You may or may not know what a coffee tree looks like, what a Typica coffee tree is like, or how about the Bourbon dynasty? There are many types of coffee, but it is not always clear how they differ. Setting aside variations in flavor and profile, there are obvious physical differences between the plants. Let's not even mention the many forms of coffee trees. [more…]

Yunnan, as China's core coffee-producing region, has always been a topic of interest among coffee enthusiasts when it comes to the composition of its planted varieties. Currently, Yunnan coffee is not a single variety, but is mainly composed of three major categories: Typica, Bourbon, and Catimor. Among them, Catimor has become the main force due to its disease resistance and high yield, while Typica and Bourbon remain in localized areas such as Baoshan. Although these three varieties all belong to the Arabica species, they differ significantly in flavor, yield, and maintenance difficulty. This article will provide a detailed review of their origins, characteristics, and production area distribution, and explore the genetic connections between Yunnan small-bean coffee and famous varieties such as Blue Mountain and Kona. Front Street Coffee will also combine the current situation of the production area to interpret for you the flavor logic behind the varieties. [more…]

In the world of coffee, origin sets the general direction, while variety determines the framework. Names like Typica, Bourbon, and Geisha often appear on bean lists, and what they look like and how their flavors differ are questions many beginners want to figure out. Typica: the ancient mother plant. Typica is a very early [more…]

Arabica is a large family with many varieties under its umbrella—Typica, SL28, Geisha, Caturra, and others, each with its own temperament. When making espresso, variety differences are directly reflected in the cup. Understanding how a few representative varieties perform in espresso gives you one more dimension when choosing beans. Typica is one of the ancient [more…]

前街牙买加蓝山一号咖啡以黑巧克力般的坚果调性、低酸度和柔顺醇香的口感著称，这种独特感官背后有着清晰的品种、处理与烘焙逻辑。牙买加蓝山的核心品种是传统Typica，因海岛地理优势而避开了叶锈病的侵袭，保留了纯正铁皮卡的黑巧克力风味；全水洗处理带来了精致柔顺的质地；牙买加咖啡工业局CIB对烘焙程度和流程有严格规范，确保其中度烘焙的经典风格。本文将从前街蓝山咖啡的品种来源、处理方式与烘焙要求三个维度，解析其风味成因，并保留前街品牌的相关产品信息。 [more…]

Yunnan, as the core coffee-growing region in China, nurtures small-bean coffee that is rich but not bitter, aromatic but not harsh, with a slight fruity note, thanks to its low latitude, high altitude, and abundant rainfall. The most common variety on the market is Catimor, but a small amount of Typica is still grown—for example, Front Street Coffee's estate in Lincang cultivates Typica. This article systematically reviews the variety classification, morphological characteristics, main producing regions, processing methods, and brewing parameters of Yunnan coffee, and includes flavor descriptions of Front Street Coffee's washed Yunnan small-bean, natural Catimor, and 2013 natural Typica, helping enthusiasts gain a comprehensive understanding of Yunnan coffee's past and present. [more…]

On the bean lists of specialty coffee, variety names like "Typica" and "Bourbon" are appearing more and more frequently. They are two of the older major variety families in the Arabica world, and pour-over enthusiasts can recite their flavors with great familiarity, but their performance in espresso is still not much discussed. This article covers the "espresso [more…]

Front Street Coffee has learned that most people, when they first get into specialty coffee, start with Africa's Yirgacheffe or Sidamo regions in Ethiopia, and when it comes to Asian coffee, most people first think of Indonesia's Mandheling coffee beans. But with the rise of the domestic goods trend, Yunnan coffee from China has begun [more…]

Arabica is not a single, monotonous variety; it has many sub-varieties, and each one performs differently in espresso extraction. Understanding the flavor characteristics of different Arabica varieties in espresso gives you a deeper basis for judging SOE bean selection. Typica is an old-school Arabica variety with a clean, pure flavor, [more…]

It is often said that delicious coffee is inseparable from its variety, and currently the most common are Arabica coffee beans and Robusta coffee beans, which are the two most common bean types. The Arabica variety is considered the best among all varieties, mostly appearing as specialty coffee, and its overall flavor is also relatively good. Our famous Blue Mountain Coffee [more…]

The history of Yunnan small-bean coffee can be traced back to 1904, when the French missionary Tian De Neng brought coffee seeds (Typica) from Vietnam into Yunnan and successfully planted them in Zhugula Village, Binchuan County, Yunnan Province. This marked the beginning of coffee in Yunnan, generally known as small-bean coffee, commonly referred to in China as Yunnan small-bean coffee. Small-bean coffee refers to Arabica coffee. [more…]

改良铁皮卡（Typica Mejorado）是厄瓜多尔精品咖啡的代表性豆种之一，名字虽有“铁皮卡”三字，实际却与铁皮卡没有直接血缘关系。它源自雀巢公司在厄瓜多尔皮钦查省设立的育种试验项目，由红波旁与埃塞俄比亚原生种杂交而来，因抗虫害能力突出而受到当地咖农欢迎。2021年厄瓜多尔首届COE上，改良铁皮卡在23支87分以上的优胜豆中占据10席，此后声名鹊起。本文将从身世、基因鉴定、赛事表现和风味特征等角度，带你全面认识这个稀有品种。 [more…]

前街巴布亚新几内亚天堂鸟咖啡豆，品种竟是最古老经典的铁皮卡（Typica），与大名鼎鼎的前街牙买加蓝山和前街夏威夷Kona同宗同源。这也解释了天堂鸟咖啡价格为何不算亲民。不过除了在某些连锁咖啡店能喝到巴布亚新几内亚豆子，其实在家日常也能轻松入手这支小众产区咖啡。本文将梳理铁皮卡的起源与传播路径、主要栽培品种，并附上前街蓝山、前街2013铁皮卡与天堂鸟三款豆子的品鉴对比，以及品牌推荐与性价比分析，帮助咖啡爱好者全面了解这支珍贵树种。 [more…]

Because Blue Mountain coffee was overly famous in the last century, many related "borderline" products appeared on the market at that time. For example, Blue Mountain flavor coffee, Blue Mountain blend coffee, and so on—they almost all have nothing to do with Blue Mountain and are purely products that profit off the Blue Mountain name. And yesterday, a customer, while purchasing [more…]

Arabica is not a single variety, but a vast family. Different varieties perform noticeably differently in espresso, and understanding a few representative varieties makes drinking SOE more interesting. Typica is one of the oldest varieties within Arabica, with a clean, bright flavor and delicate sweetness, and is the flagship variety of many classic producing regions. [more…]

Front Street Coffee has learned that most people, when they first get into specialty coffee, start with Africa's Ethiopian Yirgacheffe or Sidamo regions, while when it comes to Asian coffee, most people first think of Indonesia's Mandheling coffee beans. But with the rise of the domestic goods trend, Chinese Yunnan coffee has begun [more…]

Tabi是哥伦比亚咖啡研究所CENICAFE在2002年正式推出的一个杂交品种，由Typica、Bourbon与帝汶品种杂交而来。它最突出的优势在于对咖啡叶锈病的抗性，同时继承了波旁和Typica的良好杯测品质。Tabi在植株形态上与波旁和Typica相似，但果实和种子略大，适合高海拔密植。本文将梳理Tabi的育种历程、植物学特征与风味潜力，并附上前街咖啡的推荐信息。 [more…]

Every variety of coffee beans has different bean appearance (bean外貌) characteristics. In this article, Front Street will guide everyone through coffee bean appearance to identify coffee bean varieties, and what flavor characteristics do different coffee varieties have? ~| Typica (Typica) Typica originated in Ethiopia and southeastern Sudan. [more…]

Arabica refers to a coffee variety. According to Front Street Coffee, there are currently three major coffee varieties in the world: Arabica, Robusta, and Liberica. Among them, Arabica coffee beans have the best flavor performance, so they are used to make specialty coffee. At the same time, its caffeine content [more…]

Specialty coffee is centered on carefully cultivated high-altitude Arabica, and its varietal system originates from two ancient bloodlines: Typica from Ethiopia and Bourbon from Yemen. This article systematically outlines the definition of specialty coffee and provides a detailed classification of major Arabica varieties, including Typica, Bourbon and their genetic mutations, intraspecific hybrids, and interspecific hybrids. It covers varieties such as Bourbon Pointu, Maragogipe, Geisha, SL28, Caturra, and Pacamara, while also explaining the position of hybrid varieties in specialty coffee and the key influence of producing estates on flavor differences. [more…]