How was coffee discovered?
There is a tale of a goat-herder in Arabia Felix (Ethiopia) named Kaldi whose goats were found "dancing" on the mountain. It was thought that the goats discovered the coffee bean, when they were found munching on a shiny, dark leaf shrub with red berries. Kaldi was convinced it was the red berries that caused them to behave in this manner, so preceded to try the berries himself. He too was found by a learned imam from the local ministry dancing with the goats.
The learned imam put the red berries through several experiments, one involved parching and boiling. It was not long until neither imam or his fellows fell asleep at prayers. The word soon spread from monastery to monastery throughout Arabia Felix (Ethiopia) and progressed from there to the rest of the world.
Main types of beans cultivated.
The world coffee production generally covers three types of beans;
High Grown Milds, Brazils and Robustas.
Both the High grown Milds and Brazils originate from the trees belonging to the species Coffea Arabica. Whereas the Robustas originate from the Coffea canephora var. robusta.
Arabica was first cultivated in commercial quantities in Yemen, Southern tip of the Arabian peninsular. The Arabica coffee was carried around the world by coffee-hooked devotees, who introduced coffee throughout the world.
There are two main differences between the High Grown Milds and Brazils which originate from the Arabica tree. The altitude at which it grows and how much care is taken during picking and preparation.
Arabica tree:
- Does not tolerate frost
- Will not flourish in high temperatures
- Grows best in well watered, mountainous regions of the tropics
High grown milds are cultivated between 4000 - 6000 feet above sea level. Produced from ripe fruit and prepared with a great deal of care. The high grown mild coffee is the best a roaster could buy to produce a speciality coffee.
Brazils are the next most likely coffee after Arabica. This term is confusing as Brazil itself makes good mild coffee, however in the trade Brazils is in reference to the lower-grade coffee which are grown intensively at low altitudes and are mass harvested and not treated carefully during the drying and subsequent processes.
The third variety is robusta which has a major importance in the world markets. Advantages of this tree are its resistance to disease and its ability to grow successfully at lower altitudes. In comparison to the Arabica and some of the better brazils it lacks in flavour and aroma. The robusta generally has the lowest prices in the world markets and is widely used in the instant coffee market. Robusta has 30-40% higher caffeine content than what is found in the coffea arabica.
Structure of a coffee bean
Coffee beans are in fact twin seeds of a red or occasionally yellow fruit. To obtain the seed there is a complex and delicate operation of removing the three sets of skin and one layer of pulp from around the seed. The more carefully this operation is carried out the better the coffee will look and taste, which can therefore demand a higher price. These seeds/beans are then shipped and roasted.
See a timeline of coffee by clicking here