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Tue 25 Jan, 2011 02:35 pm
OK, i did a little quick research to see if had got this right--basically, i had, but it's good to confirm the details.
Coffea arabica comes from Yemen originally, and for a thousand years was cultivated in the Arabian peninsula (hence the name), Somalia and the Sudan. It is more difficult to cultivate and produces smaller beans than the other species (see below), and has a much lower amount of caffeine. It does better in semi-arid, moutainous regions, although it can be adapted to wet mountain climates. Coffee snobs prefer it. (Usually, i'm a coffee snob.)
Coffea robusta, from East Africa, likes a far greater range of environments, requires less labor for cultivation, and produces larger beans with two times as much caffeine as arabica. It is used in blends with arabica to reduce the cost, in inexpensive commerical blends, and is preferred for espresso because of the more forthy nature of the brew produced in a standard espresso machine.
Are you a coffee species snob?
@Setanta,
I enjoy strong coffee, but I am not very discriminating. Fresh or reheated coffee is all the same to me. A lot of time in the Navy left me (1) largely immune to the effects of caffeine and (2) indifferent to the various blends.
Dunno if I'm a snob, but my favorite (Dunkin Dark) says its "100% Arabica".
@georgeob1,
Hot, black and strong, huh?
@George,
I did some research on this back in the day (pre-interweb), and had read that the genus name was
Cafica, and that
robusta derived from
arabica. My quick online research did not confirm that. However, back in the day, what i read lead me to experiment, and that made me somewhat of a coffee snob.
I didn't know about
robusta and espresso, but it makes sense. That stuff is like rocket fuel.
@Setanta,
Well I should confess that I use whole beans and a grinder, and that I can tell the difference between Colombia and Sumatra beans (Don't know the Arabica/Robusto mix here.) However, I happily consume lots of both whether fresh or reheated.
@Setanta,
I remember that most espresso pours - in italy anyway - are made with robusta beans, or at least they used to be. I suppose their lattes and cappuccinos are too. They always tasted good to me, better than most in the US. I probably put that down to my crazy love of the place, but it might be due to the different beans.
That would make me a reverse snob..
(wonder where I could get robusta beans here to test this out).
I believe the perceived "strength" of coffee depends on both the variety of the beans and how they are roasted - with expresso distinct mostly by virtue of roasting either longer or at higher temperatures.
In Brazil they use only moderately roasted beans (brown in color) but make it super strong, almost syrupy, and drink it with lots of sugar. I don't know the details of blends & roasting technique, but I always particularly like the coffee one gets in Mexico.
I'm not picky at all but I do love a good Kona when I can afford it.
I do like my coffee fresh and foamy though, so I splurged on a Senseo coffee maker.
I had a friend whose family owned a coffee plantation in South America (I can't remember where just now). They sold beans to most of the major roasters/maker but kept one small plot of land aside where they grew coffee for just the family. She always traveled with a bag of that coffee and would ask restaurants to brew some for her. She wouldn't drink anything else. It was sublime.
@ossobuco,
French and Italian coffee usually is only Robusta.
I like the French kind of roasting better.
(Snobs drink
Coffea Stenophylla ... I prefer real tea instead
)
Well, here's a website that shows me wrong about what the french and italian blends are made with, and is very adamant about the poorer flavor of robustas..
http://kaffee.netfirms.com/Coffee/robustavsarabica.html
I also found some sites that sell coffees made with robusta, so maybe I'll experiment.
Like boomer, I also have an coffee maker (Saeco) which grinds and pours
a fresh cup of coffee every time. I buy Lavazza coffee beans, I guess they're
grown in the northern part of Italy.
I also like a cup of strong coffee - with cream, no sugar!
@ossobuco,
France imports more than 35% of the world's Robusta production.
I like an Arabica bean coffee, but I know the "Breakfast Blend" I get is probably from several different plantations and then mixed at the roasters. No matter. It's strong and flavorful. I hate weak coffee. Don't want to see through it.
There is a difference in a single plantation coffee bean, but they tend to be more expensive. Green Mountain used to be a single plantation, but now it's a regional thing.
Water matters, too.
All I know is that if I don't get my coffee in the morning, look out.
@Setanta,
Setanta wrote:
Hot, black and strong, huh?
cold and bitter, like my men.
Well, I checked the packages. The stuff I use, both Sumatra and Colombia is Arabica. Perhaps I'm a closet coffee snob,
I'm picky. I love single-sourced and rare coffees, especially African (Ethiopia/Kenya) and South American.
Never used to give a **** until I started drinking the good stuff. Now it's hard for me to go back. Damn. Costs a lot more too. But, I spend less on sugar and cream, as I put less and less in the more I get into coffee.
Cycloptichorn
@Cycloptichorn,
Cycloptichorn wrote:
I'm picky. I love single-sourced and rare coffees, especially African (Ethiopia/Kenya) and South American.
Ethiopian/Kenyan coffee will be Arabica, while South American could be Robusta as well.
@Walter Hinteler,
Walter Hinteler wrote:
Cycloptichorn wrote:
I'm picky. I love single-sourced and rare coffees, especially African (Ethiopia/Kenya) and South American.
Ethiopian/Kenyan coffee will be Arabica, while South American could be Robusta as well.
Not the stuff I buy!
I've also been drinking this Jamaica blue mountain stuff which is lighting in a cup.
Cycloptichorn
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