For my first blog, I wanted to start out with something that makes the most sense. After all I can’t go back and hit the reset. This is my very first blog, and I want it to be great!!!
I can’t think of a better start than just that, “Where coffee began”. This information comes to you from Tristan Stephenson, Barista’s Guide To Coffee, (which is a very good book by the way).
Tristan writes: Our journey begins in Ethiopia. While it is generally accepted that Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee it’s quite likely that it was simply the first place that crop truly flourished after spreading from the Sudan. Exactly when its leaves, cherries, or beans were first consumed is a mystery, though. What we do know is that around 2,000 years ago, the nomadic Oromos tribe, living in the kingdom of Kefa (in modern day Ethiopia), were known to have molded the leaves and fruit of the coffee tree into a kind of cake that could be sucked and chewed on – rather like a caffeinated chewing gum – giving them a temporary boost of energy. Later evidence is rather circumstantial, however. In the 5th century AD, the Kingdom of Aksum ruled the northern Ethiopia and parts of southern Egypt, and at the time, Aksum was doing a roast trade with the Roman Empire, but, alas, there’s no record of a Toman ever drinking a cup of coffee.
It is possible that coffee was planted in the kingdom of Himyar (now part of modern-day Yemen) shortly after the Kingdom of Aksum had invaded. Falling that, the 7th century saw plenty more interactions between the people of Ethiopia and Yemen, on both a political and intellectual level. It also saw the rise of Islam – much to coffee’s benefit. Some time later, the Arab trading routers from Yemen, coffee’s domination of the Middle East.
The legendary tale of coffee’s discovery is worthy of a mention, though. The store goes that it was first discovered by a young Ethiopian goatherder called Kaldi. This story, more than any other, has stuck because its cute. Vaguely believable, and open to a touch of embellishment, Kaldi was tending to his herd one evening when he noticed that they exhibited a certain friskiness after nibbling on the leaves and red cherries of a particular tree. Confused, and more than a little intrigued, Kaldi tried the fruit for himself. The effect was almost immediate – he felt energized, motivated and alert. Kaldi had discovered caffeine, the most widely used drug in world today. What happened next is open to debate, some say Kaldi took the fruit and leaves to elder, or religious men nearby, while others say that the influence of coffee made Kaldi rather “attached” to his herd.
In time, Yemen developed it’s own story of the discovery of coffee, which tells the tail of a man called Omar who was condemned to die outside Mokha’s city walls. During his wandering in the wilderness, Omar found a coffee tree and ate it’s fruit, which gave him energy he required to return to the city. His survival was seen as a blessing, and so too was the discovery of the coffee plant, which subsequently became the beverages of choice for the residents of Mokha. The Arabs called the drink “Qwaha” (the Arab word for wine), and since Muslim are forbidden to drink alcohol, coffee was probably about as close as they were likely to get to a bottle of plonk.
So, there you have it, our very first blog. I really hope you enjoyed reading this and thank you for taking the time to do so. Please watch for the newsletter as I will announce when new blogs are published.
plicabo.
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