Let's grow this plant, pick the berries, take the seeds out, roast and then grind the beans, pour hot water through the grounds, and throw the beans away. Drink the water! How did we get there?
One story is that it began in Arabia, Stu. Goat-herders or some such locals noticed the goats got frisky after eating coffee beans from the bushes, and said to themselves (so it is said), I WANT SOME OF WHAT THEY'VE GOT! How do people who've never seen it happen suppose goats get up into trees? The whole process took of from there by trial and error I expect.
This post was edited by rattbagge at January 18, 2018 4:13 PM MST
Humans are and always were more sophisticated than we give them credit for I think. We are generally a curious, nosey and inquisitive lot.. we try things.. even today... some things work, some don't... My suspicion is..that people experimented, (*we all do that don't we?) and while sometimes it didn't work and was nasty or poisonous.. sometimes it led to discoveries... There's probably not a seed or nut that someone somewhere hasn't tried to eat, roast or stew.... We just have the advantage of all that past wisdom...
They say it was first discovered in Ethiopia and then traveled anti clockwise through Turkey and around through Europe....from there it made its way to South America and then finally to my cups......I can't say as I like the staining much.....it's not always fun being blonde.....:( D