While coffee was discovered in Ethiopia, it would be quite sometime before anybody started brewing the beverage that is so familiar to us.    Ethiopians were eating the coffee berries, and even mixing the pulp of the coffee berry with nuts and other food to make a sort of energy bar.  The leaves could even be steeped in a similar fashion to tea.  It wasn’t until coffee was introduced to Yemen that it evolved into the strong, dark brew that is so popular today.  In Yemen and Ethiopia it is still common tradition to roast your own beans, grind them by hand in a mortar, and serve up a small amount of a very strong concentrated beverage to friends and family.  In fact one of todays most popular coffee house beverages owes its name to a port city in Yemen.  The vast majority of coffee grown in Yemen left through the port of Mocca, also known as Mocha.

Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world, oil being the first.  But where did it come from?  We do not know the exact date, or the exact place where coffee was discovered.  And there are many tall tales about the origins of the coffee bean.  What we do know is that it was discovered in what is present day Ethiopia.  My favorite origin tale involves a shepherd.  He was out one day enjoying his free time while his goats were off grazing in the forest.  The time came for him to take the herd back in, but when he whistled for them they did not come.  He ventured into the forest looking for his lost herd, when he found them he could not believe his eyes.  Instead of his usually calm animals, he found a bunch of wound up wildly bleating goats prancing around a clearing.  The goats had discovered a coffee bush and were eating the berries and leaves (coffee leaves are also laced with caffeine).   – To be continued.

• In Europe, a cup = 6oz. and most coffee makers use this standard.  Keep that in mind when measuring out your coffee.  I recommend two tablespoons to every 6oz. cup.  Then again, I like my coffee pretty darn strong. J
• The hotplates on most drip coffee makers will scald coffee that is left on them.  To avoid a burnt and bitter cup, move your coffee to an insulated container.  Or just drink it faster.
• Use the proper grind for your brewing method:  Espresso = very fine, cone filter = fine, flat bottom filter = medium coarse, French press = very coarse.
• Again I recommend grinding your own coffee, most store bought coffee is what they call an “all purpose” grind.  Which is usually very coarse.

• Be careful with this one! Give your coffee grounds a little stir after you have started brewing.  Most coffee makers can be shut off manually and then restarted.  Many will also shut themselves off if the brewing compartment is opened.  Let it run for about 30-45 seconds, switch it off, open the brewing compartment and give your coffee a little stir with a spoon.  Then just close it up and restart the cycle.  This helps ensure that all the coffee brews evenly, not just that bit that’s under the water nozzle.  Please use caution, keep all body parts away from the water nozzle and out of the brewing compartment.  Take it from a barista:  STEAM BURNS HURT!