About coffee: history of the drink, types and varieties of coffee, beneficial properties of coffee.

Legends about the origin of coffee

In nature, coffee trees and shrubs still grow in the highlands of Ethiopia, Kenya and Sudan. The proof of the origin of coffee is in its name. Interestingly, Ethiopians themselves call coffee “bun” or “buna”. But the word “coffee” entered the lexicon of all other peoples - in honor of Kaffa, one of the Ethiopian provinces. However, according to another theory, the name of the drink comes from the Arabic “qahwa” - “dispelling sleep”.

Observant shepherd

The most popular legend says that in the 9th century, a shepherd from Kaffa named Kaldim noticed that his goats, having tasted the leaves and fruits of a certain nameless bush, became especially vigorous and cheerful. Kaldim also decided to try these berries, after which he could not sleep for a day. Considering this a gift from heaven, the shepherd took the berries to the abbot of the local monastery, since the monks, who devoted themselves to fasting and prayer day and night, needed reinforcement of strength like no one else.

Burning Forest

According to another version, one day a coffee grove caught fire next to an Oromo village. But what was the surprise of people when it turned out that burning coffee fruits emit a pleasant aroma! This is how the tradition of roasting coffee beans was allegedly born.

Exiled Sheikh

In Ethiopia they like to tell the tale of Sheikh Omar, who, for freethinking, was exiled to the desert, to certain death from hunger, along with his disciples. The ruler was shocked when a year later it was discovered that Omar and his followers, who ate coffee beans, had survived.

The birthplace of coffee

Ethiopia is considered the birthplace of coffee, where it still grows as a wild plant. But coffee began its triumphal march around the world in Yemen, where it was exported fraudulently by Arab traders, and quickly gained popularity.

Systematic cultivation of coffee was first started in the 15th century. It was grown in the hanging gardens of Yemen and sold through the seaport of Mocha to many countries in the Near and Middle East. For two centuries, Yemen was the only state supplying coffee to the world market. Then coffee quickly spread to many Asian countries, and through Turkish diplomats it penetrated into other states.

Coffee in Arabia

Judging by the treatises of Arab and Persian scientists, people knew about the healing properties of coffee beans even before our era. But a medicinal infusion made from raw beans is one thing, a drink made from roasted coffee that brings pleasure is another.

The first mention of coffee made from roasted beans is contained in a 16th-century treatise written by Abd al-Qadir al-Jaziri. According to the scientist, in 1454, Sheikh Jamal al-Din al-Dhabhani, who was at that time the Mufti of Aden, tasted the drink.

Enterprising Yemeni merchants appreciated the prospects for coffee and set up the first plantation. Coffee grown in Arabia came to Cairo, Damascus, Baghdad, Mecca and Medina, and later to the Maghreb countries (Tunisia, Libya, Algeria, Morocco). The export of unroasted grains was strictly prohibited. The main trade was carried out through the port of Al Mokha - this is how the name “Mocha” was born.

Even Islam couldn't overcome the Arabs' love of coffee.

However, Muslim theologians have taken up arms against the invigorating drink: the Koran strictly forbids adherents of this religion from consuming brain-stupefying substances. In 1511, a council of theologians in Mecca declared coffee to be the devil's potion and cursed it in the name of Allah. Egyptian coffee lovers of those times had their tongues torn out, and those who persisted in heresy were drowned in the sea, having previously been sewn into coffee bags.

Coffee and Number 8

The most common and most popular drink keeps many secrets and mysteries, maintaining a somewhat mystical aura around its second homeland. Colombian cafeteros are convinced that coffee is marked by a higher power. This is confirmed by the number “eight”, symbolizing infinity and being one of the numbers of the Creator, which plays a special role in the legend of coffee. For example:

The coffee tree (Coffea), belonging to the madder family, has about 80 species. True, only two of them are cultivated: the Arabian coffee tree (Arabica) and the Congolese coffee tree or canephora (Robusta);

The discovery of coffee dates back to the 800s AD. According to legend, in 850 the stimulating properties of the fruit of the coffee tree were discovered and empirically proven by a shepherd named Kaldi;

coffee is cultivated in 80 countries around the world that make up the famous “coffee belt” between 23 degrees north latitude and 25 degrees south latitude;

The fruits of the coffee tree ripen within 5-8 months, and the length of the trunk of a fruitful coffee tree is about 4 meters;

per season, a coffee tree produces up to 0.8 kg of berries;

A fruit whose length is not less than 5 and not more than 8 mm is considered suitable for further use;

the path of coffee from the harvester to the home cup is divided into 8 technological stages;

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Coffee in Turkey

Real success awaited coffee in Turkey, where it arrived in the 16th century. The Turks were already familiar with the taste of the drink, but it was not particularly popular among the nobility. Everything changed when, in the middle of the 16th century, the governor of Yemen, Ozdemir Pasha, brought coffee beans as a gift to Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.

The ruler and his beautiful wife Hurrem (who went down in history under the name Roksolana) liked the drink so much that drinking coffee soon became fashionable at the Turkish court. As usual, fashion moved from palaces to squares, and in 1564 the first coffee shop was opened in Istanbul. Visitors engaged in philosophical debates and discussed the latest news.

The Turks turned the process of brewing coffee into a high art and brought it to perfection. The drink for the Sultan was prepared and served by 40 servants. Soon the ability to brew coffee began to be considered one of the virtues required for any self-respecting bride.

Coffee house from the Ottoman Empire

Coffee in Italy

The first European country to embrace the coffee fashion was Italy. In those days, on its territory there were several fairly strong city-states that were always at war with each other.

Already from the middle of the 16th century, Genoese and Venetian merchants, who traded throughout the Mediterranean and maintained trade relations with the Sublime Porte, brought aromatic grains for personal use. Merchants and travelers in the Middle Ages were always a bit of a spy, and therefore showed special observation. The embassies included scientists whose task was to describe the life and customs of the countries visited.

Europe first learned about coffee from a fascinating book by the Genoese Antonio Menavino, published in 1548. At the age of 12, in 1504, Messer Antonio was captured by Corsican pirates, who sold him into slavery. A handsome and smart boy was presented to the Sultan, and after 10 years the prisoner managed to escape. Subsequently, Menavino described everything he saw in Turkey, mentioning coffee.

The world's first coffee machine by Luigi Bezzera

In 1591, the Paduan physician and botanist Prospero Alpini wrote an entire book dedicated to coffee. Alpini spent several years at the embassy in Egypt, where by that time the laws against coffee drinkers had been significantly relaxed. The scientist not only learned about the properties of aromatic grains, but also carefully wrote down the recipe for the drink.

The first Italian coffee shop opened in Venice in 1615. She was extremely popular. Artists and poets flocked to the aroma of coffee like bees to honey.

The Pope's ambassador to Persia, Pietro della Valle, confessed his love for coffee. It is believed that he spoke so captivatingly in salons about the East and the love of the local inhabitants for coffee that he intrigued the entire Roman high society. Already in 1626, the first coffee shop opened in Rome, and then coffee establishments began to appear throughout Italy.

Subsequently, Catholic priests, dissatisfied with the passion of their flock for an invigorating drink, turned to Pope Clement VIII with a request to ban coffee. But the Pope, having tasted the coffee, came to the conclusion that this little joy for the parishioners was forgivable.

Effects on the digestive system

Coffee is harmful to the digestive system, as a rule, due to the fact that many people drink it incorrectly. Coffee contains tannins that can dry out the stomach lining, so it is not recommended to drink coffee on an empty stomach. The most harmful to the stomach is instant coffee, which is the most common among consumers. As a result, there are unpleasant consequences, heartburn, gastritis, which may well predispose to the appearance of gastric ulcers. It is better to drink coffee after meals, preferably even some time after the main meal. Coffee is contraindicated during exacerbation of chronic gastritis and ulcers.

In addition, caffeine increases the contraction of the intestinal walls. Therefore, frequent consumption of coffee can lead to indigestion and impaired absorption of nutrients. At the same time, this property of coffee - a mild laxative effect - can be useful.

At the same time, moderate coffee consumption can protect alcohol lovers from liver cirrhosis. As the British newspaper The Times notes, Norwegian scientists have concluded that three cups of coffee a day can neutralize the negative effects of alcohol on the human body.

Coffee in France

Most likely, the first coffee came to France at the beginning of the 17th century through Marseille, but the fashion did not reach Paris. But in 1664, the entire French capital was gossiping about the receptions hosted by the envoy of the Sublime Porte, Suleiman Mustafa Agha. The gallant gentleman and witty interlocutor charmed the entire court of Louis XIV. At receptions, guests were, of course, treated to coffee, and soon word of the unusual drink reached the king himself.

Louis XIV was delighted with the unusual taste and luxurious aroma. And Suleiman Mustafa Agha only grinned through his bushy mustache: the new fashion promised considerable profits to Turkish merchants, and the gentleman ambassador was clearly in their share.

True, things did not get better right away. While the nobility admired the Turkish drink, the townspeople of Paris, accustomed to sweets, were not particularly enthusiastic. The Armenian Pasquiali Kharakyan, who opened a coffee shop on Saint-Germain Street, went bankrupt and left for England.

But the Italian Procopio Cuto took into account the mistakes of his predecessor. At his establishment, opened in 1684, coffee was served with freshly baked croissants topped with sweet syrup. This coffee shop is still in operation; it is located opposite the Comedie Française theater.

Coffee in the French colonies

The first coffee plantation in the French colonies was established on the island of Bourbon (Reunion). But until the beginning of the 18th century, no one even tried to plant coffee trees in the French Antilles. And there are almost ideal conditions for coffee: mountainous terrain, suitable climate. The history of the appearance of coffee in the Antilles is similar to an adventure novel.

Back in 1814, the mayor of Amsterdam presented a coffee seedling to King Louis XIV, who, thanks to the light hand of the Turkish envoy, became addicted to the invigorating drink. A year later, the king died, and the Regency era began in France, known for freedom of morals and oblivion of the reasonable policies of the former king.

A coffee seedling planted in the Botanical Garden turned into a regularly fruiting tree, from which beans were collected especially for the young King Louis XV.

A young naval officer, Gabriel de Cleux, believed that coffee could be grown in the New World. But de Cleux was unable to convince the authorities of the prospects of this idea. Then the young man made an agreement with his friend, with whom the court doctor, who had access to the greenhouse, was in love. At the lady's request, a loyal admirer stole several tiny coffee seedlings, and she gave them to the Chevalier de Cleux.

Gabriel de Cleux tries to save the coffee tree

Having carefully packed the precious sprouts, Gabriel set off for Martinique on the sailing ship Dromedary. On the way, the ship was attacked by pirates and, although the crew managed to fight back, the water supplies were seriously damaged. The water requirement was reduced to a minimum.

Suffering from thirst, Gabriel gave most of his meager rations to the last, already withering coffee seedling. A miracle happened: both de Cleux and the tree reached Martinique alive in 1723. From this seedling came all the coffee trees on numerous plantations in the Antilles.

Balance of microelements in the body

It is well established that coffee interferes with the absorption and washes calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium and some other trace elements from the body. Therefore, coffee lovers should definitely take vitamin complexes or eat more foods rich in the above microelements. For example, eating 15 grams of almonds after drinking a cup of coffee will return your calcium balance to the proper level.

The dangers of coffee in this sense affect women more than men. Surprisingly, this is a scientific fact. If a woman drinks more than 4 cups of coffee a day, then she has a very high risk of developing osteoporosis. This becomes especially dangerous after menopause. So coffee lovers should especially take care of their bones and be sure to take calcium.

Coffee in Brazil

While the Spaniards, Dutch and French sought to overtake each other in the “coffee race,” vast territories of Portuguese-owned Brazil lay empty. Neither the French nor the Dutch were in a hurry to share precious seeds with their competitors.

But in 1727, Portuguese lieutenant Francisco de Mello Paleta went to French Guiana as part of a diplomatic mission. It later became clear that the authorities set the officer a task: to obtain coffee seeds or seedlings at any cost.

At a dinner at the house of the governor of Cayenne, Count d'Orvilliers, Don Francisco asked for a few grains of coffee. A decisive refusal followed: Admiral d'Orvilliers also had superiors, and they forbade the transfer of coffee beans to the Portuguese. After lunch, the governor's wife went to show Don Francisco the garden. The young officer managed to charm the ardent Frenchwoman, and at parting she threw several treasured grains into his pocket.

Harvesting coffee beans on a plantation in Brazil in 1750

The Portuguese was shocked, but Madame Countess with a sweet smile said that her husband was a military man and was obliged to follow orders, but she was free to give anything to those she liked. Today, Brazil produces about a third of the world's coffee, far ahead of its competitors.

But the continuation of the history of coffee in Brazil was not so romantic. Millions of black slaves worked for the benefit of the haciendeiro. And when slavery was abolished in Brazil in 1888, causing plantation owners to go bankrupt, the government passed laws promoting immigration. At the end of the 19th century, the situation of Italians who came to Brazil was not much different from slavery. Immigrants worked for barely a piece of bread. Even now, the situation of agricultural workers in Brazil leaves much to be desired.

History of coffee

Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world. With its wonderful aroma, exquisite taste and strong tonic effect, it is considered one of the strategically important raw materials in world trade. Coffee is second only to oil in its importance, providing livelihoods to millions of people.

Over hundreds of years of its history, coffee has gained a lot of admirers. Today it is drunk at business meetings and parties, in restaurants and bars. This is a wonderful drink that traditionally accompanies communication, an indispensable element of meetings with friends, relatives and colleagues.

Kings vs coffee

Not all European monarchs loved coffee. For example, Charles II Stuart banned coffee houses in 1675. The formal reason was a petition from English ladies who claimed that their husbands had become indifferent to love pleasures, since they were not interested in anything other than coffee.

English coffee house from 1674

However, by that time English coffee houses had turned into political clubs. The owners of coffee shops printed pamphlets directed against the monarch and distributed them to visitors. Paid servants and petty clerks raced to deliver news from parliamentary sessions to coffee shops. Remembering the fate of his father who died on the chopping block, Charles II chose to strangle the nests of ripening riots and issued a decree banning coffee houses.

The Swedish kings of the 17th and 18th centuries also did not have warm feelings for coffee, so they imposed huge taxes on its consumption. Naturally, there were always clever people who bought grains from smugglers, but those who brewed the drink without paying the tax were mercilessly fined.

In Reval (Tallinn), which belonged to Sweden at the beginning of the 18th century, soldiers were on duty day and night on one of the highest towers. They had two tasks: to warn citizens about a fire and to sniff the smoke from the chimneys. A patrol was sent to the house, which smelled of freshly brewed coffee, to check whether the owners had paid the tax.

Effect on the nervous system

The main biological component of coffee, due to which the addiction to this drink arises, is caffeine. It has been proven that caffeine is a stimulant that acts through parts of the brain on the central nervous system and circulatory systems. Taking it causes a feeling of vivacity, a surge of strength, and also relieves headaches. Since caffeine stimulates the activity of the central nervous system, this means that coffee improves brain function, increases overall performance and endurance. This is why “coffee break” is so recommended for people working in offices, especially taking into account the fact that this category of citizens most often suffers from neuroses.

However, the effect of caffeine on each person is individual and depends on the type of nervous system. Depending on how intensively caffeine is broken down by the body, the effect of caffeine on it is determined; some people experience a state of excitement, while others may experience drowsiness and lethargy. The ability to break down caffeine is inherent in the body at the genetic level and therefore it is almost impossible to determine the optimal dose of caffeine for the body, and very often it is exceeded several times. And even a small and not very long-term excess of the individual dose leads to depletion of nerve cells and disruption of the normal functioning of the body. Subsequently, people who exceed their dose for many years may experience behavioral deviations, neuroses, depression, irritability, increased anxiety, lethargy and other signs of nervous disorders, to which regular increased consumption can predispose and be one of the reasons for their occurrence. caffeine

Coffee in Russia

In 1665, the court doctor prescribed Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich to drink coffee to get rid of a runny nose and headache. But the tsar’s son, Emperor Peter I, became addicted to the aromatic drink in his youth, having made friends with foreigners who lived in the German settlement.

Peter the Great was a coffee lover

Upon returning from Holland, the emperor began with an iron fist to force his subjects to share his passions. According to contemporaries, Peter I could appear at the house of any of the nobles at any time of the day or night and demand a cup of coffee. The drink was always served at the assemblies that became fashionable. In 1724, in St. Petersburg, at the behest of the emperor, 15 taverns were opened for foreigners, where they served coffee.

The niece of Peter I, Anna Ioannovna, loved coffee in the same way. Under her rule, the first Coffee House was opened in St. Petersburg in 1740. But, although both Elizabeth and Catherine II had a passion for coffee, until the Patriotic War of 1812, the drink remained a whim of the highest nobility. He gained real popularity in Russia after the victory over Napoleon, when the Russian army returned from Paris. Since then, coffee has become a frequent guest in the estates of small nobles, and in merchant houses, and even in the apartments of commoners.

Data

Interesting facts about coffee have appeared over the years, so now there are a great many of them known. Let's take a look at some:

This drink is the most popular in the world.
In Japan, a holiday appeared in his honor. Coffee Day is celebrated on October 1st. Japan ranks third in terms of consumption of this drink.
There is a Musanga animal that eats only coffee beans, and its excrement is then used to make a drink. By the way, it is the most expensive in the world.
The lethal dose is 100 cups per day. If you drink such an amount, a person’s heart will not stand it.
Coffee, if you do not add sugar, cream and milk, is an absolutely calorie-free drink.
When this drink appeared in Russia, people did not immediately recognize it. Therefore, supporters of Peter I began to invent stories about him so that he would become popular.
A cup of coffee won't hurt anyone. It is believed that it is safe to drink no more than 500-600 ml per day, that is, approximately 3-4 cups of 150 ml.
Drinking the drink helps prevent Parkinson's disease, dementia, and coffee, being a strong antioxidant, prevents the formation of cancer cells.
Coffee is used in cosmetology. In some countries they take baths with it to make the skin elastic. There are also many recipes for scrubs and masks based on ground grains.
This drink inhibits the development of gallstone disease.
It can also cause heartburn. The reason for this is the acid contained in it.