Coorg.

At a glance

Kodagu district in Karnataka, where robusta outgrows arabica more than two to one. Coorg Arabica carries a GI tag.¹²

Coffee grows at

750–1,100 m²

Rainfall

1,000–2,500 mm²

Arabica

26,000 ha24,000 t a year²

Robusta

56,000 ha69,000 t a year²

GI tag

Coorg Arabicasince 2019¹

How it grows

• All Indian coffee grows under shade, here under evergreen leguminous trees, in the biodiversity hotspots of the Ghats.²³
• The plantations also give Coorg honey, gathered by tribal people.²

Climate and harvest

Blossom showers² Picking (hatched)⁴

• 1,000–2,500 mm of rain a year.²
• Robusta flowers earlier, after blossom showers in February–March, with backing showers in March–April.²
• Arabica flowers after the blossom showers of March–April (25–40 mm), followed by backing showers in April–May.²
• Arabica is picked from November to January.⁴
• Robusta is picked from December to February.⁴

Processing

[TBC] Not yet sourced for this region.

History

• Commercial coffee plantations in India began in the 18th century.³

Sources

1. Drishti IAS: Five coffee varieties got GI tag (30 Mar 2019)
2. Coffee Board of India: Coffee regions of India
3. Coffee Board of India: Coffees of India
4. StoneX: USDA attaché on India's 2023/24 coffee crop
5. Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (elevation data for the map). Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data, processed by ESA; © DLR e.V. 2010–2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014–2018, provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA.
6. Town positions: Madikeri, Somwarpet, Kushalanagar, Virajpet, Gonikoppal (Wikipedia).