The History of Coffee Beans

This story is one of the most wildest, controversial and amazing that has ever been told. Some facts are debated today and the intercontinental grudges are definitely being held to this day! This is the history, as told by Black Market. It all started with a chilled, Ethiopian farmer in the 13th Century, going about his business, herding goats and thinking about what life was about….UNTIL one day his goats were chewing on this red cherry and he noticed they were super energized and jumping around much more than they normally were. Being the adventurer that he was, he chewed on the berries and noticed a slight buzz in his head and rushed back to his Muslim elders in the village with a bag full of the cherries. This dude was named Kaldi. The elders, of course, thought he was crazy, threw him out of the village and the cherries into the fire. After about a minute, the cherries started to pop and a fragrant, enchanting, amazing aroma filled the hut, then the village with a floral, sweet scent that made the elders go crazy. They raked the beans from the fire, crushed it, boiled it and drank…the beginning of coffee!

Well…kind of, there is more interesting twists to this story.

Some explorers from the Middle East were trekking though Ethiopia and noticed the locals and even birds chewing on this cherry and how they acted after. They were very intrigued, so they took some of these trees back to Yemen. The coffee trees did well here and the market was soon demanding more and more coffee. Even the Sufi’s used coffee to keep themselves alert during nighttime prayers. The first coffeehouse opened in Istanbul in 1554 and attracted attention from Europeans venturing into the Middle East in search of new tradable items. After sweetening and adding cream the Europeans began a massive trade supply from the Middle East trying to keep up with demand. In 1616, cunning Dutch man by the name of Pieter van der Broecke stole a coffee plant from, brought it back to the Netherlands and planted it in the botanical gardens of Amsterdam. It flourished in the greenhouse there and soon was on its way to all the Dutch colonies around the world! This way to Europeans didn't have to rely on the Middle East for their only source of coffee, of which the European palate for it was growing wildly.

Fast forward

Skip a few hundred years to modern day earth and we are very lucky to have a great range of high quality beans to choose from. At Black Market Roasters, we research, source, roast and deliver some of the world’s most exotic and unique coffee beans so you can enjoy them in your home with family and friends. Our online coffee shop has a selection of Single Origin beans as well as smooth blends which can satisfy any coffee palate. We're a whole bunch of coffee nerds here at Black Market Training, and our Beginners Barista course will take you through the process from bean to milk spinning to help you become the best barista you can!