Yunnan small coffee can be traced back to 1904, when 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 Yunnan coffee, generally called small-seed coffee, commonly known in China as Yunnan small coffee.

Small coffee refers to Arabica coffee beans. Because its beans are smaller, it is also called small-fruit coffee. Robusta is called medium-fruit coffee, and Liberica belongs to large-fruit coffee. What is grown in Yunnan is Arabica coffee, so it is also called Yunnan small coffee.

Front StreetYunnan Catimor Small Coffee

Region: Baoshan, Yunnan

Altitude: 1,200 meters

Variety: Catimor

Processing Method: Washed
Brewing Flavors: Melon and fruit aromas, sweet melon, brown sugar, plum-like acidity, black tea note

At Front Street Coffee, you can see two Yunnan coffee beans. One recommended is Front Street Typica coffee, and the other is Yunnan small Catimor coffee. Both beans can be called small coffee, but Typica has a cleaner flavor, while Catimor has a heavier mouthfeel.
 

Yunnan-Grown Varieties
In the past, Yunnan small coffee was mainly Catimor. Catimor is a combination of the Arabica and Robusta species. Robusta has good resistance to leaf rust and rich oils, with high yield and easy cultivation. After crossing with Arabica Typica, Catimor has 25% Robusta genes. It improves resistance to leaf rust, retains rich oils, and at the same time has some of the rich flavor of the original Typica variety. Therefore, most Yunnan estates began planting Catimor on a large scale.
 

The Typica variety began to be planted on a small scale in recent years. Because Typica has poor disease resistance and is susceptible to leaf rust, its growth must be observed at all times, and every leaf must be carefully cared for. Therefore, Front Street jokingly calls Typica "Lin Daiyu."

Front Street Yunnan Small Typica Coffee Beans

Region: Lincang, Yunnan

Altitude: 1,300 meters

Variety: Typica

Processing Method: Sun-dried
Brewing Flavors: Obvious roasted nuts, soft acidity, overall balanced and rich, solid dark chocolate aroma, slight brown sugar sweetness.

Where is it good to grow Yunnan coffee?
The growing areas are mainly distributed in Lincang, Baoshan, Simao, Xishuangbanna, Dehong, and other regions. Baoshan has an average temperature of 21.5°C, with a maximum of 40.4°C, and basically no frost throughout the year, making it recognized as the best small coffee producing area. The small coffee cultivated here is famous at home and abroad for being strong but not bitter, fragrant but not harsh, small and uniform in bean size, mellow and rich, with fruity notes. Tasting experts from the International Coffee Organization rated Yunnan coffee in the same category as Colombian wet-processed small-seed coffee, making it coffee of good quality in the world. The area where Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) grows Typica is at the border between Baoshan and Myanmar.
 

Baoshan has an average temperature of 21.5°C, with a maximum of 40.4°C, and basically no frost throughout the year, making it recognized as the best small coffee producing area. The small coffee cultivated here is famous at home and abroad for being strong but not bitter, fragrant but not harsh, small and uniform in bean size, mellow and rich, with fruity notes. Yunnan Baoshan small coffee has a long planting history, and Baoshan small coffee can be said to be a national geographical indication product.

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) roaster Yang Jia 800N (300g batch size): charge at 200°C, set airflow to 3, adjust heat to 160°C after 1 minute, turning point at 1'32", roast until yellowing at 5'40'' at 149°C, when the grassy smell completely disappears and dehydration is complete, keep heat unchanged and set airflow to 4; at the 6th minute, adjust heat to 140, at the 7th minute adjust heat again to 120, at the 8th minute the bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and dark patches, and the toasted bread smell clearly turns into coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. First crack begins at 8'37'', adjust heat to 90, fully open airflow to 5, at the 9th minute reduce heat to 20°C, develop first crack for 2'00", and drop at 196°C.

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Brewing Recommendation
Dripper: Kono
Dose: 15g coffee
Water Temperature: 88°C
Grind Size: 80% passing through a No. 20 standard sieve
Water-to-Coffee Ratio: 1:15
 

Front Street segmented brewing method: use 30g water for a 30-second bloom, pour in a small stream in circles until 125g for the first stage, then when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring until 225g and stop. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper. (Start timing from the beginning of the bloom.) Extraction time is 2'00".

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