It is said that the first coffee houses were located in Mecca. The Kaveh Kanes, originally religious meeting houses, soon turned into social meeting places where news and gossip were exchanged, and clients were entertained by singing and traditional story-telling. But it didn't take long before controversy started between those in favour of the drink and those against. This however didn't stop coffee from gaining popularity all over the world and one after the other coffee house opened its doors. The controversy followed in its footsteps. At one time some clerics in Italy even suggested it was the Devil's work in an attempt to get the beverage forbidden. Their plan however fell through as Pope Clement VIII liked it so much he strived for the complete opposite: having it baptised so it would truly be Christian drink! While the popularity of coffee increased rapidly, its cultivation remained in the hands of the Arabs for a long time. In an attempt to maintain total control, they even imposed a ban on the export of fertile coffee beans. This monopoly came to an end when the Dutch managed to circumvent this restriction in 1616 by getting a coffee plant to the Netherlands. The Dutch were also responsible for introducing coffee in Sri Lanka, Java and Surinam, soon after which it became widely established in South America. The British closed the circle in 1878 when they laid the foundations of the coffee industry in Kenya, right next to the country where it all started centuries before.
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AuthorI wouldn't be surprised to find out I was born with a passion for coffee. For the life of me, I can't remember not loving coffee. And by that, I don't just mean drinking it, but everything involved from its cultivation over the processing to the final product that is my loyal companion throughout the day. Archives
February 2014
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