President’s Message
Fellow Rotarians,
Very Warm Greetings!
For coffee connoisseurs, there is nothing better than the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and that stimulating high from ‘caffeine’. Also, there is a culture associated with coffee. Coffee culture is defined as a lifestyle or a social activity characterised by drinking coffee, especially in coffee houses.
Coffee has its origins on the Ethiopian plateau – with various stories about its discovery. The most popular ones are – Kaldi the goat herder, his dancing goats and the Abbott of the local monastery, the other one is that Moroccan Sufi mystic Ghothul Akbar Nooruddin Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili or his disciple Omar discovered it when travelling in Ethiopia, another one is Sufis used it for staying awake and for their dervish dance and prayer. The fact is that coffee beans in the 15th century also travelled from Ethiopia to Yemen through traders.
It is said that coffee probably reached Europe through Venice or through Malta, and, after being called a satanic bitter drink, in about 1615, following a baptism ceremony by Pope Clement III, gained acceptance and approval. In the USA, tea was the preferred beverage, until the famous ‘Boston Tea Party’ episode in 1773. Thomas Jefferson, it is said, stated “Coffee – the favourite drink of the civilised world”.
Though journey of coffee culture dates back as far as the 14th or 15th Century beginning in Yemen, onto the Middle- East, Turkey, where coffeehouses ‘qaveh khaneh’ were considered centres of exchange of information, discussions, social hubs, as well as, artistic and intellectual centres and were referred to as ‘school of the wise’. It is also highly relevant in the present, as it allows people to take a moment to slow down and enjoy their coffee, while de stressing after a long day or before they have to rush off on errands.
Though today’s coffeehouses come with the modern comforts, such as free WiFi and places to charge phones, but these are essentially based on the cafés of old, providing spaces where minds can meet in a peaceful environment or where one can simply relax or refresh their energy.
The word “coffee” is first documented in the English language in 1582, derived from the Dutch word koffie, which in turn was borrowed from the Ottoman Turkish kahve, which was derived from the Arabic word for coffee or to brew, qahwa. Coffee was called the ‘wine of araby’.
There are three main types of coffee beans – the high quality Arabica, the inferior Robusta and then there is Liberica. The acidity levels of the coffee beans are considered an important factor. The lower the acidity, the better it is supposed to be.
How coffee is prepared, roasted, brewed, served and enjoyed varies from country to country. Then there are so many ways coffee is had – Cappuccino, Mocha, Latte, Americano, Espresso, etc. There are expensive and unique coffees like Kopi luwak or civet coffee, and some others even more or less expensive, like Black Ivory Coffee, Finca El Injerto Coffee, Hacienda La Esmeralda, Saint Helena Coffee, Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee, Fazenda Santa Ines, Starbucks Quadriginoctuple Frap, Los Planes Coffee.
Serving coffee has for centuries been an important aspect of hospitality in Arab societies.
It is considered a ceremonial act of generosity and traditionally, coffee is prepared in front of guests following a ritual.
Turkish coffee is sweetened, while it is brewing. It may be served unsweetened (sade kahve), with a little sugar (orta sekerli), or sweet (tatlı). Coffee is usually served with Turkish delight on the side or with cardamom seeds Espresso is the usually consumed coffee of Italy. It’s usually drunk hot, while standing at the coffee bar, ‘al-banco’ in Italian. Fine compacted grounds and very hot water at high pressure are used to create the unique flavour of espresso, which needs to be consumed almost immediately.
India is otherwise known as a tea drinking nation. But, coffee came to India even before the East India Company through a Sufi saint Baba Budan returning from a pilgrimage to Mecca. Chikmagalur in Karnataka has a record of cultivation of coffee as early as 1670. In order to create a distinct symbol of community identity, Tamilians were the first to adopt coffee and gradually the coffee culture spread across other South Indian communities too and cafés became popular meeting places. 3 states in India – Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu are the largest growers of coffee.
One thing is certain, coffee culture is constantly evolving to serve our changing lifestyles and the simple coffee bean has captivated and delighted us across the world and will continue do so in the future. My favourite though is the South Indian filter ‘kaapi’, which is made by mixing frothed and boiled milk with the infusion obtained by percolation brewing of finely ground coffee powder (kaapi podi) in a traditional Indian filter.
Preeti Mehta
President
Vintage pop art coffee posters used for representational purposes
