| Specialty coffee is generally defined as a beverage prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant. Specialty coffee roasters, however, often refer to the seeds as either green coffee (un-roasted seeds) or fresh roasted coffee (roasted seeds). Specialty coffee appears to have been consumed in the highlands of Ethiopia as early as the 9th century. By the 15th century fresh roasted coffee had reached Yemen, Egypt, Persia, Turkey and Africa. From the Muslim world, specialty coffee spread to Italy, the rest of Europe, and to the Americas.
The most commonly cultivated species are Coffea canephora (Coffea robusta) and Coffea arabica. The plants and seeds of the two species differ from one another. Arabica plants are cultivated at higher altitudes and require much more care and attention. Robusta plants are hardier and more resistant to climate and weather variations, diseases and heat. Arabica coffees generally produce a milder, more aromatic, and complex cup. Robustas tend to produce a rougher cup with a greater tendency toward bitterness, higher caffeine level, woodiness and perhaps 'off' flavors.
Botanical differences between the two include the observation that the arabica species has 44 chromosomes, the robusta species only 22. Arabicas develop into flatter, longer seeds with a deep green color (sometimes a bluish-green) with a long, somewhat curved furrow on the flat surface of each seed. Robustas develop into rounder, more convex, pale green seeds with tinges of gray or brown and a straight furrow on one side.
Arabicas cost more to cultivate; that and their usually higher quality coffee beans make them more expensive than the typical robusta, which explains why robustas are used in many blends. Specialty coffee is cultivated in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Fruits are picked when ripe and are then processed and dried. The coffee beans are roasted at temperatures around 400°F (200°C) during which numerous chemical changes occur - including the caramelizing of complex sugars which tends - in large part - to give each fresh roasted coffee bean its various cup characteristics.
In the roaster, the coffee beans change color from greenish or bluish green to yellowish pea green to cinnamon brown to brown to dark brown and finally to black if temperatures are allowed to rise that high. Flavors develop during these changes and are partly related to the level of roast, i.e., light, medium, or dark brown color. Fresh roasted coffee beans are then ground and brewed in various ways to produce the beverage coffee. |
