Blue Bottle Coffee is known for its rare specialty coffee launches—and now they’re back with another exciting drop that explores the future of coffee species diversity. The coffee roaster just dropped an exceedingly rare Vietnam Quang Tri 96B Excelsa natural bean, followed by another exciting bean launching September 1st. On September 1st, “Beyond Arabica” will launch, a blend of Indian Excelsa and Vietnamese Robusta. Excelsa represents less than 1% of global coffee production and offers a distinctive flavor profile that remains largely unexplored by U.S. consumers.
With its dramatic mountain ranges, lush canopies, and mineral-rich soils, Vietnam offers ideal conditions for coffee cultivation. Though it’s traditionally known for commodity-grade Robusta, a new generation of dedicated farmers is shifting the narrative, applying meticulous craft and passionate stewardship to share unique, specialty-grade coffees with the world.
Two new fall Blue Bottle Coffee bean launches
If you’ve been looking to try some new coffee flavors for the fall, these two limited fall releases are a great time to do so. Beyond Arabica, priced at $32 per package, features a blend crafted entirely without Arabica, pairing Excelsa from South India Coffee Company (fruity sweetness) with Robusta from Great Cherry in Vietnam (full body, bittersweet depth). In this blend, you’ll find tasting notes of sweet tobacco, sarsaparilla, and dark rum. Blue Bottle Coffee offers this blend as both whole bean and espresso/cappuccino in cafes and online.
The Exceedingly Rare Vietnam Quang Tri 96B Excelsa Natural blend is priced at $45 per bag. This rare single-origin Excelsa (light roast) is from producer 96B in Vietnam’s Quang Tri region and undergoes 120-hour anaerobic fermentation and a 30-day slow-drying process. Tasting notes on this blend include notes of lychee, papaya, and stevia. Available now, you can get your hands on this blend served as pour-over at select cafes for a limited-time four-week span, as well as a highly limited whole bean online only. Blue Bottle Coffee has previously explored Excelsa and other underrepresented species through Blue Bottle Studio experiences in Japan, Korea, and Hong Kong.
