Legend has it that coffee originated in Africa – Ethiopia, specifically.
Kaldi reported his findings to the abbot of the local monastery, who made a drink with the berries and found that it kept him alert through the long hours of evening prayer. The abbot shared his discovery with the other monks at the monastery, and knowledge of the energizing berries began to spread.
During the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, coffee came to Turkey, when the man he despatched to govern Yemen came across an energising drink known there as qahwah. The drink was brought to the Ottoman court in Constantinople, where it became an instant hit.
In this brilliant exposé, published on the economist.com, Sarah Jilani reveals “How Turkish Coffee Destroyed an Empire.”
Please kindly read the full article below….
It’s known as Greek coffee to Greeks and Cyprio
ts, Bosnian coffee to Bosnians, Armenian coffee to Armenians, Arabic coffee to Arabs, and Turkish coffee to Turks, Croatians, Albanians and Serbs.
But in the mid-16th century, it was just kahve – coffee. At the time, these people were ruled over by the Ottoman Empire, which swept kahve-lovers from south-eastern Europe to Persia into its wide embrace. But by the early years of the 19th century, the empire was beginning to fracture. Kahve played a little-known role in its eventual demise.
Coffee came to Turkey during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. When the man he despatched to govern Yemen came across an energising drink known there as qahwah, he brought it back to the Ottoman court in Constantinople, where it was an instant hit.
The resulting drink – bitter, black and topped with a thin layer of froth created by pouring it quickly – was served in small porcelain cups.
To balance its bitterness, legend has it, Suleiman’s wife, Hürrem Sultan, took her kahve with a glass of water and a square of Turkish Delight – which is how it is served in Turkey today.
