History - The discovery of coffee

1. History - The discovery of coffee There are several legendary accounts of the origin of the coffee beverage, but the most popular one is attributed to an Ethiopian goat herder called Kaldi. One day in about 850AD he noticed his goats acting particularly frisky after feeding on the ripe berries from a bush that was later to be known as an Arabica bush. He tried the berries himself and had a similarly uplifting experience.The local monks somehow heard about his story and soon started eating the berries themselves - as a means to help them to stay awake during long periods of prayer. They went on to find that, if they were crushed and infused with water, the berries could produce a (probably cold) drink that gave a similar stimulating effect.  

2. Knowledge of these ‘magic’ berries was soon to spread across the Bab-el-Mandeb straits (at the southern end of the Red Sea) to the Middle Eastern country of Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula. It did not take long for the Yemeni Arabs to start cultivating the coffee plants and begin to use the berries for personal use and financial gain.It may well be that coffee became very popular in the area due to restrictions of the Muslim religion, which forbids the consumption of alcoholic beverages.The uplifting properties of coffee, being not dissimilar to the effects of moderate alcohol intake, made it an acceptable substitute. No doubt this is the origin of the term ‘Wine of Araby’ or ‘Arabian Wine’ for the coffee drink.Not until between 1000AD and 1200AD (probably in Arabia) was it discovered that, by roasting and crushing the bean of the cherry (the ‘magic’ berry), and then infusing it with hot water, a delicious drink similar to the coffee of today could be made. 

3. Growing coffee – Where does coffee grow? • Coffee typically grows between 25 degrees north and south of the equator- or the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn • Approximately 70 countries fall within the bean belt

4. Growing coffee – Where does coffee grow? • Germinated seeds of the coffee tree are the basic raw materials for coffee cultivation. • Seeds are usually sourced from the same estate or from neighbouring estates, which enjoy the same climatic conditions suited to the particular species grown on the plantation. • The seedlings are raised in nurseries and, when they are about a year old, they are transplanted into the main plantation on the estate.

5. Growing coffee – Where does coffee grow? • After 5 years of nurturing they eventually begin to produce fruit (coffee cherries). • They can continue to produce a bountiful crop for 25 years. • Coffee is described as the seed of the red cherry fruit of a tropical evergreen shrub.

6. Growing coffee – How does coffee grow? • There are 2 seeds in each cherry. • All the layers of the cherry need to be removed for roasting – only the seeds are used. • All coffee comes from plants in the genus coffea. There are thousands of species all with tremendous variations in size and shape. Only two are of commercial importance. These are Coffeaarabicaand Coffeacanephora(commonly known as Robusta). • These 2 varieties of coffee not only look slightly different but have different characteristics.

7. Arabica • More oval in shape, pointed at the tips • Grows at higher altitudes • Taste characteristics include acidity and aroma • Has less caffeine than robusta • Arabica plants are more prone to disease • 65% of the worlds coffee production is Arabica • Robusta • Rounded shape, smaller than Arabica • Grows at lower altitudes • Brings body and crema to a blend • Has more caffeine than Arabica • Robusta plants are less prone to disease • Predominantly used in espresso blends

8. From Crop to Cup – How is coffee harvested? • There are three main methods of harvesting coffee: • Selective picking – where only the ripe cherries are harvested by hand; • Strip picking – all ripe cherries from one branch are stripped from the tree with both unripe and overripe cherries; • Mechanical harvesting – all the coffee cherries are collected using a harvesting machine.

9. From Crop to Cup – How is coffee harvested? • To maximize the amount of ripe coffee harvested, it is necessary to selectively pick the ripe coffee cherries from the tree by hand and leave behind unripe, green cherries to be harvested at a later time.

10. How is coffee processed? After the raw coffee fruit (cherry) gets collected the processing of coffee converts it to the commodity green coffee. The cherry has the fruit or pulp removed leaving the seed or bean which is then dried. The coffee processing method used varies and can have a significant effect on the flavour of roasted and brewed coffee. Pulping Drying

11. Sorting and Grading Once the coffee is dried to green coffee it is sorted by hand or machine to remove debris and bad or misshapen beans. The coffee is also often sorted by size and placed into one of several grades.

12. Green coffee stored in bags Green coffee is fairly stable if it is stored correctly. It must be placed in containers that can breatheusually some type of fibre sack and kept dry and clean. It can then be exported and used to make coffee in countries such as the UK.