Coffee: A Timeless Beverage with Rich History and Evolving Craftsmanship

The use of coffee as a refreshing beverage dates back at least 700 years, though the first coffee houses did not appear in London and Paris until around 1650. These establishments quickly became popular social hubs. Coffee’s use as a food and medicinal stimulant is ancient and shrouded in mystery, highlighting its long-standing cultural significance.

The practice of roasting coffee beans to enhance their aroma and flavor began in the 13th century. This process remains critical today, with experts meticulously perfecting roasting techniques to achieve the desired aromatic profile. The quality and flavor of coffee largely depend on this process, which has evolved into both a science and an art.

Coffee is derived from a large evergreen shrub, with Coffea arabica, L. and Coffea robusta, L. being the most commercially significant species. These species offer a wide variety of flavors and qualities. C. arabica is particularly prized for its smoother, more complex flavor, while C. robusta is known for its stronger, more bitter taste and higher caffeine content.

Other species of coffee exist but are less important commercially due to their less desirable flavors, often perceived as coarser and more bitter than C. arabica. Despite their historical and cultural importance, these lesser-known species have not gained the same level of acceptance in the global market.

Today, coffee remains a beloved beverage worldwide, with ongoing innovations in cultivation, roasting, and brewing continuing to enhance its appeal.
Coffee: A Timeless Beverage with Rich History and Evolving Craftsmanship

Coffea charrieriana

The genus Coffea, a member of the Rubiaceae family, Ixoroideae subfamily, tribe of Coffea DC, comprises around 104 species.

In Africa, Coffea species are distributed in a diversity of forest types, but primarily found in humid, evergreen forest. The first African wild coffee reported as caffeine-free (namely Coffea pseudozanguebariae) was from Kenya, East Africa.

Later, a new species from Cameroon called Coffea charrieriana was also found to be caffeine free.

The plant is named for Professor André Charrier, who managed coffee breeding research during the last 30 years of the 20th century.
Coffea charrieriana

Coffee Plant and World Production

Coffee Plant and World Production
The coffee plant belongs to the genus Coffea in the Rubiaceae botanical family. Although there are numerous species, only two of them are used for cultivation world wide: Coffea arabica L. and Coffea canephora. Coffea robusta is a variety of Coffea canephora. Coffea excelsa, cultivated in Central Africa, is one of the numerous varieties of Coffea dewevrei; its total production is much smaller than that of the previous cited species.

The height of adult coffee trees ranges form one foot to fifty feet, depending on the species. There are numerous varieties of coffea arabica, which originated in Ethiopia. This coffea grows at altitudes between 3250-6500 feet in Latin America, Reunion Island and Indonesia; this species represents 75% of coffea production world wide. Coffea canephora, second in production, is mainly grown in Africa and Indonesia. The most common variety is robusta (95% of plantation of Coffea canephora). It is cultivated in Africa, in Far East, South Sea Islands and in Brazil in regions where arabica cannot be grown because of climatic condition.

The trunk of the coffee is straight and smooth, its branches hang low and slope downwards, the leaves are green, elongated and non-deciduous. White blossoms (fragrant star shaped flowers that last only a few days) along with green, yellowing or red fruit coexist on the same branch. The fruit looks like cherries; its contains two seeds that will become coffee beans, Arabica coffee beans are oval and long with a subtle taste and fruit-like aroma while robusta beans are smaller, round, irregular, and have a stringer taste.

The word ‘drupe’ is the technical term used to designate the fruit. It matures in six to fourteen month, depending on the variety; the fruit is covered by a very tough skin-like, smooth red film called the ‘epicarp’. It covers the ‘mesocarp’ which contains mostly water (70 to 85%) and has a high concentration of sugar and pectin. The ‘mesocarp’ represents 40 to 65% of the fruit’s weight, depending on the variety, The bean is formed of a horn-like albumen (endosperm) made up of starch, lipids, reducing sugars, sucrose, tannins, caffeine, etc, and 20% water. Two envelopes cover the endosperm, one is internal: the ‘spermoderm’ or ‘silverskin’; the other external, the ‘endocarp’ or parchment.
Coffee Plant and World Production

Arabica Coffee Beans

Arabica Coffee Beans
There are about 20 major species within coffee, but the typical coffee beverage is likely to be familiar with just two: Coffea Arabica and Coffea Robusta. Arabica is autogamous. That is to say, capable of fertilizing itself, whereas Robusta us allogamous.

Arabica coffee beans or coffea Arabica species originated from Yemen and Ethiopia during pre-historic times. Also known as mountain Coffea Arabica, Coffea Arabica is now grown throughout Latin America, Central and East Africa, India and in some parts of Indonesia. The plant can only be grown in a tropical or subtropical climate.

Arabica coffee bean is considered better than any other coffee in the world and to be highest quality among. It is believed that coffea Arabica is the first species of coffee to be cultivated. The plant produces a small, bean sized fruit that ripens from a green color to a dark coffee bean. Coffea Arabica has a wide tasting range that will depend on its varieties. Coffea Arabica can have a sweet-soft taste and it can also have a sharp-tangy taste. Generally, pure Arabica blends are the best tasting coffee, a fact that is reflected in its higher price.

Coffea Arabica contains less caffeine than any other commercially cultivated. Coffea Arabica represents approximately 75 – 80% of the world’s coffee production. The plant is an evergreen, typically large bush with dark green that can reach height up to 20 feet.

Today, Americans are rediscovering the glories of coffee due to the rising popularity of coffee shops. Now coffee is not as simple as it was in the past. The rise of shops like Starbucks has created a whole new experience around the humble cup of coffee.
Arabica Coffee Beans