For you, coffee fans, here are a few fun facts about coffee; don't forget your cup while reading this one.
n Indonesian cities, everything from modern coffee franchises to humble warung kopi (coffee stalls) can be found easily. It's a sign that coffee plays a big role in our lives, and is certainly more than just a drink.
For you, coffee fans, here are a few fun facts about coffee; don't forget your cup while reading this one.
The mysterious origins of coffee
If you have a certain interest in coffee, you'll recognize the story of a legendary Ethiopian man named Kaldi. According to myth, Kaldi was the person who discovered coffee. It was quite an unexpected finding, as he is said to have become curious after noticing that his goats got excited when eating coffee beans. Unfortunately, there is no documentation or evidence to support the tale.
However, most people know that coffee was very famous in the Middle East and Africa during its introductory phase. Now you can find coffee in every country around the globe.
Coffee was prohibited
In the past few years, coffee has become part of the lifestyle in Indonesia, especially in big cities like Jakarta. Everybody drinks coffee to support their busy routines or to help them relax while reading a book. Coffee shops with unique and minimalistic concepts are everywhere. You might not believe it, but drinking coffee was not as easy in the past as it is today.
Some countries used to hate coffee. In Italy, for instance, priests were worried about the arrival of Muslim sultans who brought coffee to replace wine. After a while, coffee became one of the biggest parts of the Italian culinary culture.
Bach wrote music about coffee
Entitled Coffee Cantata, the composition tells the story of a young man named Lieschen who pleads with his disapproving father to accept his devotion to coffee, and was created by the famous composer Johann Sebastian Bach.
It includes lines like: Ei! wie schmeckt der Coffee süße, Lieblicher als tausend Küsse, Milder als Muskatenwein (Oh! How sweet does coffee taste, better than a thousand kisses, milder than muscat wine).
(Read also: Coffee guerrillas fighting for the perfect cup)
Indonesia is among the best producers
Back in the day, Indonesia had an important role in introducing coffee to the US. The coffee market in the archipelago later dropped off because of a pest outbreak around the 1880s.
But it seems like we're back in the game again thanks to the existence of luwak coffee, known for being the most expensive coffee in the world.
The world's largest coffee consumer is...
New York City, the US. New Yorkers consume seven times more coffee than the rest of the world. That's why it's extremely easy to find coffee shops in New York — as easy as finding cigarette shops in Indonesia. (kes)
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