What 100% Arabica Coffee Really Means

As you might already know, my family has always been in the coffee farming business.

Growing up in El Salvador, great coffee wasn’t something I had to think about — it was simply part of life. My dad would bring coffee straight from our farm. I always knew which coffee we were drinking, what variety, which lot, and whether it was a washed, honey, or natural process.

Then I moved to Canada.

On my very first grocery trip (because life without coffee? No thank you), I wandered down the coffee aisle… and froze.

A huge wall of coffee bags stared back at me. No process, no farm name, no variety, no roast date. I didn’t even know whether to choose dark roast or medium roast coffee.

And then I saw "100% Arabica coffee" — printed in bold.

What does that even mean?

I called dad while I was still at the store:

“Dad, I have no idea what to buy. Help!”

He laughed, then gave me a quick crash course:

Roast type? Medium roast, the way we have always enjoyed coffee in El Salvador. I have since learned that roast level is a very personal thing, and many factors come into play.

Freshness? Look for freshly roasted coffee, something I had always taken for granted on the farm, but the store bags had no roast date or process information.

Varieties like Bourbon, Pacamara, Gesha, and Catimor — ones I was familiar with but couldn’t find listed on the bags — are all part of the Arabica coffee family. That’s when I had an aha moment and learned something new, haha. He said, “Find the one that mentions it’s 100% Arabica.”

He continued with the Arabica versus Robusta difference:

So why do brands put 100% Arabica on the label?
Because not all coffee is Arabica, many blends out there include Robusta coffee beans to raise caffeine levels and cut costs, but that changes the flavour. 100% Arabica means you are getting only higher quality, more flavourful coffee.

From our farm in El Salvador to beans we source from Ethiopia, Colombia, Costa Rica, and beyond, we roast only 100% Arabica coffee. Sometimes, single variety micro-lots, sometimes expertly crafted blends, always with the same care my family has given coffee for generations.

I hope you enjoyed this email and have a great coffee-rich weekend,
Adriana

Brew boldly, live fully