, and there is basically no frost trouble throughout the year.

In 1988, Nestlé took a fancy to this land in Yunnan suitable for coffee cultivation and distributed Catimor variety coffee trees with stronger resistance to leaf rust to local farmers. Only then did coffee farmers begin planting coffee again and supply raw materials to Nestlé over the long term.

Because Catimor carries genes from the Robusta variety, its flavor performance is unsatisfactory, and it does not taste good when drunk directly. This also led the public's impression of Yunnan coffee to remain at the level of instant coffee for a long time.

However, Front Street Coffee has always believed that truly outstanding Yunnan coffee can fully display the unique coffee flavors of the Yunnan growing region under traditional natural or washed processing methods. To eradicate the unpleasant flavors in Yunnan coffee, change must begin at the source of the variety.

Therefore, in 2013, Front Street Coffee launched a planting experiment in Lincang, Yunnan, introducing the Typica variety and a small amount of the Bourbon variety for research and cultivation. After harvest, the beans are sold simultaneously in Front Street Coffee's online Tmall store and offline shops.

There are two reasons for choosing Typica: first, it is one of the oldest coffee varieties, with pure Arabica genes and an elegant, clean flavor, and has long been recognized as a specialty coffee variety; second, the earliest coffee trees planted in Yunnan were precisely Typica, introduced by French missionaries.

Although Front Street Coffee grows the Typica variety, this does not mean that the Yunnan Catimor variety is bad. With the spread of specialty coffee culture, Catimor coffee in the Yunnan growing region has now received more scientific cultivation and planting management, and both its flavor and quality have improved significantly.

Recommended Yunnan small-bean coffee beans

Front Street Coffee currently has three Yunnan coffee beans on sale: the first is "Front Street 2013 Natural Typica Coffee Beans," priced at 40 RMB/100g; the second is "Selected Growing Region Daily Beans - Yunnan Baoshan Washed Catimor Coffee Beans"; and the third is "All-Red-Cherry Natural - Catimor Coffee Beans from the Lujiangba Growing Region in Baoshan." The purchasing channels are the Front Street Taobao store or the Front Street Tmall flagship store.

These three coffee beans all carry the signature flavor characteristics of the Yunnan growing region: nuts, caramel, and plum-like notes. The differences among them are: "Front Street Natural Typica" has a cleaner flavor, with acidity, sweetness, and bitterness in balance and a prominent sweet aftertaste; "All-Red-Cherry Natural" presents the sweet-and-sour sensation of berries while retaining the flavor characteristics of the Yunnan growing region; and "Baoshan Washed Catimor" is selected by Front Street Coffee from the growing region, allowing consumers to experience at the highest cost-effectiveness the charm of the growing region's flavors shown by Yunnan coffee beans under traditional processing methods.

How do you brew Yunnan small-bean coffee so it tastes good?

Front Street Coffee suggests that when brewing these three Yunnan coffees, one should lean more toward a balanced expression, neither overemphasizing acidity nor deliberately modifying the finish.

Therefore, the recommended amount of coffee powder is 15 grams, with a coffee-to-water ratio of 1:15. If you want a clearer flavor, it can be adjusted to 1:16. Use a V60 dripper, and control the brewing water temperature at 88°C, with the aim of making the acidity softer. The grind size is medium-fine, about the size of caster sugar (75% passing through a No. 20 sieve).

Specific brewing technique: first pour 30 grams of water and bloom for 30 seconds; in the second stage, pour in a small stream in a circular motion up to 125 grams, and after the water level in the coffee bed drops by half, pour again, continuing to pour in a small stream in a circular motion up to 225 grams. Wait until all dripping and filtration is complete; the total extraction time is about 2 minutes and 10 seconds.

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