Coffee Varieties Explained

Types of coffee and their flavor characteristics

In this article we are going to explain the main types of coffee varieties and their flavor profiles. The list of coffee varieties we present here is not exhaustive. It’s a brief introduction to the diversity of coffee beans you can come across; it’s to give you a starting point to further exploration to help you find your favorite coffee blend. 

What are the main coffee species?

4 main coffee species

There are four main coffee species: 

• Arabica
• Robusta (canephora)
• Liberica
• Excelsa

Going further down the coffee plant taxonomy, we will be talking about coffee varieties within these species.

What are the main coffee varieties in the world?

The most popular coffee varieties can be grouped into three categories: Typica, Bourbon and coffee hybrids. Within these classes you will find coffee type names which are often used commercially by coffee sellers and coffee roasters.

Coffee varieties

TYPICA

The Typica coffee variety belongs to the arabica species. The plant has characteristic pointy leaf ends with a curl. Different types of Typica coffee plants include:

• Maragoipe
  This Typica coffee type grew as a giant mutant with larger leafs and fruits as well as larger seeds inside the fruits. The taste is pretty much the same as typica, only the size is different.
• Jamaica Blue Mountain
• San Bernardo
• San Ramon
• Pluma Hidalgo
• Garundang (also called Bergundal)
• Kents
• Chickumalgur
• Kona

BOURBON

This is a type of coffee plant that emerged from Typica. It naturally mutated into  a new variety of coffee. Bourbon plants are more bushy and are valued due to their high productivity, the plant also characterizes with new shoots of bright green color. The bourbon coffee beans are sweet and rich in taste. 

Within the Bourbon variety you can find the following kinds of coffee beans:

• Caturra – it’s a version of Bourbon which grows in Latin America. What’s unique about it, are shorter distances between the nodes, which makes it even more productive. It’s one of the most popular coffee varieties cultivated nowadays due to its high yields.
• Chocola
• Tehisic
• French Mission
• Yellow Bourbon
• Orange Bourbon
• Pacas

COFFEE HYBRIDS 

Natural coffee hybrids

First, let’s look into the coffee hybrids which (probably) appeared naturally, they include: 

• Timor Hybrid
  It’s a hybrid of canephora and robusta, which appeared in the 1940s in the Indonesian island of Timor. This coffee variety is disease resistant, but generally speaking it’s of lower quality and not so tasty. 

• Catimor
  It’s a hybrid of Caturra and Timor. The plants are also disease resistant, high yielding, but not great in taste. 

Engineered coffee hybrids

Coffee growers started mixing different coffee varieties to obtain higher yielding, disease resistant plants as well as great coffee flavors. Here are some crossed coffee varieties examples:

• Mundo Nuovo – a hybrid of Typica and Bourbon grown in Brazil
• Catuai – Mundo Nuovo and Caturra, grown in Latin America
• SL-28 – a cross between Sudan Rimi and Taganyika Drought Resistant, grown in East Africa, valued for its unique blackcurrant flavor
• Pacamora – grown from Maragojipe and Pacas Bourbon

New hybrids

In the 1950s scientists began to modify plant varieties, including coffee, in the lab. Their intention was to improve agricultural efficiency. These are examples of lab-created new coffee hybrids:

• Colombia
• Castillo
• Ateng
• Icatu
• Ruiru II
• IHCAFE90

How do different coffee varieties taste?

As you can expect, the different varieties of coffee taste differently. Here are our brief descriptions of some of them to help you find the coffee beans you will enjoy. The list is far from complete, our intention is to encourage you to seek information about coffee types and origins, perhaps find something new or find the best types for your home coffee brewing. 

A list of coffee types and their characteristics

• Geisha
  Citrusy and floral notes
• Bourbon
  Sweet and citrusy, grown in El Salvador
• French Mission Bourbon
  Rich chocolaty flavor with fruity notes
• Silicho
  An Ethiopian coffee variety with notes of flowers, honey and citrus fruits
• Typica
  A classic coffee taste, this type is grown in Honduras
• Typica Kona
  This is also a classic type of coffee bean
• Mocha
  It belongs to the Typica variety, has an interesting mix of sweet, savory and lime
• Bergundal
  An Indonesian-grown Typica variety, characterized by classic flavors with nutty notes
• Maragojipe
  Mostly grown in Brazil, a classic Typica variety with spicy and savory characteristics

Flavors of hybrid coffee varieties

• Pacamara
  Spicy, peppery and sweet coffee grown in El Salvador
• SL-28
  Kenyan classic, deep rich coffee beans with notes of plum, raspberry and blackcurrant
• Castillo
  Tangy, citrusy and sweet characteristics, mostly comes from Colombia
• Catuai
  A classic coffee with interesting crisp and tomato notes, grown in Honduras
• IH90
  Also Honduran coffee variety characterized by fruity, zesty and citrusy notes. 

Coffee cultivar vs coffee variety

What is the difference? 

You may have come across these terms: coffee cultivar and coffee variety. Sometimes they are used interchangeably, so do they mean the same or is there a difference in meaning? 

The term coffee variety refers to a variation of coffee plant. It develops naturally in the environment without human intervention.

The term coffee cultivar is a variation of coffee developed by controlled breeding.