Eugenioides is the wild East African highland species that, with Robusta, is one of arabica's two parent species. Low in caffeine.
'Eugenioides' is the trade name for Coffea eugenioides, a wild species of East African highland forests (reported from Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, South Sudan and DR Congo). Arabica arose from natural hybridization between C. eugenioides and C. canephora, estimated at roughly 0.5-1 million years ago. Eugenioides is reported to have about a third of arabica's caffeine, is not grown commercially at scale, and only small pilot plantings exist. Specialty lots are occasional novelties with a sweet, delicate cup with a light to medium body.
Sources · 2 Every sentence here was checked against a source we read. Taste notes are what guides describe, not promises about your bag. Last revised 2026-11-11. Some details here are less settled than others.
- Coffea eugenioides: the story of Arabica's mysterious ancestor · XLIII Coffee
- Coffea arabica · Wikipedia