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Monday, November 28, 2005 -----

The Origins of Coffee

There are many legends of the origins of coffee as a beverage and most are very fanciful. Some believe that in AD 850 a goat herder in Ethiopia observed strange activity in his goats after they had eaten some strange berries. He tried the berries himself and quickly felt a novel sense of elation. He filled his pockets with as many as he could and took them to the local monastery. After he explained the effect of the berries to the chief monk, the chief declared them the devils work and threw them into the fire. Within minutes the monastery filled with the sweet aroma of roasting coffee beans. The beans were recovered from the fire and placed in a jug then covered with hot water. That night the monks sat up drinking the first cup of coffee.

Others believe it started with religious beliefs. Islamic legend ascribes the discovery of coffee to devout Sheikh Omar, who found the coffee growing wild while living as a recluse in Mocha, one famous coffee producing place in Yemen. He is said to have boiled some berries, and discovered the stimulating effect of the resulting brew, which he administered to the locals who were stricken with a mysterious ailment and thereby cured them. There are Arabic scientific documents dating back to AD 900 referring to a beverage drunk in Ethiopia called buna might be one of the earliest references to Ethiopian coffee in its brewed form. And later in Mecca the first coffee houses were said to have been established.

The truth is no one knows for sure when coffee developed as a beverage but most agree that it originated in the Kaffa region in Ethiopia hence the similarity in the name Kaffa/coffee. It spread mainly as an edible product mostly for the caffeine and the effects it produced. However, it is known that about 600 years ago coffee made its way to Yemen, then from Arabia began its journey around the world changing and improving into the coffee we know and love today.

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::  Posted by: JetBean  at 8:15 PM
  

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