Coffee Beans - Varieties Of Coffee : Arabica and Robusta

While there are many types or varieties of coffee out there in the consumer market, there are really only two main species of coffee plant.

The first, and most traditional, is Arabica, which is considered to be far superior in flavor - the champagne of coffee, if you will. The other variety, Robusta, is higher in caffeine and tastes far bitterer and more acidic, which makes it less than preferable for most domestic use, but on the upside it can be cultivated in areas where Arabica won’t grow. This makes it a cheap substitute for Arabica, which sees several coffee companies add small amounts of Robusta to their product lines as ‘filler’. Finest quality Robusta beans are sometimes used as ingredients in certain espresso blends, but these are somewhat of an acquired taste.

Of course, both Robusta and Arabica have sub-varieties, much the same way as wineries have different blends of wine. Traditional Arabica coffees can be Mocha or Java varieties while, on the more exotic side, there’s a very expensive gourmet variety of Robusta called the Indonesian Kopi Luwak.

What makes this bean so unique is that the beans are gathered from the droppings of the Common Palm Civet, an animal whose digestive processes give the bean a very distinctive flavor.

Most varieties aren’t anywhere near as bizarre as that. In fact, most varieties or Types of coffee plant are categorized on where they were grown, rather than any scientific basis. Just as with wineries, a different geographic location can greatly affect how the plant grows( see Coffees of the world), and how its bean tastes, as can the nutrients that feed into that particular area’s groundwater system and soil.

But as a consumer, all you need to know is this… “coffee taste good.”

If you choose to roast your own coffee, you can normally buy green coffee beans from a local roaster company listed in the Yellow Pages, or from accompany selling beans online. Prices generally come in at about 15% less than you would pay for pre-roasted beans, and if you go through a provider that specializes in green coffee beans, you can pay a lot less. Generally, the price difference between top quality beans and average beans is negligible in small amounts, so you might as well pay for quality.

Store your green coffee beans in a cool, dry, dark place, that allows air to circulate, as leaving them in plastic wrapping for months on end can see them sweat and/or get moldy.

When purchasing, you should know that a price list of standard bean types, such as Colombian or Kenyan, is not the sort of thing you wan to be dealing with. A dealer with such vague descriptions is not so worried about quality for the most part. On the other hand, a list that includes such bean varieties as Colombian Huila San Augustin, or Kenya AA Kathangariri Estate, indicate that the seller cares about his or her product.