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History of the Coffee Bean
It has been called “java”, “mud”, “a shot in the arm”,
“cup of joe”, or whatever you call it. There are an
estimated 2 billion cups are consumed every day around
the world. Coffee has become the most popular drink in
the world, and it is produced in over 50 countries.
Coffee is the second most valuable export, after oil.
To many of us, it is simply what we need to get going
in the morning.
Archaeological evidence suggests that humans were
enjoying the taste of the coffee berry around a
hundred thousand years ago, making coffee older than
most people think There are many legends on how coffee
was discovered, one has it that a goat herder in
Ethiopia observed his goats eating coffee berries and
he decided to taste them himself, noticing a
stimulating effect. Shepherds consumed the coffee by
grinding the beans and mixing them with animal fat.
The coffee bean had made its way to what is now the
country of Yemen, around 600 AD, where it has been
cultivated ever since. Arabian traders grew and
cultivated the coffee bean on plantations, from 1000
AD, and they called their new concoction qahwa meaning
“that which prevents sleep”. Arabia controlled the
coffee trade for many centuries as they introduced a
law that prohibited the exporting of beans that could
germinate.
Despite this restriction, the coffee bean somehow
found its way throughout the Middle East, to Persia
(now Iran), Egypt and parts of Northern Africa. Coffee
beans also found their way to the Mysore area of
India, where descendants of those original plants
flourished until the early 20th century. Many of the
times, the beans were literally smuggled out of
Arabia.
Initially, coffee was not enjoyed for its taste, but
more as a supplement or source of nutrition. But, when
the coffee bean found its way to Turkey, the Turks
began to drink it for its flavor, frequently adding
such things as cinnamon or anise. The Turks were also
the first to roast the beans over fires and boil the
crushed beans in water. And what is generally
considered to be the world’s first coffee shop was
opened in Istanbul, known as Constantinople at the
time, in the 15th century.
The first to transport and cultivate coffee beans on a
commercial basis, were the Dutch. With coffee beans
smuggled out of Arabia, they established plantations
in Ceylon and one of their colonies, Java. Indonesia
is the world’s third largest producer of coffee,
today.
In the 17th century, Europe was introduced to the
coffee bean. At one point, the beverage was more
popular than tea in England and was used as an
antidote to the widespread alcoholism of the time.
Coffee houses sprang up in such places as Vienna,
Paris and London, frequented by the wealthy and
fashionable. The Austrians are credited with the
practice of adding milk and sugar to coffee.
Some other interesting facts are that in France, Louis
XIV built greenhouses to protect his precious coffee
beans from frost. In the New World, coffee was also a
popular drink. The newly formed American colonies
declared coffee to be the national drink. But, not
everyone approved; the Catholics declared coffee
should be banned, despite the Pope confessing to being
an avid coffee drinker.
Worldwide today, there are actually more than 60
varieties of coffee. Although the beans used for
coffee are one of two types, Robusta and Arabica.
Roughly 75% of coffee beans produced are Arabica and
are cultivated in Brazil and Central America. Robusta
beans produce a stronger blend of coffee and are
cultivated in parts of Asia and Africa as well as
Brazil.
There is a good chance that your coffee beans come
from Brazil, as it is the largest producer of coffee,
worldwide. Brazil produces almost 30% of the world’s
coffee and also has some of the most advanced
processing techniques in the world. Fact: In 2006, the
gross value of coffee production in Brazil was almost
5 billion dollars and the industry employs several
million workers.
Although, coffee isn’t usually associated with Asia,
there are several Asian countries that have started to
cultivate the coffee bean. Recently, Vietnam has
become a large producer of coffee, and some of the
African coffee producing countries still produces
excellent coffee, mainly Kenya and Tanzania
There have also been some countries that have also
started to cultivate specialized coffee beans. Kenya
produces a fruity coffee and Indonesia produces the
Kopi Luwak, a coffee bean that has been passed through
the digestive system of a civet. Ethiopia, where the
coffee bean was perhaps first discovered, is home to a
bean that produces a coffee flavored with chocolate,
ginger and orange.
So whether you prefer your coffee beans with milk,
with sugar, strong or with no caffeine, take a moment
and enjoy a cup of the world’s most popular drink.
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