COFFEE -- Everything You've Always Wanted To Know About It
By M.-L.
@MALUSE (69409)
Germany
June 16, 2017 1:35pm CST
"What I had for breakfast" is one of the most popular topics on myLot. How many times have members described that they could only wake up after having a cup of good, strong coffee? Now try to imagine living, say, 700 years ago. People had to live not only without the internet but also without foodstuff which we consider essential today. How did they survive at all?*
Life must have been hard for hardcore sybarites (devotees of luxury and the sensual vices) living in Europe in the Middle Ages.
Let‘s look at the drink sector. Nearly everything a person devoted to pleasure and luxury *needs* to indulge in today had not yet arrived in Europe. What did people drink then? How did people wake up in the morning without a shot of caffeine? What did they drink sitting together in the afternoon? I‘m sure you agree that milk, water and herbal tea can become boring. At least there was already beer and wine!
Chronologically the goodies we can‘t imagine living without today arrived like this: Cocoa in 1528, tea in 1610, coffee in 1615. (Btw, tea came first only from China until someone smuggled some tea seeds in an etui to India).
The first coffee arrived at Venice from Turkey and coffee houses quickly spread through Italy and to Vienna. From there they moved on through most of Europe. The first recorded reference to coffee in England was in 1637 when a Turk named Jacob opened a coffee house in Oxford.
In the meantime, the Dutch had obtained coffee seeds from Malabar in India and planted them in their colony in Java. At that time coffee was either available from Mocha, the main port of Yemen, or from Java, giving rise to the famous blend of "Mocha-Java."
Aren't you glad to live now when cocoa, coffee and tea can be bought everywhere and are no luxury goods anymore?
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*They didn't. They all died.
Photo from pixabay.
25 people like this
22 responses
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I would actually be ok with just water (never boring for me!) . . . but I am glad I have my options of having coffee and tea (anytime, anywhere!).
@much2say (53944)
• Los Angeles, California
12 Jul 17
@enlightenedpsych2 We can so easily take for granted what we have access to! Most options are only a shop away!
@Marilynda1225 (79956)
• United States
16 Jun 17
I'm so happy I was born in an era where coffee is readily available
2 people like this
No, I think I would drink hot chocolate.
Now that was an interesting read
@thelme55 (76481)
• Germany
18 Jun 17
Thanks for the heads up. We are spoiled people now. My mother used to make coffee from corn grains when I was a child. Every now and then we got our Sikwati which was a cocoa drink from pure cocoa. When our cacao tree was bearing fruits, we drunk a lot of cocoa.
1 person likes this
@librarygeek1980 (3137)
• United States
16 Jun 17
Absolutely, I would go crazy if there was a shortage on coffee, lol!
1 person likes this
@lillywriter (1143)
• Lithuania
19 Jun 17
And I still do not imagine how to start a day without coffee, too loving it.
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
26 Jun 17
I even gladder I live in a time when flush toilets and daily baths are de rigeur!!
@jstory07 (134527)
• Roseburg, Oregon
18 Jun 17
Did you know because of global warming the Scientist say there will be no more coffee bean,, chocolate and bananas between 2020 and 2080..
I read that in a science magazine. .
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
21 Jun 17
Not a coffee drinker here, so happy there is tea as an option @MALUSE
@dramagirl26 (3259)
• Ringgold, Virginia
1 Jul 17
I never knew that about coffee so that's good information to know. I like coffee, although I prefer to drink it in the winter months.
@MALUSE (69409)
• Germany
1 Jul 17
@dramagirl26 I drink more tea than coffee but don't have different habits for summer and winter.
1 person likes this
@dramagirl26 (3259)
• Ringgold, Virginia
1 Jul 17
@MALUSE In the summer, I like to drink iced tea. In the winter, I like to drink coffee and cocoa to warm up after being in the cold.
@JamesHxstatic (29256)
• Eugene, Oregon
21 Jun 17
I certainly am. My four to six cups of strong, fresh-ground coffee each morning are delicious and stimulating.
@CRK109 (14558)
• United States
17 Jun 17
My parents used to LOVE coffee, and so, as a child, I just had to taste it to see what the big deal was. Ewww! I hated it! I thought they were crazy people! lol Today, I cannot begin my day without a cup of coffee. And I remember my parents and smile. I guess it's something we all grow into!
