Bourbon Archives - Cofmos Coffee Roasters

Caturra

LINEAGE Natural mutation of the Bourbon variety GENETIC DESCRIPTION Bourbon-Typica Group (Bourbon-related) HISTORY Caturra is a natural mutation of the Bourbon variety. It was discovered on a plantation in the state of Minas Gerais in Brazil sometime between 1915 and 1918. Caturra has a single-gene mutation that causes the plant to grow smaller (called dwarfism). Its name derives from the Guarani word meaning “small.” It is also called “Nanico.” After Caturra’s discovery, selections were made by the Instituto Agronomico (IAC) of Sao Paulo State in Campinas, Brazil, starting in 1937. Breeders were interested in Caturra’s small size, which allows plants to be placed…

Arabica Varieties

Castillo

Colombia invests far more than many coffee producing countries in scientific coffee research due to the importance of the crop to the country’s economy. Colombia’s National Center for Coffee Investigation (Cenicafe) – operated by the National Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) – is one of the world’s foremost researchers in developing coffee cultivars developed to improve farmers’ well-being while also retaining cup quality. The research centre is responsible for many of the cultivars developed within the country over the last 60 years. At least from the 1950s onward, Caturra was a highly common cultivar across Colombia, introduced because of its productivity…

Arabica Varieties

SL28

LINEAGE Selection of “Tanganika Drought Resistant.” Bourbon-like genetic background. GENETIC DESCRIPTION Bourbon-Typica Group (Bourbon-related) HISTORY SL28 is among the most well-known and well-regarded varieties of Africa. It has consequently spread from Kenya, where it was originally selected in the 1930s, to other parts of Africa (it is important in Arabica-growing regions of Uganda, in particular) and now to Latin America. The variety is suited for medium to high altitudes and shows resistance to drought, but is susceptible to the major diseases of coffee. SL28 is notable for its rusticity—a quality meaning that it can be left untended for years or…

Arabica Varieties

Typica

LINEAGE Also called Criollo (Creole), Indio (Indian), Arábigo (Arabica), Plume Hidalgo, Blue Mountain, and Sumatra. GENETIC DESCRIPTION Bourbon-Typica Group (Typica-related) HISTORY Typica is the most famous of the Typica-descended varieties. It is a tall variety characterized by very low production, susceptibility to the major diseases, and good cup quality. The Typica group, like all Arabica coffee, is supposed to have originated in southwestern Ethiopia. Sometime in the 15th or 16th century, it was taken to Yemen. By 1700, seeds from Yemen were being cultivated in India. In 1696 and 1699, coffee seeds were sent from the Malabar coast of India…

Arabica Varieties

Bourbon

LINEAGE Bourbon-like genetic background. GENETIC DESCRIPTION Bourbon-Typica Group (Bourbon-related) Bourbon is the most famous of the Bourbon-descended varieties. It is a tall variety characterized by relatively low production, susceptibility to the major diseases, and excellent cup quality. French missionaries introduced Bourbon from Yemen to Bourbon Island (now La Réunion)—giving it the name it has today—in the early 1700s. Until the mid-19th century, Bourbon did not leave the island. But beginning in the mid-1800s, the variety spread to new parts of the world as the missionaries moved to establish footholds in Africa and the Americas. The Bourbon variety was introduced to…