you've seen "100% arabica" on a coffee bag a million times. nobody has ever seen a bag brag about robusta. so what's the deal - is robusta the villain? not exactly. here's the whole story.
there are two main coffee species
almost all the coffee on earth is one of two species: coffea arabica (arabica) or coffea canephora (everyone calls it robusta). arabica is about 60% of global production, robusta most of the rest. there are other species (liberica exists!) but they're a rounding error.
arabica: the popular one
arabica grows high up - between 600 and 2,000 meters - and it's kind of a diva. it wants cool temperatures, it's vulnerable to pests and disease, and it produces less coffee per plant. all that fuss is why it costs more.
the payoff is flavor. arabica tends to be smoother, sweeter, and more aromatic, with more complexity. it's the species specialty coffee is built on.
caffeine-wise, arabica beans run about 1.2 to 1.5 percent caffeine by dry weight.
robusta: the underrated workhorse
robusta does what it says on the tin. it grows in the lowlands, shrugs off disease and climate stress, and produces a lot. that makes it cheaper.
the tradeoff: robusta beans pack 2.2 to 2.7 percent caffeine - close to double arabica - plus more chlorogenic acid, which is a big part of why it tastes more bitter and less complex.
but bitter isn't bad for everyone. robusta shows up in a lot of espresso blends (it's a big part of that classic punchy espresso character) and it's the backbone of most instant coffee. if you like a strong, bold, high-octane cup, robusta is doing the heavy lifting.
so which one are you drinking?
if you're drinking specialty coffee - a bag from us, a pourover at a cafe - it's arabica. single origins like our peaceful peru or blends like the blissful blend and espresso for everyone are all about that arabica flavor.
if you're drinking gas station coffee or most instant, there's robusta in your life.
and if you want to taste what arabica does under pressure (literally), our espresso for dummies guide covers what a shot actually is.
the one-line version
arabica = fancier, smoother, less caffeine. robusta = stronger, more bitter, more caffeine, cheaper. neither is a scam. they just do different jobs.
want to taste the difference in person? come by one of our cafes and ask what's in the hopper.