The Typica Coffee Variety: The Original Arabica Cultivar
Summary
Typica is one of the most culturally and genetically important varieties of Arabica coffee. It is a tall plant with bronze-tipped young leaves, low yields, high susceptibility to coffee leaf rust, and good cup quality. Its story runs from Yemen to India, then to Java, Amsterdam and Paris, and from there across the Americas in the eighteenth century. Until the 1940s most coffee plantations in South and Central America were planted with Typica. Today it has largely been replaced, but it is still widely grown in Peru, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, where it is called Jamaica Blue Mountain.
Origins and Spread
Like all Arabica coffee, the Typica group is thought to have originated in southwestern Ethiopia. It was taken to Yemen in the fifteenth or sixteenth century, and by 1700 seeds from Yemen were being cultivated in India. For the earlier history, see Yemen and the Port of Mocha.
In 1696 and 1699 the Dutch sent coffee seeds from the Malabar coast of India to Java. According to World Coffee Research, these few seeds gave rise to the distinct Typica variety. So Java's coffee came from India, not directly from Yemen. See also The Dutch Coffee Empire.
In 1706 a single Typica plant was taken from Java to the botanical garden in Amsterdam, and in 1714 a plant was shared with France. From there Typica followed two routes into the Americas:
- From the Netherlands: to Dutch Guiana (now Suriname) in 1719, to Cayenne in French Guiana in 1722, and to northern Brazil in 1727. It reached southern Brazil between 1760 and 1770.
- From Paris: to Martinique in the West Indies in 1723. The English took it from Martinique to Jamaica in 1730. It reached Santo Domingo in 1735, and Cuba received seeds from Santo Domingo in 1748.
Costa Rica received seeds from Cuba in 1779. For El Salvador, World Coffee Research gives two dates: seeds from Cuba in 1840, and cultivation there as early as 1740.
Typica and Bourbon
Typica and Bourbon are two separate lineages, both descended from coffee taken out of Yemen. Bourbon comes from coffee the French brought from Yemen to the island of Bourbon (now Réunion) in 1708, 1715 and 1718. It reached the Americas only in 1860, in southern Brazil.
Together, the Bourbon and Typica groups form the basis of most of the world's Arabica production. In Brazil, World Coffee Research reports that 97.55 percent of cultivated coffee varieties derive from them. DNA fingerprinting shows that the old Indian varieties Coorg and Kent are related to the Bourbon-descended varieties.
Watch: Bourbon Coffee: Origins, Varieties & Flavour Profiles Explained — Charcoal Coffee
The Plant
World Coffee Research's variety catalogue describes Typica as follows:
- Stature: tall
- Young leaf tips: bronze
- Bean size: large
- Yield potential: low
- Cup quality potential at high altitude: very good
- First fruit: in the fourth year
- Ripening: average
- Planting density: 3,000 to 4,000 plants per hectare with single-stem pruning
The catalogue adds that Typica is well adapted to the coldest growing conditions.
Disease
Typica is susceptible to the major coffee diseases. World Coffee Research rates it as having very high susceptibility to coffee leaf rust, caused by the fungus Hemileia vastatrix. It is also susceptible to root-attacking nematodes and to coffee berry disease, a fungal disease of the fruit that is not present in Central America. Its low yields and disease susceptibility explain why it has been replaced across much of the Americas.
A coffee farmer inspects his crop in Colombia's southwestern Cauca department. Photo: CIAT / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Other Names
Typica is also known as Criollo (Creole), Indio (Indian), Arábigo (Arabica), Plume Hidalgo, Blue Mountain and Sumatra.
Typica and Puerto Rico
Coffee was introduced to Puerto Rico in 1736, according to research at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. World Coffee Research places the spread of Typica cultivation to the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico, in the late eighteenth century. This encyclopedia did not find a source naming the variety first planted in 1736. Since the 1980s, Puerto Rico has also grown rust-resistant varieties such as Limaní and Frontón; see Puerto Rico Coffee Renaissance (1950-Present).
Key Facts
- Group: Bourbon-Typica group of Arabica (Typica-related)
- Route: Yemen → India → Java (1696, 1699) → Amsterdam (1706) → Paris (1714)
- Into the Americas: Suriname 1719, French Guiana 1722, Brazil 1727; Martinique 1723, Jamaica 1730
- Plant: tall, bronze leaf tips, large beans, low yield
- Disease: very highly susceptible to coffee leaf rust
- Still widely grown in: Peru, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica (as Jamaica Blue Mountain)
- Coffee in Puerto Rico: introduced 1736; variety of the first planting not documented
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is Typica the parent of Bourbon? No. Typica and Bourbon are separate lineages, both descended from coffee taken out of Yemen. Together they form the basis of most of the world's Arabica production.
Q: How did Typica reach the Americas? Through two routes: from the Netherlands to Suriname (1719), French Guiana (1722) and Brazil (1727), and from Paris to Martinique (1723).
Q: Why is Typica less common today? It yields little and is very susceptible to coffee leaf rust and other diseases, so higher-yielding and more resistant varieties have replaced it in much of the Americas.
Q: Is Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee Typica? World Coffee Research reports that Typica is still widely planted in Jamaica, where it is called Jamaica Blue Mountain.
Q: Was Typica the first coffee planted in Puerto Rico? Coffee was introduced to Puerto Rico in 1736, but this encyclopedia did not find a source naming the variety first planted.
Sources
- World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue, "Typica". Supports: the summary description; the stature, leaf, bean, yield, quality, first-fruit, ripening and planting-density ratings; disease susceptibility; the other names; the history from Ethiopia and Yemen through India, Java, Amsterdam and Paris; the routes and dates in the Americas, including both dates for El Salvador; the decline and the countries where Typica is still widely planted.
- World Coffee Research, "History of Arabica". Supports: the Bourbon lineage and the French introductions of 1708, 1715 and 1718; Bourbon's arrival in the Americas in 1860; the Bourbon-Typica group as the basis of most Arabica production; the Brazilian figure of 97.55 percent; Coorg and Kent as Bourbon-related.
- Badillo-Chico, Paola N., Evaluation of genetic diversity and resistance genes of two rust-resistant coffee varieties, Limani and Fronton, M.S. thesis, University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, 2021. Supports: the introduction of coffee to Puerto Rico in 1736.
Claims this encyclopedia could not source
The following statements appear in published material about Typica. This encyclopedia could not trace them to a reliable source:
- That Typica produces 20 to 30 percent less coffee per tree than Bourbon.
- That unpruned Typica trees reach 4 to 5 metres in height.
- That Typica coffee characteristically tastes of caramel, honey, almond, hazelnut or chocolate.
- That Typica was the variety first brought to Puerto Rico in 1736, and that it was the island's dominant variety for more than 250 years.
- That Typica beans can reliably be identified by their long, slender shape.
- That Jamaica Blue Mountain and Hawaiian Kona coffee are legally required to be Typica.
- That a single plant carried to Martinique in 1723 seeded the entire coffee industry of the Americas.
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