The 9 Things Your Parents Teach You About Best Arabica Coffee Beans In…

The Best Arabica Coffee Beans in the World

Most people are unaware that the coffee beans you find in your favorite café or supermarket are not arabica. This type of bean grows best in regions with high altitudes and has more smooth, sweeter and more nuanced flavor.

The location where the coffee beans are grown (aka their terroir) has a major impact on how they taste. This is the reason why single-origin arabicas are adored.

1. Ethiopian Yirgacheffe

This coffee is known for its citrus and floral qualities. The high quality beans are grown on small farms in the Oromia region (formerly Harrar) at altitudes ranging from 1,400 to 2,200 meters. The natural process results in a berry-like flavor and a sweet taste.

The high elevations of Yirgacheffe allow the coffee plants to grow slower, allowing them to absorb the nuances and flavors of the surrounding area. The area also has a lush tropical climate that is perfect for the cultivation of coffee.

The green beans that are not roasted in this coffee are an excellent option for roasters who want to reveal the true essence of this exotic beans. Light to medium roasts bring out the wine, citrus and berry flavors. This coffee is a great match for desserts like lemon pound cake and chocolate. The herbal and floral notes of this coffee also work well with food items that are spicy or sour in taste.

2. Colombian Supremo

Known for its consistent quality and flavor, Colombian Supremo is a well-loved choice for coffee enthusiasts of all levels. Typically, it has a smooth, classic flavor profile with notes of citrus and light caramel, Supremo beans have an overall mild character that's well-rounded enough to satisfy a variety of palates.

The size of the beans is a key factor in determining their flavor profile. Supremo coffee beans are large. The larger size indicates that the beans will go through Grade 14 or higher perforations in the sieve, which is less than Excelso.

Colombian Supremo is a coffee with universal appeal. Its high-quality standards, bright acidity and moderately rich body make it a great choice for any brewing method. This coffee is from the Popayan region is cultivated by farmers that are part of the Colombian Coffee Federation. This organization has over 500 000 coffee producers. This coffee is an excellent example of the premium Colombian beans that have earned the country a reputation for its world-class coffees.

3. Jamaican Blue Mountain

The rich, smooth flavour of Jamaican Blue Mountain is one of the most sought-after gourmet coffees. This wet-processed variety from the Blue Mountains of Jamaica is renowned for its sophistication and smooth taste, and it's also one of the main ingredients in the coffee liqueur Tia Maria.

The soaring elevations of the Blue Mountains and their unique combination of fertile soil and mild climate as well as dense cloud cover provide the ideal environment for growing coffee of exceptional quality. The coffee beans from this small region are sought-after the world over and fetch high prices due to their rareness.

Jamaican Blue Mountain, as its name implies, is grown in the Blue Mountain District, a 6,000-hectare area of the island renowned for its natural beauty and coffee production. The area is designated a national park, and farmers cultivate small lots of coffee with a keen eye to preserve the distinctive characteristics of the beans.

4. Costa Rican Tarrazu

A coffee lover's desire, Costa Rican Tarrazu is a perfect balance of acidity and body. The region has high altitudes as well as a mineral-rich volcanic soil, which allows the beans to mature at a slower pace so they can fully develop their flavor profile.

Many of these farms are known for their environmentally-friendly practices and strict measures to maintain quality that make them a favorite among eco-conscious consumers. Some of them provide traceability, so that consumers can learn more about the farm that made their coffee.

One World Roasters' Tarrazu is a wonderful example of the distinctive flavor profile of the region, with notes of vibrant grapefruits and a rich dark chocolate. Its medium body is balanced and well-rounded. This gives a smooth, satisfying end.

5. Colombian Caturra

Caturra is a coffee cultivar that has earned a name for itself in Latin America. This variety was introduced into Brazil as a natural change from Bourbon. Its production potential was superior to Bourbon but it required higher altitudes, resulting in lower yields. Growers used a process called mass selection to determine the parents that had outstanding performance, then they the seeds were grouped from these parents and repeated the process.

Colombian Caturra has a high yield and is resistant to Coffee Leaf Rust. It is one of the parents of the Castillo variety, developed by Cenicafe as the plant that will be the flag for their "Colombia sin roya" program designed to revive and revitalize coffee production.

This family-owned Caturra was grown by farmers in the department of Urrao at 2,000 meters and then roasted with care by Camber Coffee. The cup quality is a vibrant acidity, with flavors of strawberry, watermelon and citrus.

6. French Roast

French Roast is a strong cup of coffee with smoky, charred notes. This blend is a mix of arabica beans from different regions that provide rich flavors like caramel and chocolate. The beans are darkly roasted to enhance their natural oils and flavor. This blend is of premium quality and will satisfy the most sophisticated palate.

These particular beans are more difficult to cultivate than other varieties of coffee because they require very specific conditions in the climatic environment to thrive. The plants need a specific amount of sunlight and rain, and must be protected from frost and drought.

Drinking coffee made of these beans can improve your energy levels and improve your health. The antioxidants found in these beans fight free radicals which can lead to chronic illnesses like cancer and heart disease. Moreover they are a source of vitamin B5 or pantothenic acid which is vital for the body to convert food into energy.

7. Ethiopian Gesha

Geisha or Gesha as it's also called, was discovered in Ethiopia's Gori Gesha Forest in the 1930s. It was brought to Panama in the 1960s when it quickly gained fame for its floral aromas, full-bodied flavor, and delicate acidity.

Geisha is one of the most expensive varieties of coffee available on the market, due to it being highly prone to disease and requires high altitudes for growth with a lower fruit yield. These factors make it difficult to consistently produce. This, in conjunction with its high cup score makes it a major factor in the price.

This particular Gesha lot was processed with honey. (Not the actual honey, the beans were processed and then dipped into sugar-rich water.) The beans were then placed in a marquee, and then dried for 96 hour through carbonic maceration. It's a unique process that adds to the complexity of this incredible coffee. OMA has a rich but balanced cup profile with exotic florals like jasmine, tea rose and delicate stone fruits, citrus and citrus.

8. Indonesian Liberica

Most coffee lovers are familiar with two species in the Coffea family: arabica and robusta. The former is responsible for 80% of the world's coffee trade, while the latter makes up 20 percent. There are more than 120 species within the genus, and some are less popular than others.

The most well-known non-arabica species is Coffea excelsa (or var. dewevrei). This variety is found on medium-sized trees in moderate elevations and produces a teardrop shaped bean. It's commonly used in blends, and can provide an enduring flavor to a cup.

Although it's not as popular as specialty arabica coffee beans but it does have a market of its own in Southeast Asia. This is largely because of the demand generated by religion and the fact that Muslims in Malaysia and Indonesia drink their coffee after prayers. Liberica's resistance to rusty coffee leaf and its low caffeine content make it an attractive alternative for those who don't have enough money to invest in arabica.

9. Brazilian Exelsa

Excelsa is resilient and productive but it also requires more attention from farmers than other Coffea arabica species or canephora. This is due to its asymmetrical bean, which are bigger than canephora and arabica. It has a longer time of fruiting and its leaves are bigger than other C. liberica species. Plus, its high productivity levels mean that it can grow to over 15m tall and produce a huge volume of fruit.

Oliveiro says it's a pity that the plant is misunderstood, even though it was reclassified in 2006 as the dewevrei liberica variety. It is a "really good coffee producer". But, without a commodity market and a tiny demand for the species, making the switch is unlikely to happen. If you're willing and able to commit the time and effort needed to cultivate it, the advantages of excelsa beans are obvious. They are generally less caffeine-rich than arabica or canephora, and also have a more dense more soluble Mucilage.