Page 18 - Thirst Magazine Issue No. 3 Coffee & Tea
P. 18
offee is an important
cash crop grown in
more than 60 countries,
from South and Central
CAmerica, Asia, to Africa
UNCHARTED Peninsular Malaysia. It is most
with over 11 million hectares of
AN farming area, almost the size of
commonly grown in tropical and
subtropical regions known as the
Coffee Belt. What drives coffee to
become the world’s most traded
commodity behind petroleum is
an explosive mix of caffeine and
flavours.
PRODUCTION
Arabica – “The Mountain Coffee”
– constitutes about 60% of world
coffee production with Brazil at
the top. Robusta represents 39%
with Vietnam leading the world
in production. The remaining 1%
is represented by Liberica. Arabica
and all its varietals are cultivated
for their complex flavour ranging
from healthy acidity, delicate floral
notes to fruity sweetness. Robusta
is less favourable flavour-wise,
however being disease and pest
resistant with high production
yield, it is easier farm.
FAMILY
In the world of exquisite and
refined flavours, coffee is still in
its enigmatic infancy. As shown
in Diagram [1], there are 124
accepted species in the coffee
WORLD OF this extensive family. What is
family. Arabica, Robusta and
Liberica are only a small part of
regarded as “Arabica” in common
in
is
colloquial
marketing
fact an unspecified cornucopia of
Arabica varieties or cultivars, each
with their own unique flavour
COFFEES ASSOCIATION consumers
signatures.
sophisticated
As
pursue more specific and unique
food and beverage experiences,
specialisation occurs. The best
example is the consumption
Varietals’ marketability are often
associated with specific flavour
Story and photos by SK Leng of speciality durians or apples.
characteristics.
FEATURE_UnchartedCoffee.indd 18 20/9/2017 10:00:32 PM
