16 August, 2023

The cthonic coffee

I drank some robusta coffee for what I think is the first time the other day.

It's one of the two most common types of coffee trees, though less popular than its cousin, arabica. It grows at lower elevations but its taste is less desirable. Or that's what I recall from reading Mark Pendergrast's history of coffee, Uncommon Grounds, anyway.

Arabica beans have a sharper, more sprightly flavor while these robusta beans were much more woody and earthy tasting. I guess robusta has more caffeine too. Is that where the name came from? The java I drank may have actually come from Java. A co-worker was given it from someone who had traveled Southeast Asia and I honestly don't know that I have ever seen robusta here in Madison.

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