In its early years, coffee was synonymous with luxury.
A hundred years ago, coffee was also called black gold. We also know that coffee was one of the hard goods in trade, along with tobacco and silk and porcelain, transported along the Silk Road by Arab traders.
The red fruit of 9 degrees north latitude, the dream of 8 degrees east longitude flower
500 years of roaming, five continents of black gold.
In Ethiopia, at 9 degrees north latitude, a red fruit grew, and more than a thousand years ago, shepherd's lambs accidentally ate this plant, became very excited and lively, and then discovered coffee. It was not until around the 11th century that people began to brew coffee as a drink. In the Arab world, because Islam forbids drinking alcohol, Muslims use coffee instead of alcohol, and coffee has become the "holy wine of Islam."
"yellow coffee"type of Arabic coffee
At the end of the 16th century, coffee was introduced into Europe in the name of "Islamic wine" by Venetian merchants and the Dutch who were maritime hegemons. This black drink full of Oriental mystery, rich taste and fragrant aroma were fascinated by the aristocratic gentry class, and the price of coffee rose, and even produced the title of "black gold".
Then in the long 500 years, this black gold has experienced wars, passed through the court, crossed the ocean, and now all over the world, filled in the Chinese business circle, but also focused on the mouth of today's people, how to boil this bitter bean into a strong flavor of coffee, and fresh "banknotes".
In the distant year 1683, Cafe Botega, a small and simple style cafe, opened in Venice's Piazza SAN Marco. By the end of the 17th century, several cafes in St. Mark's Square were already well known, and the brand "St. Mark's" reputation in the coffee world today is somewhat related to this.
In addition, for most of the 18th century, major Italian cities followed the example of the Florian cafe in St. Mark's Square in Venice, setting off a high-end luxury route of cafes, which is the so-called coffee palace. Coffee gradually became popular among Arab countries and Muslims, and the Ottoman Empire played a very important role in the history of the spread of coffee, almost forming a coffee culture with the same status as religious belief.
random Ottoman barista selling coffee.
In Europe at that time, with the continuous growth of people's demand for new knowledge and social interaction, cafes were called "the most representative public sphere in modern times" by Habermas, which was all the rage in modern Britain. It is said that during the reign of Queen Anne (1702-1714), the number of cafes in the city of London reached more than 3,000. Before this period, the operation of London cafes has been quite popular, which is not only due to the low consumer prices of cafes at that time, but more importantly, it provides customers with a public space to relax, learn news, communicate information, exchange knowledge, talk about the world and criticize the current politics.
London's coffee houses are not only a place to exchange economic information, but also a favorite place for political and academic discussion. For a penny, you can make your own speech here, and in 1675 Thomas Jordan wrote in a metrical poem in praise of the Mayor of London: "Such a great university/I don't think ever/where you can be a scholar/for a penny." After the appearance of this poem, British cafes have a new nickname in the street, that is, "Penny University" (Penny University).
They are discussing current affairs in a coffee shop.
Two or two hundred years later, coffee has become an essential part of everyday life, and it is still synonymous with luxury to some extent, but rising productivity and global trade have made it accessible to most people.
The story of coffee, like tobacco, is almost as recent as human history.
We all love coffee, and what about you?
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