by Ellen M. DuBois
As I write this I’m on my second cup of coffee of the morning, green with envy of those who are drinking flavored coffee. That’s what I really like. Throw in some Bailey’s Irish Cream and that’ll do it for me! Well…as long as it’s not first thing in the morning. That wouldn’t go over too well…
We call it Joe, Java, Brew, High Test, whatever. What’s in a name? It’s all coffee and we love it. But, how much do you really know about its origins? Curious about the history of this beverage that we have such an admiration for and an addiction to?
Well, I want to enlighten you a bit. I want you to have a better understanding and appreciation for the coffee you’re probably drinking as you read this. Go ahead, take a sip.
Now, let’s move on.
Our journey first takes us to around 600 AD in Arabia where a banished Arabian and his followers boiled an unknown plant and its fruit. It saved their lives and those in the nearest town, called Mocha, thought, “Wow! This is religiously significant!” Hence, the name Mocha came into being.
Supposedly some monks discovered that the fruit of the coffee plant helped them stay awake for their prayers. How did they discover this? Basically, they caught a sheep herder eating the fruit of the coffee plant. Why did he do it? Well, he saw that his sheep were extremely “active” after eating the fruit and decided to give it a whirl himself. Just imagine how busy that pasture was. Ah, and they say the grass is always greener….
I digress.
Keep in mind that these are coffee legends. There is no real evidence to support the who, what, when, where, why or how coffee was first discovered. What we do know is that it spread around the world like wildfire and become an international trade.
Coffee didn’t begin as the brewed beverage that we love so much. People were munching on the plant, making it into wine and using it for medicinal purposes long before that great cup-o-joe was first sipped. It’s said that the roasting of the beans, creating the coffee we know today, happened sometime around 1000 AD and 1200 AD in Arabia.
Muslims were drinking coffee religiously by the end of the 13th century. They guarded it with their lives. Who can blame them? Eventually, they went to Africa where coffee was grown between 1250 and 1600 under Islam’s watchful eyes.
The Arabs made every effort to prevent other countries acquiring fertile beans. Coffee beans couldn’t even be taken out of the country unless the seed was killed by boiling the beans or drying them out. Africa and Arabia pretty much had a monopoly on coffee until the 1600’s. As a result, Africa was once the world’s primary source for coffee.
Someone was wise enough, however, to smuggle some of the coveted seed beans out of Arabia and they ended up in Mecca. Pretty brave move.
By the middle of the 16th Century, coffee was being enjoyed in Egypt, Syria, Persia and Turkey. Coffee shops began “sprouting up” in Baghdad, Istanbul and Cairo.
By the 17th century, coffee found its way to Central Europe, Spain and North Africa.
Evidently, folks knew a good thing when they found it. In the 18th Century coffee was well loved throughout Europe. It was the French who brought coffee into the New World by 1715.
In 1822, a Frenchman named Louis Bernard Rabaut invented a machine which, by using steam, forced the hot water through the coffee grounds instead of the typical ‘drip’ method. Hence, the birth of the first espresso machine.
So, when did coffee make it to the colonies? Around 1607 when Captain John Smith helped to found the colony of Virginia at Jamestown.
Coffee replaced beer as New York City’s favorite breakfast drink by 1668.
Beer for breakfast? Some interesting ‘beans’ for you to brew:
Decaffeinated coffee was first invented in 1903. What was it named? Sanka.
The first mass produced instant coffee was invented by an English chemist named George Constant Washington in 1909. He noticed a powder like substance on the kettle tip after brewing and viola! Instant coffee was born after he perfected the process. Freeze dried came thereafter and became very popular after the introduction of television. Good ol’ commercials…
The English got wind of this and were very quick to invent the tea bag. Coffee exports were very important to Latin American countries. They established quotas before World War 2 so that each country would have a fair shake at the coffee market. In 1962, coffee export quotas were set on a
worldwide basis. It was called The International Coffee Agreement.
So, my friends- coffee traveled a long way and underwent many changes to become the beverage we enjoy today. The next time you reach for your coffee mug and enjoy a nice, smooth gulp, think about this – how the heck did people survive the mornings B.C. (Before Coffee)?
About Ellen M. DuBois, MA
Ms. DuBois is engaged and has a dog who loves to critique her work. She has several cards in market review with SPS Studios Inc., the publisher of Blue Mountain Arts. She is published in vol. 2 of God Allows U-Turns with her piece, “The Angel in the Dumpster.” Ellen is also a featured writer in the online magazine SpiritHunter, was a featured writer in the National Association of Women Writers Newsletter, and has 2 books under contract for e-book and paperback publication. One of her dreams is to keep writing to touch the hearts of others. Please visit Writings of the Heart (this link will open a new window), her award winning writer’s resource site.
Article reprinted with permission from author, 1/20/02. © Copyright Ellen M. DuBois. All Rights Reserved.
