Tekisic Coffee: A Little Known Bourbon Variety
Bourbon Arabica variety first appeared in the Americas in 1860 in southern Brazil, from where it spread into Central America. Nowadays, one of its most popular variations is Tekisic coffee, produced in El Salvador. But what makes it so attractive to coffee farmers and lovers?
Keep reading to find out more about Tekisic coffee’s attractiveness, the history and its plant profile. Buckle up for some interesting facts you’ll always remember!
What is Tekisic Coffee?
Tekisic (Salvadoran Bourbon Coffee) is the newest and most popular variation of Bourbon Arabica. Researchers from the Salvadoran Institute for Coffee Research worked hard (30 years!) to create a new selection of coffee seeds. Thanks to them, the first Tekisic beans came into life in 1977 (1).
The name Tekisic comes from tekiti, which is a word in the Nahuatl language that means work.
Tekisic bean has a rich sweetness and a full body. It provides a quality cup of coffee in the highest altitudes. Most of Tekisic is coffee from El Salvador. This is the place where people planted these seeds first. Today, you can also find them in Guatemala and Colombia.
Nowadays, Tekisic is one of the most widespread Salvadorian Bourbon coffees, taking up about 50% of the total area in El Salvador.
History or Tekisic Coffee
The Salvadoran Institute for Coffee Research initiated the “Mass Selection” process in 1949. Firstly, researchers selected seeds from the best-performing Bourbon plants. Then, they bulked the seeds to produce a new generation of coffee seeds. Compared to the unselected Bourbons between 900 and 1500 meters, they had higher production rates and exceptional quality potential. What’s more, these new coffee plants reached their maturity stage faster. Finally, the first Tekisic seeds were released for production in 1977.
El Salvador farms growing Bourbon and Pacamara, in particular, have given us extraordinary coffees in recent decades.
Coffee enthusiasts like traveling the world in search of new beans (and I bet you are one of them). Now that you know the story behind this bean type, it’s time for more lessons about plant characteristics!
Tekisic Plant Characteristics
Tekisic is a tall plant that thrives in high altitudes and ripens early. Its productivity is higher than many other Bourbon selections grown at altitudes between 900 to 1,500 meters above sea level, including a variety of coffee called Semplerflorens.
This coffee plant has a slightly conical shape, abundant laterals, flexible stem, high bearing, and medium leaves. Its fruit is large and red in color. The Tekisic variety faces the same issue as most other Bourbon varieties, for example, the popular SL34 variety. It’s highly susceptible to coffee rust and coffee berry disease.
Tekisic provides excellent drink quality with prevailing citrus and fruit flavors when grown under conditions of straight height. The beans display acidity when lightly roasted. They can also be dark roasted, but this sacrifices many nuances of this flavorful coffee.
Final Thoughts
Tekisic coffee is a product of a careful mass selection of Bourbon varieties over a period of 30 years. It’s a tall plant with green leaves that provides excellent cup quality. A testament to this coffee quality is the fact that it accounts for 70% of total coffee production in El Salvador.
If your local roaster sells Tekisic variety, make sure to give it a try.
FAQ
Arabica coffee is special because it has a smoother, sweeter, and more nuanced flavor compared to other types of coffee. Arabica coffee notes are types of fruit, caramel, nuts, and chocolate. This coffee is low in caffeine and very acidic, which makes it less bitter and easy to drink.
Different types of El Salvadoran coffee are Bourbon, Pacas, Catimor, Catisic, Pacamara, Cuscatleco, and Caturra. Bourbon is the most popular variety, followed by Pacas, and Pacamara. El Salvador has the ideal soil and climate for producing high-quality coffee beans. The country has many highlands and volcanoes, so coffee plants are grown in volcanic soil at high altitudes.
The story of El Salvador coffee began in the 19th century. At that point, the first coffee was harvested for domestic consumption and became a commercial product by the mid-century. The locals quickly realized El Salvador soil is well-suited for growing coffee plants. The government helped farmers, and coffee soon overtook indigo, becoming the country’s primary export crop. Nowadays, El Salvador is getting recognized for producing high-quality Arabica coffee.
References
- INFO, E. S. (2021, November 6). El Salvador Coffee. Understanding Salvadoran Coffee. El Salvador INFO. https://elsalvadorinfo.net/el-salvador-coffee/
