Writer: Sean Park
Designer: Jericho Krueger
As a passionate coffee drinker, I’ve been using coffee mainly to keep myself from dozing off in class and to stay sharp to meet deadlines. However, I also enjoy the taste, especially that of Guatemalan coffee beans. While coffee is a great way to wake myself up, it is more than just a beverage. From its origins to different methods of processing, coffee has a rich story.
History
The exact details of where coffee originated from are unknown, but it is widely considered to have originated from Kefa (Kaffa), Ethiopia. Some legends say that Kadli, an Ethiopian Arab goatherd, first discovered coffee around 850 CE. One day, he saw his goats dancing and jumping back and forth, full of energy even at night. Kadli later discovered that his goats ate unfamiliar red berries and decided to try some himself. After eating a few berries, he became just like his goats: happy, energetic, and dancing.
Meanwhile, the first writer to mention coffee was Abu Bakr al-Razi (850 to 922 CE), a Persian physician and philosopher who characterized it as a medicine. He wrote that bunchun, the Ethiopian name for a coffee cherry, “is hot and dry and very good for the stomach.”
In the 15th century, wild coffee plants were carried to Southern Arabia to cultivate. By the 16th century, they further spread to Persia, Egypt, Syria, and Turkey.
Different Methods of Processing Coffee
The long history of harvesting coffee has yielded three ways of processing, each providing a different range of flavours.
The natural processing method is the oldest and most traditional way of processing coffee. Workers dry the harvested coffee cherries under the sun before removing their skins and dried fruit flesh. The cherries then “rest” in storage before going to a roaster. The natural method produces a sweet, fruity taste in coffee, and many experts believe that this process can theoretically achieve the best flavour. However, it is quite challenging to dry and ripen every cherry consistently.The washed method, as the name implies, is the opposite of the drying method. After resting in a freshwater tank for 24 to 72 hours, ripened coffee cherries go to a
machine that uses water to remove their skin and flesh. Once washed, they dry like the natural method. The final flavour and qualities depend exclusively on the quality of the cherry and how much sugar and nutrients each bean can contain. Experts say that it is a great way to measure the quality of the coffee beans as it is consistent and has a pleasant level of acidity.
Lastly, the honey process gets its name from how sticky the beans get during the process and how sweet the coffee can be if done well. As with the washed method, harvested cherries undergo a washing process before drying. The difference is that the amount of flesh remaining on the bean can vary depending on the desired flavour, with more flesh resulting in a sweeter and fruitier product. Connoisseurs say that coffee from the honey process has a “lovely sweetness and a symphony of higher notes that washed beans just can’t achieve” while having a “clean and brightness that a natural processed coffee doesn’t have.”
Health Benefits and Risks
A 2016 report from the World Health Organisation says that drinking coffee decreases the risk of liver and uterine endometrium cancers. Coffee is also known to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and gallstones. However, they are not without health risks, as drinking copious amounts of coffee can result in restlessness, insomnia, and anxiety.
Coffee may also have a link to some forms of cancer. This is because of acrylamide, a chemical formed when beans are roasted. According to the 2014 Report on Carcinogens by the National Toxicology Program, acrylamide can have the potential to develop certain cancers. Researchers say there isn’t conclusive evidence directly linking acrylamide to cancer, but the association between the two has remained. In particular, a California ruling in March 2018 required all coffee sellers in the state to include warning labels on their products; reasoning companies failed to elaborate that acrylamide does not cause cancer.
Personal Take and Conclusion
Despite the health risks, coffee has long been a widely consumed beverage. Like with anything in life, moderation is the key to being healthy while enjoying coffee.
As a BCIT student, balancing getting enough sleep and relying on coffee to work is hard. Nevertheless, coffee is the perfect tool to stay alert and boost my productivity, especially in the morning. It was surprising to learn how much history, from its origins and methodologies to risks and benefits, is in a cup of coffee I drink daily.
