coffee

Name of the popular beverage prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee tree (fig.). After being picked, the coffee berries (fig.) are sorted by ripeness and color and the flesh of the berry is removed. Then the seeds, called beans, are fermented to remove the slimy layer of mucilage, washed and dried. By then they are referred to as green coffee beans which may be decaffeinated by steaming or soaking them in hot water, using a solvent to break up the oils that contain caffeine. Then the green coffee beans are roasted at around 200°C-240°C. During this process caramelization takes place and the colour of the bean changes from pale to light or dark brown, depending on the temperature: the higher the temperature, the darker the beans. Dark roasts are generally smoother as they contain less fibers and a have more sugary flavour, whereas lighter roasts have more caffeine, are more bitter and a have stronger flavour. The word coffee is by some believed to derive from the Arabic word cafir or kafir (كافر), i.e. ‘unbeliever’, as coffee beans were initially imported from Ethiopia, up to present a mostly Christian country, and were hence referred to as cafir beans, while the Ethiopian province of Kefa, one of the 14 provinces in the old Ethiopian administration and earlier known as the Kingdom of Kaffa, is mentioned as the place were coffee originated, growing in the wild in the Ethiopian highlands and —according to a 17th century (likely apocryphal) story— discovered by a 9th century Ethiopian goatherd who had noticed how excited his goats became after eating coffee beans. As with tea in China and other parts of Asia and the Far East, coffee is used to welcome guests in one's home throughout the Arab world, the head of the household personally preparing and offering it to his guests. In Thailand, there are two varieties of coffee produced, namely Robusta coffee, which is grown mainly in the south and accounting for approximately 80,000 tons per year, and Arabica coffee varieties that are cultivated mainly in the  north, because of the higher altitude and cooler air, and a production which amounts to ca. 500 tons per year. The difference in coffee beans is that Arabica coffee beans, the first variety to be discovered and hence regarded as the original coffee, are longer and bigger than those of Robusta, have a slightly curved stripe in the centre, somewhat S-shaped, and before being roasted their colour is a light green tone, whereas Robusta coffee beans are smaller and more oval than those of Arabica, have a less curved line in the centre, which is almost straight, and before being roasted their colour is a pale green tone. The most common variety is Robusta, as it is hardier, i.e. more resistant to disease, produces better yields, and its beans have lower acidity, more bitterness, a more woody and less fruity flavour, and contain more caffeine. Due to its greater immunity to disease Robusta thrives in areas where Arabica would be devastated by fungus and other diseases and pests. Robusta is widely used in espresso blends because it is known to produce a better crema, i.e. the creamy layer on top of an espresso. The coffee beans of a third genus, i.e. Coffea liberica, not found in Thailand, but naturalized in the Philippines, Indonesia, the Seychelles, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and Malaysia, are asymmetric with one side being slightly longer than the other, making the bean somewhat pointed, while the line in the centre is slightly wider and more diffuse in shape. Thailand has its own brands of -especially hill tribe- coffees (fig.), while also Vietnam has a long tradition of growing its own brands (fig.). Both Thailand and Vietnam nowadays have their own chains of coffee shop, the most famous and popular in Thailand being Amazon and in Vietnam Highlands Coffee. Those will serve a variety of hot and cold coffee drinks, including Cappuccino, an espresso-based coffee drink prepared with microfoam, i.e. steamed milk foam, and that derives its name from the hooded robes worn by monks of the Capuchin order, with capuchin being the term for the hood and cappuccino being its diminutive form. Whereas the colour of the robes are described as auburn, a very small amount of cream was initially added to the coffee drink to get the capuchin colour, hence the etymology. Some countries of Southeast Asia produce a kind of coffee known as kopi luwak (fig.), which is made from coffee berries that have been eaten by the Common Palm Civet (fig.), yet pass largely undigested through its digestive tract and are harvested from its feces. See also cha and Common Palm Civet. 回