ESCAPING THE ORDINARY : BREWED TOGETHER

THE EVOLUTION OF COFFEE CULTURE: FROM BEAN TO LIFESTYLE

CONTENT
1.O WHAT IS COFFEE
1.1 HISTORY OF COFFEE
1.2. COFFEE PRODUCTION
1.3. CULTIVATION
1.4 HARVESTING & PROCESSING

2.O PROCESSING THE BEAN

2.1 GRADING
2.2. DECAFFEINATION
2.3. ROASTING
2.4. GRINDING
2.5. PACKAGING

3.O USES OF COFFEE

3.1. BREWING & DRINKING
3.2. INSTANT COFFEE
3.3. TYPES OF COFFEES
3.4. METHODS OF MAKING

1.O HISTORY OF COFFEE,

the discovery and spread of coffee as a stimulating beverage.
The Ethiopian Legend Of Coffee Origins
Ethiopia is widely considered to be the epicentre of where coffee came from. If you’ve ever googled “coffee history”, you will have come

across the famous story of how coffee was founded in ETHIOPIA BY KALDI, an Ethiopian goat herder, around 800 AD.

He wandered over to his goats to see them acting very strangely. They were energised and excited after eating some berries from a tree.

After trying the berries himself, and also feeling excitable and alert, Kaldi took these berries to a monk.

The monks exclaimed that it was the work of the devil and threw the berries into the fire. In doing so, a beautiful, heavenly aroma was

released and the berries were quickly raked from the fire and crushed into embers. Realising their mistake, the berries were then placed

into a jug and covered with hot water for preservation.The monks then went on to drink this lovely new concoction, only to realise it helped

them stay awake during nightly devotions and prayers. Of course, this is probably just a wonderful legend and the history of coffee is more

likely to lie with the OROMO/GALLA PEOPLE, from a nomadic tribe.

Or Does Coffee History Begin In Yemen?

There are also a few well-known stories about Yemen’s contribution in the founding of coffee. The most famous legend from

Yemen about coffee origins has a slight twist on the Ethiopian story. A Yemenite Sufi mystic was traveling through Ethiopia on

spiritual matters. He encountered some very energetic and enthusiastic birds that had been eating the fruit off a plant, which is

now known as the coffee plant. Exhausted from his journey, he decided to try these berries for himself and he found that they

produced an energetic state in him as well.

However, It’s Largely Believed That Coffee Beans Were Originally Exported From Ethiopia To Yemen. Later, Yemeni

traders brought coffee plants back to their homeland and began to grow them there. It then started to be grown here in the

Yemeni district of Arabia, and by the 16th century it was known in Persia, Egypt, Syria, and Turkey.

The World’s First Coffee House Was Opened In Constantinople In 1475, now known as Istanbul. Outside of the home,

people visited coffee houses to not only drink coffee but to engage in conversation, listen to music, watch performers, play

chess, gossip and catch up on news.

1.1. COFFEE PRODUCTION

Coffee Production, cultivation of coffee plants, usually done in large commercial operations.
the two major species of coffee plants (coffea arabica and c. canephora; family rubiaceae) are
tropical evergreen shrubs or small trees of african origin. they are grown for the seeds, or
beans, which are roasted, ground, and sold for brewing coffee. this article treats the cultivation
of coffee plants and the harvesting and processing of the beans. for information on the
beverage, coffee roasting ; history of coffee.the arabica species of coffee (c. arabica)
is cultivated mostly in latin america, while the robusta variety of c. canephora predominates
in africa. arabica is considered a milder, more flavourful and aromatic brew than robusta,
though the latter is a hardier plant and is thus cheaper to produce. it has twice the caffeine
content of arabica and is typically the bean of choice for inexpensive commercial coffee
brands. both coffee species are also grown in india, indonesia, and other asian countries. there
are many varieties, forms, and types of each. the effects of environment and cultivation
further increase this diversity.

1.1CULTIVATION

Climatic factors most important for coffee growth are temperature and rainfall. No
variety can withstand a temperature in the vicinity of 32 °F (0 °C). Temperatures
between 73 and 82 °F (23 and 28 °C) are the most favourable. Rainfall of 60 to 80
inches (1,500 to 2,000 mm) per year is required along with a dry period of two to
three months for the Arabica. Irrigation is required where annual rainfall is less than 1
metre (40 inches). The Arabica species is more delicate and vulnerable to pests than
Robusta and requires a cool subtropical climate; it must grow at higher elevations of
600–2,000 metres (2,000–6,500 feet) and requires a lot of moisture and has fairly
specific shade requirements. The Robusta variety, as its name suggests, is hardier
and can grow at lower altitudes—from sea level to 600 metres.Plantations are
established in cleared forestland or modified forests. The young coffee plants are
spaced in rows so that the density varies between 1,200 and 1,800 plants per
hectare (500 and 750 plants per acre). Seedlings or cuttings raised in nurseries are
carefully planted at the beginning of the rainy season; until they start producing fruit
three to four years later, their care is limited largely to the trimming required to give
them a strong, balanced framework and to stimulate fruiting.

1.3. HARVESTING & PROCESSING

The time between blooming and maturing of the fruit varies appreciably with the
variety and the climate; for Arabica it is about seven months and for Robusta about
nine months. The ripened fruits of the coffee plant are known as coffee cherries, and
each cherry generally contains two coffee seeds, positioned flat against one another.
About 5 percent of cherries contain only one seed; called peaberries, those single
seeds are smaller and denser and produce, in the opinion of some, a sweeter, more
flavourful coffee. The fruit is gathered by hand when it is fully ripe and red-purple in
colour.

2.O PROCESSING THE BEAN

The ripened fruits of the coffee plant are known as coffee cherries, and each cherry
generally contains two coffee seeds positioned flat against one another. About 5
percent of the cherries contain only one seed; called peaberries, those single seeds
are smaller and denser and produce, in the opinion of some, a sweeter, more
flavourful coffee.The cherries are processed by disengaging the coffee seeds from
their coverings and from the pulp and by drying the seeds; all beans must be
removed from their fruit and dried before roasting. Three techniques are used for
processing the coffee: the dry, or “natural,” process, the wet (and washed) process,
and a hybrid process called the semi-washed, or “pulped natural,” method. The
coffee resulting from those processes is called green coffee, which is then ready for
roasting.

2.1. GRADING
 After green coffee has been hulled and processed, it is ready to be graded and sold
for roasting. The practice of grading and classifying coffee gives sellers and buyers a
guarantee concerning the origin, nature, and quality of the product to aid their
negotiations. Each coffee-producing country has a certain number of defined types
and grades—based on characteristics such as growing altitude and region, botanical
variety, method of processing, roast appearance, and bean size, density, and defects
—but there is no universal grading and classification system. Some coffee is shade-
grown and is more likely to be certified organic. Fair Trade coffee, part of the
larger Fair Trade movement, arose to ensure that coffee is harvested and processed
without child labour and dangerous herbicides and pesticides and that growers and
exporters, particularly in the poorer regions of the coffee-growing world, are paid a
fair price. How well such Fair Trade standards are enforced is a matter of
controversy.

2.2 DECAFFEINATION

The term decaffeinated coffee may strike some as an oxymoron, but a number of
coffee drinkers relish the taste of coffee but cannot tolerate the jolt from caffeine.
The main methods of decaffeination are based on chemical solvents, carbon
filtering, carbon dioxide extraction, or triglycerides. In all cases, to make “decaf,” the
caffeine is removed in the green bean stage, before the coffee is roasted. Regardless
of the method of decaffeination, some adulteration of the coffee bean results along
the way, and in no case is 100 percent of the caffeine removed. Extracting a good
shot of espresso from decaf coffee beans is perhaps the biggest challenge of all.

2.3. ROASTING

The aromatic and gustatory qualities of coffee are developed by the high
temperatures to which they are subjected during roasting or broiling. Temperatures
are raised progressively from about 180 to 250 °C (356 to 482 °F) and heated for
anywhere from 7 to 20 minutes, depending on the type of light or dark roast desired.
The most important effect of roasting is the appearance of the characteristic aroma
of coffee, which arises from very complex chemical transformations within the bean.
Roasting too long can destroy volatile flavour and aroma compounds, and Robusta
beans are often deliberately overroasted (as in the dark French and Italian roasts) to
rid the coffee of its natural harshness.

2.4 GRINDING

Some coffees are left as whole beans to be ground at the time of purchase or by the
consumer at home. Much coffee, however, is ground, or milled, by the manufacturer
immediately after roasting. In most modern roasting plants, grinding is accomplished
by feeding the coffee through a series of serrated or scored rollers, set at
progressively smaller gaps, that first crack the beans and then cut them to the
desired particle size. The degree of fineness is important. If a coffee is too coarse,
water filters through too fast to pick up flavour; if it is too fine, water filters through
too slowly and retains particles that deposit at the bottom of the cup.

2.5 PACKAGING

Effective packaging prevents air and moisture from reaching the coffee. Ground
coffee alters rapidly and loses its aromatic qualities within a few days if it is not put
into hermetically sealed containers immediately. The air, especially in humid
atmospheres, causes rancidity through the oxidation of fatty components. Modern
packaging materials, plastic films such as polyethylene and complexes
of aluminum and cellulose, are capable of conserving the quality of coffee for a time.
The most satisfactory solution to the problem, however, is packing under vacuum or
in an inert gas, in rigorously impervious containers.