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Names of beans

LacehimLacehim
edited January 1970 in Green Beans
I've only been roasting for just over a year now on and off and I wouldn't mind knowing more about the names of the beans, and what it actually means.

I've guessed that say PNG Wahgi AA is from the country PNG, the region Wahgi and the I assumed the AA is a grade of AA.  Is that correct?

I've seen AA, peaberry, Estate, A, R/X etc etc used after the name of the beans used a lot but I really don't know what it means or what the differences between a Wahgi AA and a peaberry would be.  Is A better than AA or better than a peaberry, or are they all totally different?

Any lovely Crema members care to explain a bit more about them to increase my knowledge for when I next order some green.

Cheers
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Comments

  • RichardMRichardM
    on 1306930028:
    I've only been roasting for just over a year now on and off and I wouldn't mind knowing more about the names of the beans, and what it actually means. I've guessed that say PNG Wahgi AA is from the country PNG, the region Wahgi and the I assumed the AA is a grade of AA.   Is that correct? I've seen AA, peaberry, Estate, A, R/X etc etc used after the name of the beans used a lot but I really don't know what it means or what the differences between a Wahgi AA and a peaberry would be.  Is A better than AA or better than a peaberry, or are they all totally different? Any lovely Crema members care to explain a bit more about them to increase my knowledge for when I next order some green. Cheers
    Ok, so AA is a sizing/grading reference. Estate just is referring to which estate it comes from (like wine estates) Peaberry - A peaberry is a whole round seed, as opposed to the "half seeds" that you normally see A is just another sizing - slightly smaller I believe? AA is supposed to be the largest graded bean, thus the highest quality, followed by A etc. Peaberry's are picked out and sold separately, and supposedly have a more even roasting due to the shape. There are also names like "Monsooned" which means it has been left to dry in monsoon season. Anyone want to correct me on any of that? I'm sure I'll have made some mistakes.
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  • Koffee_KosmoKoffee_Kosmo
    This and all the other terms can be found here I will quote the AA classification
    AA is a coffee grading term that refers to a specific, larger than normal, bean size. Kenya AA coffee beans, for example, pass through Grade 18 (18/64" diameter) sieve perforations, but are too large to pass through Grade 16 (16/64" diameter) sieve perforations. AA+ refers to coffee beans AA or larger. The term AA is used as a coffee quality "grade" due to the general correlation (with many exceptions) between coffee bean size and coffee flavor. 
    See the rest here http://www.coffeeterms.com/coffee-bean-classification-and-grading.htm KK
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  • LacehimLacehim
    Thanks guys.  Never purchased a peaberry before, and I have to admit I pulled a cherry off my little coffee tree and it was a peaberry bean... I just didn't know it was until you guys helped me out.  Only going to get a handful this year though... it's still a tiny little bush. That was a very intresting site KK.  Loads of info on there and I probably have more reading to do. More questions, I've been checking out beangreen... can you tell. What are grade 1, 2, 3, 4 etc. are these different to AA A and the like and what's RFA Cert an abbreviation for?
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  • Koffee_KosmoKoffee_Kosmo
    More questions, I've been checking out beangreen... can you tell. What are grade 1, 2, 3, 4 etc. are these different to AA A and the like and what's RFA Cert an abbreviation for?
    Grade 1: Specialty Grade Coffee Beans: no primary defects, 0-3 full defects, sorted with a maximum of 5% above and 5% below specified screen size or range of screen size, and exhibiting a distinct attribute in one or more of the following areas: taste, acidity, body, or aroma. Also must be free of cup faults and taints. Zero quakers allowed. Moisture content between 9-13%. Grade 2: Premium Grade Coffee Beans: Same as Grade 1 except maximum of 3 quakers. 0-8 full defects. Grade 3: Exchange Grade Coffee Beans: 50% above screen 15 and less than 5% below screen 15. Max of 5 quakers. Must be free from faults. 9-23 full defects. Grade 4: Standard Grade Coffee Beans: 24-86 full defects. Grade 5: Off Grade Coffee Beans: More than 86 full defects. Source http://www.coffeeresearch.org/coffee/grade.htm KK
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  • LacehimLacehim
    Ahhh, totally different to the AA type classification. Do all beans get classified by grade? Also RFA Would be Rainforest Alliance, I worked that out. :)
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  • Koffee_KosmoKoffee_Kosmo
    on 1307013824:
    Ahhh, totally different to the AA type classification. Do all beans get classified by grade? Also RFA Would be Rainforest Alliance, I worked that out. :)
    I believe that green bean producers world wide follow this grading process KK
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  • beanflyingbeanflying
    on 1307014059:
    I believe that green bean producers world wide follow this grading process KK
    Some do and some don't is the problem. Columbians for example come in supremo or excelso for size gradings and have nothing to do with quality like we might roughly translate to supreme or excellent. RFA or FT for example are in no way considered to be a guide to quality either, some are great and some are ordinary. These tags are a marketing and certification process. Might rename this thread the Jargon of Bean names yet  ;)
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  • LacehimLacehim
    Good idea BF I had no idea what to call it.  Took me longer to name the post than to write it!  ;D It does seem like a bit of a mine field, but I'm getting my head around it.  Up till now I've just ordered beans based on what I read and thought I would like to try.  Now that I've tried a few I'm starting to get more interested what differs between each bean. Would there be a big difference between say a PNG Wahgi AA and a peaberry?  Are they like completely different or do they have similar tastes/flavours?
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  • beanflyingbeanflying
    Depends on who you talk to but Peaberry is regarded as a defective bean. They are a really different shape (roundish) compared to the typical flat bean. In the case of a PNG AA (largish bean) the peaberry is physically a lot smaller as well as different to look at. These days peaberry's are seperated in some cases and sold seperately rather than showing up as a defect such as KK mentions above.
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  • askthecoffeeguyaskthecoffeeguy
    on 1307019825:
    Depends on who you talk to but Peaberry is regarded as a defective bean. They are a really different shape (roundish) compared to the typical flat bean. In the case of a PNG AA (largish bean) the peaberry is physically a lot smaller as well as different to look at. These days peaberry's are seperated in some cases and sold seperately rather than showing up as a defect such as KK mentions above.
    Hmm.... Not sure that I agree with the defective tag my understanding and I stand to be corrected is that the Peaberry is an anomaly on the plant - affecting around 3 per cent of all beans - as such many are hand sorted and highly prized when package separately due to their unique character Certainly they roast differently to other beans and from my perspective the Peaberry's round surface means that it has more surface area points of contant to grind upon and thus a different 'grind point' to most other beans offering what I would describe as a fuller, rounded flavour ... Just my 5c worth P
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  • beanflyingbeanflying
    I think the defect tag on Peaberry goes back into History, anomaly seems to be the current word. I do love the PNG Peaberries I have  :)
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