A Brief on Coffee varietals

The flavour and acidity of coffee comes from a multitude of factors after leaving origin, but much of the building blocks are based off of the varietal itself.

Processing and roast obviously have an effect on how a coffee is shown, but I wanted to put this list together for anyone who wanted to know more about a specific varietal, specifically the flavour characteristics that you might expect.

Some would say certain varietals are superior than others, but keep in mind that this is only a loose guide, not a definitive one; caturra from Brazil will be nothing like caturra from Colombia, or anywhere else. And we’re only scratching the surface here, we are still discovering more varietals even today.

Some of the more common ones:

Cuturra — A mutation of Bourbon, and first found in Brasil, it yields high production with great quality. This coffee has a clear & crispy acidity, very supple body, but not too much on the sweet side. It can provide a complex cup, and common to have a very citric flavour profile.

Pacamara — This is actually a cross between Maragogype and Pacas. Generally a larger sized cherry and bean, it’s known to show quite complex flavour on the side of spices, thick body, and great balance with an approachable chocolate base. The body definitely has presence on the tongue, almost creamy or buttery

Bourbon (red) — Along with Typica, are the parents that make up all arabica coffee. It’s seen to be a low producing strain, but still produces 25% more than Typica. The cherries are generally dense and small, known to have very rounded characteristics in the cup showing prominent sweetness and acidity.

Yellow Bourbon — Apparently a random mutation of bourbon that ripens to a yellow, of course. Very similar characteristics as bourbon, but with more prominent acidity and overall brightness.

Orange Bourbon — A natural mutation that shows an orange color at its ripeness. Essentially it shares characteristics from the Yellow and red bourbon, something in between.

Typica — One of the first discovered varietals of Arabica in Ethiopia. Use of it has been dropping based on the fact that it’s not a high producing coffee. Even still it can yield an exceptionally clean cup showing florals, with showy citric acidity closer to lemon. The higher the elevation, the more prominent the acidity.

Pacas — A mutation of bourbon, named after the family who discovered it. Very similar to bourbon but much more present body with less sweetness.

Geisha — Known to be super complex, but needs higher altitudes to show that complexity, which is why much of geisha are sought after in Panama. Common to show very complex and prominent flavours in the cup, show exceptional cleanliness, and you might expect sparkling acidity with heavy exotic fruit sweetness.

Catuai — A very flexible strain in the way that it can be planted densely and still produce high yields. This varietal seems to be almost completely something else depending on its terroir, not as predictable as the others. Generally a straight, sweet cup.

Mundo Novo — A cross of bourbon and typica, it can yield real high harvests, plus solid resistance to disease. Conversely, the cup is known to show very little sweetness, and noticeable bitters.

Maragogype — With abnormally large beans, this varietal is known to show almost muted flavours with delicate and tame acidity. Known to show an almost syrupy body, much of the flavour can show on the backend.

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