Before jumping straight into the juicy conversation about Arabica and Robusta we need to consider where they are coming from and what they are.
Coffee is represented as a brewed beverage prepared from roasted seeds, commonly called coffee beans. Seeds are found inside of drupes, a type of fruit with a fleshy mesocarp and a hard, stone-like endocarp with a seed inside, commonly called coffee cherries, which are the fruits of the coffee plant that grow in over 70 countries, along the equator line in a preferred tropical climate. Higher quality coffees grows best at high altitudes on nutrient-rich, frequently volcanic, soils.
Coffee is a living thing
Coffee is a living thing, cultivated, observed and enjoyed by mankind. The study of living things is Biology, therefore the study of coffee must include this science.
Biology is the natural science that studies life and living organisms, including their physical structure, chemical processes, molecular interactions, physiological mechanisms, development and evolution.
A division of Biology is Taxonomy which is all about the laws and principles of classifying things.
In biology, taxonomy is the science of naming, defining and classifying groups of biological organisms on the basis of shared characteristics. The principal ranks in modern use are domain, kingdom, phylum class, order, family, genus, and species.
Coffee plant belongs to a coffea genus of ten species of flowering plants of the family Rubiaceae. It is an evergreen shrub or small plant that may grow up to 10 meters tall with horizontal branching pattern.
The two most commonly grown species are Coffea canephora, know as robusta and Coffea Arabica. Less popular species are liberica, excels, stenophyla, Mauritania, racemosa.
Arabica
- Was the first and until 20th century, the only spieces of coffee grown for human consumption.
-Currently it represents 60-65% of the world coffee production.
-Cherries are often oval and bigger than Robusta with a curved middle cut.
-Grows at higher altitudes than Robusta
-It is self pollinating, producing a cluster of small, white, fragrant flowers
-Has 0,8-1,4% of caffeine content
-Chlorogenic acid (CGA) content It’s a significant antioxidant and an insect deterrent. Arabica has 5.5-8% CGA.
-It has sweeter more acidic fruitier and smoother characteristics than Robusta
-Contains a higher number of oils and sugar than Robusta
-The arabica coffee shrub typically grows between 2.5-4.5 meters (8.2-14.7 ft) in height, requires a temperature between 15°-24°C (59-75°F) and an annual rainfall of about 1200-2200 mm/yr.
-In terms of yield, Arabica produces less coffee per hectare than robusta, making the cost of growing arabica much higher.
-It has 44 chromosomes
Robusta
-Currently it represents 35-40% of the world coffee production.
-It is nearly always used as a part of a blend
-Cherries are often smaller and rounder than Arabica with a straight middle cut and develop in large centralized clusters.
-Grows at lower altitude than Arabica
-It depends on cross pollination
-Has 1,7-4% of caffeine content
-Chlorogenic acid (CGA) content It’s a significant antioxidant and an insect deterrent. Robusta is 7-10% CGA.
-It has more bitter, nuttier, more persistent characteristics than Arabica
-Robusta’s high caffeine and CGAs content makes it more resistant to deseases, pess and fungi as the extra caffeine is a chemical defense for the coffee seed as the quantity is toxic to bugs.
-Overral it is easier and cheaper to cultivate
-Tolerates higher temperatures and humidity then Arabica
-Robusta grows slightly taller at 4.5-6.5 meters (8.2-21.3 ft), requires a warmer temperatures of 18°-36°C (64-97°F) and slightly more rainfall (2200-3000 mm/yr) than arabica.
-It has 22 Chromosomes
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“Be curious, not judgemental ”
All the above is based on our personal and professional experience, it is what we believe and what brought us here writing this guide.Onto the way to success there are no rules, just commitment and consistency.Ultimately the is no right and wrong but only different ways of thinking, different approaches and different methods.There is no perfection but only progression.Do not believe who says to know everything. Learning is ongoing and endless.What we believe is right today might be wrong tomorrow, stay always up to date.
Be curious.
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