Vietnam has been one of the most important countries involved in coffee farming since 18th century, and today is the world's second largest producer of coffee (second to Brazil).
The history of coffee throughout Southeast Asia dates back to Dutch and French colonialism in the 18th and 19th centuries. Around 1890 the French established a thriving coffee industry in several locations of the Annam Region a mountainous plateau that extends through several countries.
Vietnam and Southeast Asia have a fascinating topography. The location of the mountainous regions traverse the area in roughly the same direction as the prevailing winds. There are north-facing slopes that are entirely different in climate than south-facing slopes, and wide regions with altitudes that are right for different species of coffee. Because of this, almost any species of coffee can be grown in what would be considered its ideal, or "native" climate, up to about 3600 feet in altitude. The Vietnamese coffee landscape brews half-a-dozen unique species and varieties, among them Arabica (and an "indigenous" Sparrow, or Se, Arabica), Robusta, Excelsa (Chari), Liberica, Catimor and others.
