The Story of Coffee

500 AD African Origins - The Goat Herder Legend
In the tropical highlands of Eastern Africa about 500 AD a goat herder from Kaldi, Ethiopia noticed that his goats were acting strangely. He was disturbed and feared that his sheep were possessed. He watched closely from high on the mountain as his herd nibbled red berries from the branch of a strange tree. Seeing this, he then sampled some himself and felt invigorated.

The First Cup of Coffee
He shared his experience with some local monks. The monks then tried pouring water over the berries as a way to keep them awake during long devotional in church. In this holy place is where the first cup of coffee was born.

Quickly, the monastery became famous throughout Arabia for the spirited praying of its coffee-drinking brethren.

11th Century - Arabia Coffee is Roasted for First Time
The Arab traders brought back coffee to their homeland at the end of the first millennium AD They were the first to roast coffee beans in 1100. The Arabians termed the beverage "qahwa" a word meaning a beverage, which is made from plants. Here the wild plant was cultivated for the first time and grown on plantations. Coffee did not become popular in Europe till 300 years later.

16th Century The New World Gets
a Taste of Coffee
The New World was first introduced to coffee in 1607 by Captain John Smith, the founder of Jamestown.

1690 Dutch Steal Arab's Coffee Tree
As news of this "Arabian Wine" spread people were excited to try this new beverage. In 1690, the Dutch smuggled a coffee tree from the Arab port of Mocha, Ethiopia and brought it to island of Java, Indonesia. This was the beginning of the Indonesian line of coffees.

14th Century - The First Coffee Houses
Where better to enjoy a cup of coffee than a coffeehouse? The first one was built in 1475 in Constantinople.

The Coffeehouse Phenomenon Spreads throughout Europe

Paris in 1643
Oxford in 1650 (called penny universities because a person could buy a cup of coffee for 1 cent and learn more at the coffee house than in class!)
London in 1652
Vienna in 1683
and finally Berlin in 1721

17th Century - King Louis, a little sugar please. . .
In 1713 King Louis XIV of France was presented with a coffee tree as a favor from the Dutch. It is believed that here is the first place that someone added sugar to their cup of coffee to enhance the flavor. From this tree, billions of arabica trees sprouted. Seeds were sent to Surinam (North of Brazil) in 1714. From there the French brought the seeds to Cayenne in 1718. This marked the spread of coffee throughout the world.

By 1900 AD coffee had made it's way around the world to the regions of Zimbabwe, Kenya, Burundi, Malawi, and Tanzania. The Ethiopians introduced coffee to South Africa.

King Louis XIV
of France

19th Century - The First Espresso Machine is Invented
In 1903 Luigi Bezzera tried something new with coffee. He used pressure when brewing coffee to speed up the brewing process. He dubbed the machine, "Fast Coffee Machine". Espresso is the Italian word for "Fast". In 1905, Desidero Pavoni bought his patent and produced the first commercial espresso machine.

The First Drip Coffee Maker
The world's first drip coffee maker is invented. Melitta Bentz, a housewife from Dresden, makes the first coffee filter using blotter paper.

First Automatic Espresso Machine
Dr. Ernest Illy develops the first automatic espresso machine.

Nestle Develops Instant Coffee
In 1938, Nestle invented instant coffee as a solution to Brazil's coffee surplus problem.

Coffee Today
That's the story of the amazing, addictive, and adored beverage we call coffee. It's truly a world favorite, with more than 400 billion cups of coffee being consumed each year. The world's largest producers of coffee are Brazil, Colombia, and the Ivory Coast; others include Indonesia, Ethiopia, India, the Philippines, and Cameroon. Currently there are more than 100 varieties. It is a product of great importance as a world commodity that is second only to oil. So next time you grab a cup of coffee you'll know the rich history behind this warm and wonderful beverage.