The most sought after varietals from a quality standpoint are descended from or hybridized versions of the line of the plant Coffea Arabica. While there are over 3000 known varietals that are growing wild in Yemen and Eastern Africa (including Ethiopia, Sudan, Burundi, and Kenya), the first variety to be grown commercially was called Typica. Typica is well known as a bright, complex, and delicious coffee that can still be found on many coffee farms worldwide.

Some common varietals and their growing regions:

Typica

This is a natural mutation of trees that were originally cultivated in Yemen. Typica’s spread around the world is predominantly due to the Dutch cultivation in Indonesia and later, French colonists planting it in the Caribbean. From there, it quickly spread to Central and South America. Typica is a lower yielding plant and it’s also susceptible to leaf rust, so farmers typically plant it alongside other higher producing varietals. The cherry has a pronounced conical shape and its hallmarks are sweetness, clarity and high acidity.

Bourbon

Bourbon gets its name from the island of Bourbon off the coast of Madagascar, which is now called Reunion Island. It was there that Typica trees naturally mutated into the lighter, sweeter Bourbon varietal. The French, who owned the island, took it to other parts of the world, most famously the island of Martinique in the Caribbean. The Bourbon cherry is short and round, and usually a dense cherry and seed. Bourbon is sweet, with a pronounced but more round acidity. The tree produces 20%-30% more than Typica, but is still seen as a lower yielding plant, and is also prone to leaf rust. The majority of Bourbon cherries are red, however there are a few other natural mutations of the Bourbon: the orange Bourbon, yellow Bourbon, and the recently discovered Pink Bourbon.

Landrace

Many coffee varietals that have been cultivated year over year on small household farms in Ethiopia and other East African countries are known as Landrace (or sometimes referred to incorrectly as Heirloom varieties). Most of these have been categorized and named, while others have only been given a reference number. Nevertheless, these coffees have been cultivated over decades and even centuries and are famed for their truly incredible flavor profiles.

Caturra

Caturra is a natural mutation of the Bourbon varietal that was discovered in Brazil. It is more commonly found in Central America and thrives in that part of the world. The tree is a dwarf, making it a lot easier to harvest, and it also yields more than Bourbon. Caturra coffee has less body and sweetness than a Bourbon but a very crisp, clean and high quality acidity. However, if the tree is pruned to produce the same, lesser volume of coffee as the original Bourbon plant, the coffees will taste almost identical.

Maragogype

This tree is best known for producing a really large coffee bean, although the tree produces lower yields. When roasted, the bean is nearly twice the size of most Bourbon and Typica varietals. Maragogype has a distinct savory characteristic which can add body and character to blends.

Mundo Novo

This bean is a natural hybrid between Red Bourbon and Sumatra Typica. It’s a popular varietal due to its high yields, particularly in Brazil where it makes up around 40% of Arabica grown in the country. This tree produces around 30-40% more than Bourbon and has good resistance to disease. This varietal generally lacks sweetness which could be due to the large amount of cherries the tree produces.

Catuai

A cross between Mundo Novo and Caturra, this varietal is more known for its production and less for its flavor. If well tended, it can produce a coffee that has nice sweetness but often lacks acidity or complexity. Catuai is known for its strength – the cherries hold to the tree in high wind and rain areas.

Catimor

A cross between Timor, a natural robusta mutation, and Caturra, Catimor was created in a lab in Portugal. Well known for its resistance to disease and pests, and its ability to grow in many different conditions. It is high yielding and easy to care for, but not well known for its flavor, as it generally has a sharp acidity and is sometimes astringent. This varietal has grown in popularity as the coffee leaf rust has decimated crops world wide.

Castillo

Another lab developed hybrid, resistant to disease and pests, but not well known for its flavor. Another lab coffee and probably a slightly more successful one than Catimor is Castillo. If you follow its origins, it comes from a long line of lab mutations and hybrids, beginning at the Catimor. Cenicafe, Colombia’s National Coffee Research Centre, have been on a hunt for a coffee that is resistant to disease and pests, and grows easily in many conditions. Whilst Castillo hasn’t gained a lot of momentum for flavour, there are a handful of producers in Colombia that have been working on varietal-specific-cultivation and processing and the quality bar on flavour is being lifted continually.

Pacamara

This varietal was created through an initial pedigree experiment in the El Salvador Institute for Coffee Research and later grown privately. It’s a cross between Maragogype and Pacas; a natural mutation of the Bourbon varietal. It looks lot like the Maragogype but the Pacamara is widely considered a more desirable coffee for its floral aromatics, sweetness and high quality acidities.

SL 28 and SL 34

Between 1930 and 1960, Scott Labs (a Dutch laboratory) was contracted to do research on Kenyan coffee and the region. This resulted in several man-made hybrids of high quality, most of which are crosses between Bourbon and Ethiopian landrace varietals. The SL-34 and SL-28 are the most famous of these, and the quality is instantly recognizable in the cup. Together they account for around 90% of exported Kenyan green beans.

Gesha

Easily one of the most highly sought after varietals, Gesha (or Geisha as it is often spelled) is a heirloom Ethiopian Varietal. It was first discovered in Abyssinia and is well known for jasmine and bergamot in aroma, an extreme floral flavor, and distinct stone fruit acidity. The varietal made its way to Central America where it has played a major role in the coffee trade, most famously in the Boquete region of Panama.