The Incredible Uses of Coffee Beans

The Incredible Uses of Coffee Beans

Everything About Coffee

The book is a fascinating journey taking readers across continents and through the flow of history to explore the origins, development, and profound influence of one of the world's three most popular beverages.

The Incredible Uses of Coffee Beans

When first discovered by humans, coffee beans were not used to brew beverages. Instead, people crushed them into powder, mixed them with lard, and consumed them as travel rations.

As for the Ethiopians, it is said that they have known how to use coffee since time immemorial, and today all experts on the subject agree that the coffee tree and its uses were discovered in this country.

It appears that the first group of people to use coffee berries were semi-nomadic tribes living in the highlands of Ethiopia, where coffee is an indigenous species, and today it can still be found growing wild in abundance as well as extensively cultivated throughout the region.

The author Bruce, in his book Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile published in 1687, states that “the Gallae are a nomadic people in Africa; forced to cross vast deserts to invade Abyssinia [1] and wishing to make surprise raids on the towns and villages of that country, they carried nothing to eat except the fruit of the coffee tree roasted and pounded into powder, mixed with grease until thick enough to be rolled into balls about the size of a billiard ball, and kept in leather bags until needed.

They affirmed that eating one such ball was enough to sustain them for a whole day during a raiding campaign or battle, far better than a loaf of bread or a meal of meat because coffee invigorated their spirits in addition to satisfying their hunger.”

Some claim that coffee was introduced from Ethiopia to Abyssinia as early as 875, while according to Lagrenie, the Abyssinians had known and used coffee since ancient times. Lagrenie cites Father Raynal, a missionary who visited the country in the late 16th century, as evidence: “He collected several coffee berries from a cultivated garden and examined them, finding them larger, somewhat longer, and just as fragrant as those obtained from Arabia.”

It seems that coffee made its way from Abyssinia into Arabia, though at what point in world history or under what circumstances remains obscure. Legends, never short of thrilling tales, recount that coffee first appeared in Arabia thanks to a Muslim dervish.

He was exiled from Mocha [2] in 1275, then pursued and besieged by enemies in the nearby mountains. According to the story, amidst extreme starvation, he picked and ate some coffee berries; then, when soaking several dried coffee berries in water to quench his thirst, he accidentally discovered its delicious flavor and restorative properties.

Another Arabian legend tells that the first person in the country to discover coffee as a nourishing beverage was an Islamic cleric named Chadeley. After being told by a goatherd about the peculiar and lively behavior of his herd after accidentally grazing on the leaves and berries of a certain plant, he decided to test the effect of these berries on the monks under his charge, as he reportedly had great difficulty keeping them awake during nighttime prayers.

After concocting an infusion from the berries of the aforementioned plant, he gave it to them to drink, and the experiment was a resounding success; the monks became thoroughly enamored with this novel beverage.

Also known as Abyssinie, Abissinia, Habessinien, or Al-Habash, it is an ancient region in the Horn of Africa located in the northern highlands of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea. The term was widely used as a synonym for Ethiopia until the mid-20th century and primarily referred to the highlands inhabited by the Amhara, Tigrayan, and Tigrinya peoples of Ethiopia and Eritrea.

Moka (or Mocha, Mokha) is an ancient port city in Yemen, historically famous as the world's largest coffee export hub from the 15th to the 18th century.