Legends and Secrets Behind Coffee: The Saint Who Brought It to India

India is the world's sixth coffee-producer country.

Coffee is believed to have originated from a region in Ethiopia called Kaffa in the ninth century. And ever since it arrived at Europe's ports, it has influenced and changed millions of people’s lives. What has made it so powerful over all these years? Why does it continue to inspire such a strong devotion in so many coffee lovers all over the world? For most people, coffee is nothing but this black and strong drink that helps them to perform more efficiently during the day. But for others, it’s so, so much more. It’s a lifestyle, a career path, a passion. And, for a few others, it’s a spiritual experience. The world has many mysteries. And believe it or not, coffee has been involved in some of those legends and secrets that continue to pick our curiosity for the unknown.

We’ve already talked about how different coffee culture is everywhere in the world. Some countries have very specific rituals when it comes to brewing this beverage, others have special and unique methods for growing coffee beans, others like to accompany their coffee with what some would consider very strange ingredients. In India, coffee has a strong religious meaning and symbolism. They believe that coffee was brought to their lands by a saint. This is the story of how it came to be.

The crime that changed everything

The legend says that a Sufi saint, called Baba Budan, revered by both Muslims and Hindus, started a pilgrimage to Mecca, around 1650. Coffee had already spread all across Arabia and had reached Yemen, where Baba Budan first encountered the beverage. During the 17th century, coffee exportation was limited to roasted or baked beans, and it was illegal to transport coffee plants to other territories.

After Baba Budan ended his pilgrimage, he discovered the drink in a place called Mocha, Yemen, a port city with an exit to the Red Sea, from which he planned to make his way back home. After trying it, it is said that he was simply captivated by it and thought of the dark liquid as quite refreshing.  With a strong desire to bring coffee to his homeland, and even though it was illegal and severely punished to do it, he strapped seven coffee beans to his chest and hid them all the way to India.

The legend says he chose the number seven because of its significance in Islam tradition (it appears many times all across the Quran, in Islamic rituals and beliefs.) After successfully smuggling those coffee beans out of Yemen, he found them a perfect place for them in his backyard's soils, at his home, located on the slopes of the Chandragiri Hills in Kadur district. The coffee beans grew, spread in the vicinities and ended up claiming a set of hills called Chandra Drona. Today, they’re named Baba Budan Hills, where his tomb can be visited.

Baba Budan’s little crime started India’s multimillionaire coffee industry. India is the world’s sixth coffee producer, and its coffee is known for its delicate aroma because it usually grows away from direct sunlight. Small farmers produce most Indian coffee, and even though tea is more popular because of English influence, Indian coffee is gaining more and more territory in the industry.

Many different tales and legends tell the story of how coffee entered our lives and changed our culture. At That Coffee Roasters, we love to explore the differences and nuances of every type of coffee! Catch us up next week to learn more about coffee history, traditions, legends, and secrets!

The legend says a saint brought coffee to the country.

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That Coffee Roasters

Phone Number: (305) 821-8811

2697 W. 76 Street, Hialeah, Florida 33016

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Storytime!: Why So Many Coffee Drinks Have Italian Names?

You should thank Italians for your daily cup of coffee!

Let’s play a little game and tell us if we guess right: Most of your favorite coffee drinks have espresso as its base ingredient. You can’t start your mornings without your cup of cappuccino. Isn't it right? Well, maybe coffee latte is your thing? Or perhaps you have a sweet tooth and prefer a mochaccino? One thing is certain. If we were to guess only by their names, all coffees' names seem to have come from one single place: Italy.

At least that’s how it feels with the most popular coffee drinks. All the best-known coffee beverages sound very Italian. So what’s up with this? Did Italians discover our favorite drink? Well, we know that our love for caffeine originated in Africa, so that’s not it. Actually, coffee first arrived in Italy through trade between North Africa and Venice during the 16th century. But still, there’s a reason why Italy has become the coffee capital of the world, and we’re here to find it out!

Why Espresso Changed Everything?

The key to exploring why Italian coffee culture became so famous in the first place is to focus on its most replicated product: espresso. Although today you can spend minutes ordering your drink and adding many ingredients to it, the original purpose of espresso was to have the ability to serve a shot of coffee as quickly as possible. We’ve got to thank the Industrial Revolution for it because it brought us the machine that made it possible. The “machinetta” was created by Luigi Bezzara in 1901, and it was responsible for compressing coffee and forcing pressurized water through it.  

Ever since then, coffee's world changed. Coffee houses were no longer just tranquil places. They were filled with the buzz of workers and businesspeople who entered every morning looking for a shot of espresso to fuel their day. It became an icon of the new century, and it arrived at the perfect time to become popularized in the whole country and, subsequently, in the rest of the world.

Original espresso tasted very different from what you enjoy today. The first machines' precariousness gave this drink a bitter and burnt flavor, and it was actually more similar to regular filtered coffee than present-day espresso. But because of how fast they were served, they were successfully commercialized in what was known as American bars: coffee shops in which customers stood on one side of the bar while waiting for their order.

Espresso consumption continued to grow until Mussolini’s fascist regime. Coffee imports were banned, and by the time of the II World War, coffee had virtually disappeared from Italy. One curious fact is that the term ‘barista’ actually comes from fascist Italy, as a way to oppose the American word then used: ‘barman.'

Nevertheless, the Italian coffee industry didn’t forget about espresso's potential as a unique beverage, and inventors continued to improve coffee machines in an effort to erase coffee's burnt flavors and contamination. By the 1950’s, Italians had created a new way to make espresso called caffè crema, which presented its famous mousse on top of the beverage. One we still see in espressos today.

Caffè crema's arrival marked the start of Italian influence in coffee drinks as we know it nowadays. This new espresso spread all across Italy. Other countries started to replicate and import it as well, as many Italian emigrants influenced coffee culture everywhere they went.

Coffee’s Social Function

But then what about cappuccino, latte, mochaccino…? Why did we continue to call almost every coffee drink by their Italian names? Italians didn’t invent the combination of coffee and milk. That already existed in Europe since the 17th century. Well, it’s solely because Italians were responsible for switching from regular filtered coffee to espresso. Cappuccino's original name comes from the Viennese version called kapuziner, inspired by Capuchin monks who lived in Vienna. It wasn’t until 1930 that Italians started to make their own version with espresso as the main ingredient.

Cappuccino and other types of coffee drinks became popularized because they served a bigger purpose than regular espresso. The whole process of adding frothing milk to a cup of coffee started to become a part of coffee houses' experience, in sound, image, and taste. It also added an extra to cafes' social function. Coffee bars were perfect for meeting people, friends, and coworkers, so it was necessary a drink that took longer to consume.

Nowadays, Italians are still very protective of their coffee culture. Even though in America we are used to adding tons of ingredients to coffee and tasting different combinations, more traditional Italians prefer their espresso as classic as they can get. Globalisation is changing this though. American coffee methods are making their way through Italian coffee houses, even though they’re still sticking to their original ways. The good news is that we can experience the best of both worlds and celebrate our love for coffee.

Even though we have a lot to thank Italians, the truth is that Mediterranean climate is not very good for coffee production. To get the best coffee beans, you can count on Latin Americans to save your day! At That Coffee Roasters, we believe that nothing beats true Colombian coffee when it comes to brewing your favorite Italian drinks, so kudos to cultural exchange!

Source: A short history of espresso in Italy and in the world.

Which one is your favorite Italian coffee?

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That Coffee Roasters

Phone Number: (305) 821-8811

2697 W. 76 Street, Hialeah, Florida 33016

Facebook: That Coffee Roasters

Instagram: thatcoffeeroasters