Monday, August 29, 2011

How Coffee Was Utilized Throughout The Ages

By Vance Suentenfuss


Nobody knows for sure where or when coffee was discovered and put to use. Additionally, more speculation surrounds when the magic bean moved from a food source to a popular drink.

Ethiopians started eating raw coffee after they noticed how grazing goats would get a buzz from eating them. They eventually found that if they smashed these little berries and mixed them with animal fat, a pasty little coffee pellet could be formed.

These pellets were eaten and provided a simple and easy to store energy supplement. They were especially useful in giving soldiers energy during times of conflict. These little pellets became an every day staple in the diet of Ethiopians. The coffee berries could also be eaten whole, and the pulp inside was loaded with caffeine and sweet tasting.

There is also proof that these berries were used in the processing and manufacturing of wine. In addition, coffee was used as a food in Arabia, a region just the north and east of Ethiopia. They didn't use coffee to drink until much later however.

The earliest versions of coffee for drinking were made from steeping raw coffee beans in cool water before fire roasting them. After they were softened and roasted, they would boil the hulls in water until a yellowish looking liquid would form. This was the first version of coffee.

By the end of the first millennium coffee was still pretty basic and the process of making the drink were very rudimentary.

During the 13th century, researchers were looking for better ways to store coffee. One thing they experimented with sun drying the beans. Their hope was to make beans smaller and longer lasting.

After that, they learned how to roast and smash them up into small granules and then mix with hot water. That is how brown and flavorful coffee was born. Now, in the 21st century, the same techniques make coffee what it is today. Not only that, but it is the most popular drink in the world, and its value as a trading commodity is second only to oil. What a long way away we are from eating slimy coffee balls.




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