Robusta
What is robusta in coffee?
Robusta is the common name for Coffea canephora, one of the two coffee species grown for most of the world's coffee; the other is arabica. Robusta usually has more caffeine and tastes bolder, more bitter and less acidic. Vietnam grows more of it than anywhere else, and it's the traditional bean for phin coffee.
Most specialty coffee is arabica, but robusta is the backbone of Vietnamese coffee. In 2026, the US Department of Agriculture forecast that around 31.4 million of Vietnam’s 32.5 million bags of coffee for 2026/27 would be robusta. It’s often roasted dark, which suits the strong, sweet coffee made in a Vietnamese phin.