OVER A CUP OF COFFEE

 “It’s amazing how the world begins to change through the eyes of a cup of coffee”

“Coffee is the favourite drink of the civilized world”, said Thomas Jefferson. Not many people can resist the aroma of freshly brewed coffee, a hot drink made from roasted and ground coffee beans. I am not surprised that among hot beverages, coffee has the highest sales, world-wide.

Coffee is qahwah in Arabic, which meant 'wine', due to its distinctly dark colour.I have always wondered what people really like about this darkly coloured, bitter, and slightly acidic drink?     Surely, because of its stimulating effect, due to the presence of caffeine.

Coffee drinking - its origins

While taking a cup of coffee we seldom think where it came from.  Coffee’s history is interesting. As its botanical name Coffea arabicasuggests, drinking coffee first started in the Arabian countries, to be precise, in modern-day Yemen,  in the middle of the 15th century, in Sufi shrines (the Sufis perhaps needed to keep themselves awake in order to conduct religious rituals). They procured the beans from the Ethiopian Highlands via coastal Somalia.  By the 16th century, it spread to the rest of the Middle East and North Africa, later spreading to Europe.

When did it come to India?  The first coffee seeds were said to have been smuggled out of the Middle East by Sufi Baba Budan from Yemen to India during the time. The first plants grown from these smuggled seeds were planted in Mysore.

The Dutch East India Company, as well as the British East India Company, popularised coffee drinking in Europe, Britain, as also in their colonies. Nevertheless, during the 18th century in Britain, coffee was mostly replaced by the cheaper tea.

Coffee reached North America during the colonial period, but was not initially popular. The demand for coffee dramatically increasedduring theRevolution, especially after the Boston Tea party.  By 1920, around half of all coffee produced worldwide was consumed in the US.

Meanwhile, coffee was introduced to Brazil in 1727, thereafter, massive tracts of rainforest were cleared for coffee plantations. Brazil became the largest producer in the world by 1852.

Coffee at home

^{Keralites are generally tea drinkers. I suspect coffee drinking was introduced by Tamil settlers in Kerala.  In my mother’s home, both tea and coffee were made and used to be kept on a table in two large vessels. They tasted, bland and watery. Whoever passed by that way simply dipped a ladle, and poured tea or coffee into their tumbler, as if drinking plain water. Anyway, boiled water was better than cold water from the well!}

^{In my grandma’s place coffee was of better quality. Interestingly, she kept coffee for each of us in different- shaped brass lotta (tumbler). The very sight of coffee kept in shining brass lottas early in the morning, in a row, brightened our day.}

^{While we moved to Trivandrum, our mother used to make tea and coffee in big vessels, like it used to be back at her home, as our family size was large. For those who wanted strong coffee, decoction was available.}

^{We used to buy coffee from a store named Shakti Coffee, which was next to our school. My mother used to ask me to get it for her. The man at the counter of the shop powdered coffee beans in a large machine and packed the powder deftly into packages. Due to the aroma spread by the coffee all round, people used to stare at my school bag out of curiosity, while I was walking back home, as if to track its origin!}

^{Recently I passed that way; the store Sakti Coffee was no longer there.}

Interestingly, we had alonecoffee plant in our backyard, almost the size of a small tree. It used to bloom at night. I still remember the heady fragrance from the flowers that used to fill the night air.

^{Making Coffee}

^{Ordinarily, coffee is made by boiling coffee powder with the desired amount of water and milk, and pouring it into cups, once the coffee powder settles down. If you need better coffee, a special vessel is used. The vessel has two portions; the upper one is perforated with small holes on the bottom side. A perforated stirrer is also kept in the upper vessel. You put coffee powder in this part and pour boiling water over it. Close the lid tightly. Slowly the coffee essence gets collected in the lower portion, drip by drip. Today electric coffee makers are available. Nevertheless, many may find that the traditional one is more convenient and easier to handle.}

^{In Kerala we make ChukkuKaappi- coffee boiled with dried ginger, which is taken when you have cold and fever. Another type of coffee is Karipetti coffee made by boiling coffee with palm Jaggery (produced chiefly in adjoining Kanya Kumari district of Tamil Nadu). No milk is added to the coffee. My own preference is for Chicorycoffee. Chicory (Chicoriumintybu or coffee weed)is a weed, the roasted seeds of which when powdered and added to coffee gives it a special flavour and bitter taste.}

^{People who are particular about the taste of their coffee buy coffee seeds and powder them at home. I too did for some time, but gave up that habit as I didn’t   want to spend time on it.}

^{ServingCoffee During our younger days’, coffee used to be served in a set of vessels-- a steel tumbler placed in a kind of bowl (called Dawra), with flat bottom. The hot coffee could be poured into the bowl for cooling and poured back into the tumbler for drinking. Except in very few homes, the practice is not kept on. Some traditional hotels still serve coffee that way. Now coffee mugs have become ubiquitous. Mugs are attractive and easier to handle. They don’t burn your hands.}

^{Instant Coffee   I remember instant coffee made its appearance in India in early 70’s. It indeed revolutionized coffee-drinking in India. While the Nescafé brand was popular in North India, South Indians preferred another brand called Bru. Slowly the habit of making traditional brewed coffee disappeared, and is now confined to very few homes. Now filter-coffee is popular in India, and is available everywhere-the airports, railway stations and cafes.}

Instant coffee is produced when coffee is dried into soluble powder or freeze-dried into granules that can be quickly dissolved in hot water. Coffee seeds are de-caffeinated while the seeds are still green by steaming them, then using a solvent to dissolve caffeine-containing oils. The extracted caffeine is usually sold to the pharmaceutical industry.

^{Coffee Abroad    Before I visited countries abroad, I was under the impression that there was only one type of coffee. It was during my visit to Rome that I discovered that coffee can be of different types like Capuchino (strong coffee), Café latte (with more milk) and Café Expresso (with foam).}

^{Although Europeans are not coffee producers, they perhaps drink the best coffee in the world. All cities and towns are dotted with cafes and restaurants that serve good coffee. One can walk along the streets enjoying the wonderful aroma of coffee. In Frankfurt airport I could track the coffeeshop by following the aroma of coffee made there!}

^{While I was staying in a Pensione in Rome, dark concentrated coffee used to be served in tiny cups, after dinner, which I never took. I used to wonder how people could take strong coffee at night and yet get good sleep.}

^{It was while I was aboard a Middle Eastern flight that I tasted something akin to coffee, served in tiny cups. Once I reached my destination, I asked my hostess about it. While I was leaving, she presented me a big bag containing some powder. Back home, I discovered that it was nothing but cardamom powder!}

Asian coffee known as Kopi luwak is unique. Coffee berries are fed to Asian Palm Civet. The berries pass through its digestive tract and are harvested from its faeces. Coffee brewed this way is very expensive. The bean prices reach up to $160 per pound or $30 per brewed cup.

 In Thailand, black ivory coffee beans are fed to elephants. The beans collected from the dung cost up to $1,100 a kilogram ($500 per lb). It is the world's most expensive coffee, three times costlier than Palm Civet coffee beans!

Coffee Houses in Europe were indeed famous. The first European coffee house opened in Venice in 1647 and the first coffee house in Constantinople in 1775. They were haunted by writers, thinkers, poets and the likes. The legendary Cafe Stray Dog in St. Petersburg was once the haunt of Silver Age writers such as Vladimir Mayakovski and Anna Akhmatova.

Coffee houses slowly became hotbeds of politics. King Charles II of England afraid of rebellion, briefly outlawed coffeehouses . King Frederick the Great banned it in Prussia, due to concern about the price of coffee and its production in colonies. Sweden too prohibited coffee in the 18th century.

Today, wherever one goes, one finds the cities abroad dotted with cafés and restaurants, with the aroma of coffee wafting around, as one walks along the streets. Now, instead of coffee houses, we have famous coffee chains like Starbucks, Barista, Café Mocha and the like, all over the world.

The Indian Coffee HouseIn India too we had the famous Indian Coffee Houses in the not- so- distant past, in most major cities. During my first visit to Patna in 1976, I, to my surprise, discovered a branch of the Indian Coffee House, which was hugely popular. Students from nearby Patna University and local youth patronised it. For families with children, it was an ideal place for outings. People of Patna are not coffee drinkers. I suspect that coffee was not the main attraction for them; instead, it was Masala dosa and delicacies that the Coffee House offered. Unfortunately, due to high overhead charges, the Coffee house closed later.

In Trivandrum, we still do have an Indian Coffee House, although the one we had opposite our former home closed long ago. Situated in the heart of the city it is one of the popular places haunted by the young and old alike. It is one of the very few Indian coffee houses surviving today. It is somehow struggling and surviving due to financial support from the state government.

Today we find that Coffee chains like Coffee Day have replaced the good- old Indian Coffee Houses in India. The coffee served in their outlets can rival Barista or Starbuck coffee, both in aroma and taste.

Growing coffee

So far I only knew about two most commonly grown coffee--- C. arabica and C. robusta(also known as C. canephora). There are also other  less popular varieties --- C. liberica, C. stenophylla, C. mauritiana, and C. racemosa.

Coffee plants are cultivated in over 70 countries, especially in the Americas, Southeast Asia,  India, and Africa. Brazil is the leading grower, producing about 35% of coffee in the world.

Over one hundred million people in developing countries are dependent on coffee for their livelihoods. Although the sales of coffee reach billions of dollars worldwide, the farmers producing coffee beans survive in poverty.

Concerns Traditionally coffee plants are "shade-grown". The quality of coffee produced this way is considered superior. However, from 1970’s many farmers switched over to ‘Sun cultivation’ in which coffee is grown directly under full sun. Berries ripen more rapidly and produce higher yields. However, this method requires the clearing of trees and increased use of irrigation, fertilizer and pesticides, which damage the environment and cause health problems.

Coffee production uses a large volume of water. On average it takes about 140 litres (37 US gal) of water to grow the coffee beans needed to produce one cup of coffee.

What is the way out? Of course, cutting down coffee production and less coffee consumption could be a solution in the long run. However, any sudden cut back on coffee production may affect small growers and farm labour adversely; so also, the supply chains. In future, synthetic biology, using genetic engineering, may be able to synthesize coffee, without going through its cultivation and processing. Even then, alternate engagement for those who are left with no means for livelihoods will be a huge issue.

Safety   Drinking 3-4 cups of coffee per day is considered generally safe. Caffeine in coffee is known for its stimulant effects. According to the USDA National Nutrient Database, a 240-millilitre (8 US fl oz) cup of "coffee brewed from grounds" contains 95 mg caffeine, whereas an espresso (25 mL) contains 53 mg. Coffee drinkers are generally advised to take only moderate amounts of coffee.

Looking Back Coffee-drinking is an acquired habit. Like everything else acquired, one can do away with coffee too. I too may overcome this habit very soon.  

In my youth, I used to consume several cups of coffee a day. But now I take only two cups, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. Coffee helps me keep awake, keeps me alert and helps me concentrate on my work.

I feel that coffee has been an important factor in my life.  It has triggered my thought processes and stimulated my creativity. Looking back, like T. S. Eliot, I could say that "I have measured out my life with coffee spoons".

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