Topic
Beans, Roasts & Origins
Arabica vs robusta, roast levels, processing methods, coffee varieties, and the regions where coffee grows.
Articles
46 published
Articles in Beans, Roasts & Origins
- 01
Thai Coffee: Doi Chang Arabica and Oliang Explained
Thai coffee's two worlds — the highland arabica specialty regions of Doi Chang and Doi Tung, and the traditional Thai iced coffee culture built on
- 02
Rwandan Coffee: Origin, Profile, and Specialty Revival
A guide to Rwandan coffee — the bourbon varieties grown at altitude in the Virunga and Congo Nile ridge regions
- 03
Philippine Coffee: Kapeng Barako and Liberica
A guide to Philippine coffee — the history of Kapeng Barako (Coffea liberica var. barako), the 1880s leaf rust devastation
- 04
Kissaten: Japan's Historic Coffee Shop Culture
The history of the Japanese kissaten — how it emerged in the Meiji era, reached 170,000 establishments in the 1980s
- 05
Indian Coffee: Monsoon Malabar and Filter Kaapi
A guide to Indian coffee — the growing regions of Karnataka, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh, the unique Monsoon Malabar processing method
- 06
Honey Process Coffee: Yellow, Red, and Black Honey
What honey process coffee is, how it differs from washed and natural processing, the science of mucilage retention, and why yellow, red
- 07
Coffee and Climate Change: What the Science Says
How rising temperatures and shifting rainfall threaten coffee supply — systematic review projections for arabica land loss by 2050, leaf rust, and adaptation.
- 08
The Coffee Plant: Biology, Growth, and Cherry Anatomy
What the coffee plant actually is: Coffea species, anatomy of a cherry, how the plant grows, the lifecycle from seed to harvest, and why altitude matters.
- 09
What Is Specialty Coffee? The 80-Point Standard
What specialty coffee means: the SCA 80-point threshold, how cupping scores work, who sets the standards, and how it differs from commodity coffee.
- 10
Robusta Coffee: Caffeine, Taste, and Uses Explained
What robusta coffee is: the species Coffea canephora — its higher caffeine, lower cost, Vietnam dominance, role in espresso blends and instant coffee
- 11
What Is Peaberry Coffee and Is It Worth the Premium?
What a peaberry is, why it happens, how peaberries are sorted from flat beans, and whether they actually taste better — the evidence reviewed.
- 12
Mexican Coffee: Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Cup Profile
Where Mexican coffee grows, what it tastes like, why Mexico produces so much certified organic coffee, and how to find the best bags.
- 13
Liberica Coffee: The Third Commercial Coffee Species
What liberica coffee is: Coffea liberica, the third commercial coffee species — its origins, distinctive large beans, smoky woody flavour
- 14
Guatemalan Coffee: Regions, Flavour, and What to Look For
What makes Guatemalan coffee distinctive, the difference between Antigua, Huehuetenango, and Cobán, and what to look for when buying coffee from Guatemala.
- 15
What Is Fair Trade Coffee? Certification Explained
What fair trade coffee means: the certification standards, floor prices, how Fairtrade International and Fair Trade USA differ
- 16
Costa Rica Coffee: Tarrazú, Varieties, and Distinction
What makes Costa Rican coffee distinctive, why the country banned robusta, what Tarrazú coffee is, and the flavour profile you should expect.
- 17
Arabica Coffee Varieties: Typica, Bourbon, and Geisha
What coffee varieties are, how Typica and Bourbon became the ancestors of almost all arabica, and what Geisha, SL28, Pacamara
- 18
Coffee Roasting Chemistry: Maillard Reaction and Flavour
What happens chemically when coffee is roasted — Maillard browning, Strecker degradation, caramelisation, chlorogenic acid breakdown
- 19
Coffee Fermentation: Microbes, Processing, and Flavour
How microbial fermentation during coffee processing works — which bacteria and yeasts are involved, what metabolites they produce
- 20
Third Wave Coffee: The Specialty Coffee Movement
What third wave coffee means: coffee as artisanal craft, origin traceability, light roasting, and direct trade — the movement's history and what defines it.
- 21
Kopi Luwak: The Controversial Civet-Processed Coffee
What kopi luwak actually is: coffee cherries passed through Asian palm civets — the digestive processing claim, wild vs caged reality
- 22
Kona Coffee: Hawaii's Famous Volcanic-Grown Beans
What Kona coffee is: coffee from the western slopes of Hawaii's Big Island — the only US coffee at scale, the Kona Belt, 100% Kona vs Blends
- 23
Kenyan Coffee: AA Grade and Bright Acidity Explained
What Kenyan coffee is: high-altitude arabica from Nyeri and Kirinyaga, the SL28 and SL34 varieties, why the AA grade matters, and what to expect in the cup.
- 24
Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee: Why It Costs So Much
What Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is: arabica from a specific mountain zone, protected designation, the $50-a-pound price, and whether it delivers.
- 25
Black Ivory Coffee: The Elephant-Processed Cup
What Black Ivory Coffee is: Thai arabica processed through elephants — the ~$2,500/lb price, the Golden Triangle Elephant Foundation origin
- 26
Yemen, the Port of Mocha, and Coffee's Commercial Birth
Yemen's role in coffee history: how the port of Mocha turned coffee into a commercial beverage, held a 250-year monopoly
- 27
Where Did Coffee Originate? Ethiopia, Yemen, History
Coffee's origin story: the Ethiopian highlands, the Kaldi legend, when arabica was first cultivated in Yemen, and how coffee spread to the Ottoman Empire.
- 28
What Is Single-Origin Coffee? Why Origin Matters
Single-origin coffee explained: what the term actually means, how single origin differs from single farm and single lot
- 29
What Is a Coffee Blend? How Roasters Mix Beans
Coffee blends explained: what blending achieves, how espresso and drip blends are formulated, and why 'blend' isn't a downgrade from single origin.
- 30
Top Coffee-Producing Countries in the World
The world's largest coffee producers ranked by volume: Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, Indonesia, Ethiopia, and others
- 31
Sumatra Coffee: Wet-Hulled Beans and Earthy Depth
Sumatra coffee explained: Mandheling, Aceh, Gayo, the wet-hulled (giling basah) processing method, and why Sumatran coffee has such a distinctively heavy
- 32
Panama Geisha Coffee: The Premium Bean Explained
Panama Geisha explained: the Ethiopian-origin variety, the Hacienda La Esmeralda discovery, record auction prices
- 33
Light vs Medium vs Dark Roast: Flavour, Caffeine, Facts
The three roast levels compared: what actually changes during roasting, how the flavour, caffeine, and chemistry differ
- 34
The History of Coffee: From Ethiopia to the Modern Cup
Coffee's history in six centuries: Ethiopian origin, Yemeni cultivation, Ottoman coffee houses, European expansion, colonial plantations
- 35
The History of Coffee Houses: From Mecca to London
From 16th-century Istanbul to 17th-century Oxford and beyond: how coffee houses became the world's first modern social institutions built around a
- 36
Fika: The Swedish Coffee Culture
What fika actually is: the Swedish social ritual of coffee, pastry, and pause — how it works, why it matters in Swedish life
- 37
Ethiopian Coffee: Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, and Harrar
Ethiopian coffee explained: Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Guji, Harrar, the heirloom varieties, natural vs washed processing
- 38
The Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony: Jebena, Ritual, and Culture
The Ethiopian coffee ceremony (bunna): the ritual, the three rounds, and why coffee's genetic homeland treats coffee as a ceremony rather than a beverage.
- 39
Colombian Coffee: Altitude, Acidity, and Variety
Colombian coffee: the Coffee Axis, Huila and Nariño specialty leadership, Supremo and Excelso grading, and why altitude shapes every cup.
- 40
The Coffee Roasting Process: From Green Bean to Brown
How coffee gets roasted: green beans to brown through Maillard browning, caramelisation, and pyrolysis — what each stage does to flavour and aroma.
- 41
Coffee Processing Methods Explained
The four main coffee processing methods — washed, natural, honey, and experimental anaerobic — what each does to flavour, body, and acidity.
- 42
Coffee Origins Around the World
A tour of coffee's major growing regions — Africa, Latin America, Asia — and how origin shapes flavour, chemistry, and what to look for on the bag.
- 43
Carbonic Maceration Coffee: Wine-Inspired Processing
How carbonic maceration coffee works: the wine-inspired CO2 fermentation method that produces distinctive fruit-forward specialty coffee
- 44
Brazilian Coffee: The World's Largest Producer
Brazilian coffee explained: the world's largest producer, the pulped-natural process invention, Cerrado and Minas Gerais regions
- 45
Arabica vs Robusta: Taste, Caffeine, and Differences
The two commercial coffee species, plain: how arabica and robusta differ in caffeine, chemistry, flavour, growing requirements
- 46
Arabica Coffee: The World's Leading Coffee Species
What arabica coffee is: the species Coffea arabica that dominates specialty coffee, where it grows, why it tastes different from robusta, and its varieties.