The Coffee Belt
There's a unique zone between the tropical lines of Cancer and Capricorn called the coffee belt. Stable temperatures, moderate precipitation and rich soil make the perfect conditions for coffee trees.
Back in the XIV century wild seedlings of coffee were exported from Ethiopia to Arabian Peninsula, and by the end of the XVII century coffee beans had spread as far as Java and Sumatra. Then, the coffee culture entered the New World countries, and took roots in Brazil, Guatemala, Costa-Rica, Jamaica and Cuba. By the beginning of the XIX century the circle closed and our planet got the “coffee belt”, within which all the main coffee plantations are located.
There're around 90 species of the coffee tree in nature, but only some of them are cultivated specifically for coffee. The coffee beans are found inside red, or sometimes yellow, berries, which look like a cherry.
Arabica
Coffea arabica is a species used to produce a type of coffee, called arabica. The plant of Coffee arabica grows to 5-10 meters tall and has long, flexible and spreading branches. It may sound strange, but the origin of Coffea arabica is not from the Arabian Peninsula, but from the South-Western part of Ethiopia. Coffea arabica plants live about 50 years in average and yield 1-2 times a year. Arabica is quite a delicate culture, sensitive to climate changes and diseases. The best arabica grows on steep mountain slopes at the altitudes starting from 1200 meters, because it is too hot at the lower altitudes. Sometimes other cultures (bananas, avocado and cashew) are planted between coffee trees in order to protect them from direct sunlight. The root systems of these trees are generally deeper, which makes it possible to pick up from the depths of the earth useful minerals, which can then get to the coffee trees.
Arabica is the most difficult coffee tree to cultivate, but it produces the best tasting beans. This is why people all around the world choose arabica, despite it being more expensive than other coffee species. About 80% of coffee beans produced in the world annually are arabica.
Robusta
Where arabica may feel uncomfortable, the more adaptive robusta grows. Robusta is also known as Congolese coffee, or Coffea canephora. The word “robusta” itself hints that this coffee species is more robust and less demanding of climate and soil, than arabica. Wild robusta grows in equatorial forests along Congo river. The plants can reach 15 meters tall and have larger leaves. It looks so much different from the arabica, that it was only recognized as coffee species in the XIX century. Robusta beans are smaller than arabica, they have a more circular shape and a straight cut in the middle.
Unfortunately, robusta does not taste as good as arabica. There's more caffeine in robusta, and the taste is more bitter and earthy. Robusta is used for instant coffee and in blends, where it gets mixed with arabica.
Vietnam lately became one of the largest coffee exporters in the world, coming only second in export volume after Brazil, but Vietnam mostly produces robusta. The main arabica exporters are Brazil, Columbia, Indonesia, India, Honduras, Guatemala and Peru.
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Вкуснее кофе я не пробовала
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