The Hilarious Journey of Coffee Through the Ages

The Origins of Coffee -

• Legendary Beginnings: It's the 900s BC, and our story begins with a goat herder named Kaldi in Ethiopia. Kaldi noticed his goats doing the cha-cha after munching on some mysterious red berries. Who knew goat dance parties would lead to coffee?

• From 900-1300 BC, Ethiopians didn't just drink coffee; they cooked with it!

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Coffee Spreads Like Wildfire From 12th-14th Century:

• Coffee made its way to Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula. The Sufi monks there might have been the first to brew coffee in the 1300s. Imagine monks wide awake during midnight prayers thanks to their secret brew!

• By 1400-1450 BC, coffee was being cultivated and roasted in Yemen. The air must have smelled heavenly!

Coffee Takes Over Europe and the New World From 15th-16th Century:

• Coffee drinking spread like gossip to North Africa and Asia. I

• In 1453, the world’s first coffeehouse opened in Turkey. Coffee and chit-chat!
  

• In the early 1600s, coffee was cultivated in India and brought by Dutch traders from Yemen to the Netherlands in 1616.

Coffee Invades Europe and the New World From 17th Century:

• In 1645, the first European coffeehouse opened in Venice, Italy. Soon, Italy was filled with people sipping espresso and discussing... well, everything!

• By 1650, the first coffeehouse in Oxford, England, opened, followed by London. Scholars caffeinated and debated their way to brilliance.

• Dutch traders didn't stop; they spread coffee to Java, Indonesia in 1699, and Suriname in South America. Coffee was the ultimate world traveler!

Coffee in the Americas and Vietnam From 19th Century:

• By 1830, Brazil became the world's largest coffee producer. Coffee ruled the land!

• Coffee was introduced to Vietnam by the French in 1857, first planted in the North and Central regions. Little did they know, Vietnam would become a coffee powerhouse!

Coffee in Modern Times - 20th-21st Century:

• In 1971, Starbucks opened its first coffeehouse in Seattle, USA. Coffee became more than a drink; it became an experience! .

• In 2017, the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) and the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) merged to form the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA).

The coffee world had never been more exciting! Thank you foWe hope you enjoyed the ride and learned a lot about the history of this wonderful beverage.

Source: Coffee and Wine Two Worlds Compared (Morten Scholer)