Intro to Coffee

Coffee Background

Coffee, how could we live without it? Many of use coffee to wake up in the morning, to get us through a long afternoon, or to keep up awake through the night. We get coffee when working on projects, when socializing with friends, or when we are relaxing at home. For many of us coffee drinking has become part of our daily routine. So where did this coffee come from?
Like many sacred things, the coffee bean’s story begins with a legend, a legend of a man named Kaldi. One night, Kaldi, an Ethiopian goatherd, was returning from herding his goats. He noticed that his goats were especially energetic as they were jumping and leaping around much more than they usually did. After noting this difference on a number of different occasions, he decided to find out what was causing them to act this way. He followed the goats and watched them eat berries off of some trees. He reported the difference to the monastery nearby, where they began to crop, harvest, and consume these “berries”. As knowledge of this berry began to spread, the interest in the berry also began to spark. And so began the history of the coffee bean. This is just one of the many variations of this legend.

The first country to document coffee was indeed Ethiopia. Eventually the beans reached the Arabian Peninsula where the production and consumption thrived – entirely due to the idea that the non-”haraam” (non-forbidden) beverages were appropriate for any devout Muslim to consume. As Europeans caught wind of this new beverage, they began to import and trade for coffee themselves. After the coffee was introduced to the newly colonized country of America, it was believed to have been popularized by the Boston Tea Party. When Britain placed higher taxes on commodities like tea, Americans informally made coffee their national drink of choice.

Coffee Growth and Production

The coffee bean comes from the seed of a berry on the coffee plant. The coffee plant grows best in warm and moist locations. It is grown in several tropical locations including countries in South America, Central America, and Africa.

There are several different types of coffee plants, but the two most popular ones are the Arabica and the Robusta. The Arabica is harder to grow but has a superior taste, whereas the Robusta is more durable and easier to grow but falls short a little taste wise.

To process these coffee beans, the coffee berries are removed from the plant and either dried or washed and then the pulp is removed from the coffee bean. After the beans are harvested and processed, they are shipped out to roasters all over the world and the roasting process begins.

Coffee Roasting

The roasting process is what brings out the true flavor of the coffee beans. Coffee roasting takes a lot of practice and skill. A good roaster must take into consideration the type and size of each coffee bean and where it originated from. Based on these considerations he or she must find the perfect temperature and roasting time to bring out the best flavor of the coffee beans. If the beans are roasted too long at too low of a temperature, it will take away much of the beans desired flavor, but they are roasted to quickly at too high of a temperature, the beans will acquire a burnt taste. The best roasters are the ones who can find a balance between these two extremes.

There are 5 main types of roasts: “Very Light”, “Light”, “Medium”, “Dark”, and “Darkest.” The lightness and darkness of each roast is based on the color of the coffee bean which gets darker the longer it is in the roaster; the darker the roast, the stronger the coffee.

Some “Very Light” roasts include “Half-city roast”, “Cinnamon roast”, and “New England roast”. The “Light” roasts include “City roasts” and “American roasts”. Medium roasts include “Full-city roasts”, “Vienna roasts” and “Continental roasts.” The “Dark roasts” are known as “Italian roasts”. Finally, the “Darkest roasts” include “French roast” and “Spanish roast.”

Coffee Effects

“People drink coffee to relieve mental and physical fatigue and to increase mental alertness.” Coffee also improve alertness after sleep deprivation. When combining caffeine with glucose mental performance seems to improve better than either caffeine or glucose alone. Consuming over 6 cups/day may cause “caffeinism” with symptoms of anxiety or agitation. People drinking a lot of coffee in daily bases may have to drink more coffee to get the same effects. They can also become “dependent” on coffee which can develop withdrawal symptoms if they suddenly stop drinking it. “Coffee containing caffeine can cause insomnia, nervousness and restlessness, stomach upset, nausea and vomiting, increased heart and breathing rate, and other side effects. [Large] amounts of coffee [can] also cause headache, anxiety, agitation, ringing in the ears, and irregular heartbeats.”

“Drinking unfiltered (boiled) coffee increases the amount of cholesterol and other fats in the blood, and also raises the level of homocysteine, …which are associated with an increased risk of developing heart disease.” Some research shows the relations between heart attacks and coffee consumption. Using coffee filters helps reducing effects on cholesterol. Some people are concerned that drinking more than 5 cups of coffee per day may not be safe for people with heart disease. But in comparison to people who don’t have heart disease, it does not seem to increase the chance of developing a heart problem in relation to their consumption of several cups a day. Few of us also concern, that occasional coffee drinking may cause heart attack in some people. People who drinking greater amounts regularly do not seem to have this risk. “People who usually don’t drink more than one cup of coffee daily and also have multiple risk factors for heart disease seem to have an increased risk for heart attack within an hour after drinking coffee.”

It is amazing to think about how coffee can be grown across the world, roasted in another part of the world, and purchased still in another part of the world. Coffee unites us all in a sense. It is, for the most part, an inexpensive luxury that can be enjoyed in most parts of the world. I hope this information was helpful and that this basic intro to coffee helps you in your journey of purchasing and enjoying coffee in the future.

Sources/Credits:
Book: Confessions of a Coffee Bean: The Complete Guide to Coffee 
Cuisine (Square One Classics) by Marie Nadine Antol, Chapters 1 and 2

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