Java Coffee Variety

When someone offers you a cup of Java you typically assume that they are simply offering you coffee. After all Java was one of the early locations where Dutch traders started planting coffee away from West Africa and the Middle East. Thus, years ago Java became synonymous with coffee. However, it turns out there is a Java coffee variety as well. So if you are looking for a different taste and aroma experience with your coffee or are looking for a new variety to plant on your coffee farm, you might just want to check out the Java coffee variety.

Where Does the Java Coffee Variety Come From?

The Java coffee variety was indeed planted on the East Indies island of Java in 1616. The coffee came directly from Yemen. That coffee arrived in Yemen from Ethiopia in the late 1400’s. It has always been assumed that Java is a typica coffee variety. Typica is one of the most popular and prevalent arabica varieties. It produces coffee with excellent taste and aroma but is susceptible to a variety of coffee plant diseases like nematodes and leaf rust.

Although the assumption has always been that typica the corner of the coffee world is where Java belongs, that is not true. Recent genetic examination indicates that Java did indeed come from Ethiopia but is descended from the Abyssinia variety, endemic Ethiopian coffee variety.

Why Is the Origin of the Java Coffee Variety Important?

The typica coffee variety includes lots of great tasting coffees with great aroma. However, as a group, this coffee variety and its sub varieties are rather susceptible to coffee diseases like leaf rust. On the other hand, the Ethiopian Abyssinian coffee group is both great tasting with a great aroma but also more resistant to leaf rust and coffee berry disease. Although Java is not so resistant to nematodes, this is less of an issue in the coffee growing areas of the Americas than it is in Africa where the variety has been grown for years in Cameroon and elsewhere.

Java Coffee Variety

What Are the Arguments for the Java Coffee Variety?

Java was introduced to Costa Rica in 1991 and Panama a few years later. Today you can find the Java variety throughout Colombia and especially in the department of Huila. The selling point for this variety is that it produces a medium yield with less requirement for fertilizers and is more resistant to coffee leaf rust and coffee berry disease than other arabica varieties. These features make this coffee variety a good choice on small coffee farms working on small budgets. It does well at higher altitudes like standard older arabica varieties making it ideal for many mountainous locations across the American section of the coffee belt. It has a lower planting density at 3000 to 4000 plants per hectare with single stem pruning that the 5000 plants per hectare commonly believed to produce the highest total yield.

For small coffee farms looking to produce highest quality coffee at the lowest cost and labor, the Java coffee variety may be an excellent choice. For the coffee drinker looking for an excellent coffee at a reasonable price, the Java coffee variety has been compared to Gesha in quality but at nowhere near the prices commanded by this unique and hard to find variety.

So the next time you order a cup of Java you may want to specify whether you are simply using the generic term for cup of coffee or asking for a unique coffee variety with a rich history.




Leave a Reply