Today, coffee culture has diversified from artisanal coffee shops that serve single-origin coffees to multinational chains that offer coffee on every corner, making coffee a testimony of creativity, innovation, and human connection.
European explorers brought coffee to the New World. Plantations sprang up in Central and South America, driven by Africans and indigenous peoples. This consolidated coffee as one of the most traded commodities in the world.
In the 17th century, coffee arrived in Europe. Some condemned it, others loved it. The first coffeehouses sprang up in Venice, London, and Paris, nicknamed “penny universities” for the stimulating conversations they generated.
Coffee reached the Arabian Peninsula, where it was cultivated, roasted, prepared, and marketed by Sufi monks. This led to the creation of the qahveh khaneh, social centers to discuss politics, philosophy, and literature with steaming cups of coffee.
First stop: Ethiopia’s lush highlands, where the legend is that coffee was discovered by a goat herder named Kaldi. Intrigued, he tasted the berries and experienced a new vitality.
Ready to embark on a journey to explore the origins of your cup of coffee? We start here, tracing its path from humble seeds to the comforting cup that graces our mornings.
There is more to learn from your cup of coffee!
