The History of Coffee

The origin of this drink so present in our lives date from the sixth century, when in ancient Abyssinia (now Ethiopia) a shepherd leading his goats to graze noticed on one of the nights they were more agitated and jumpy than usual . As the next night the goats showed the same behavior , the pastor turned to a monk who accompanied them , to see if it was something supernatural. The monk then noted that the goats were eating red little fruits of a shrub and took some leaves and fruits to the monastery . Meanwhile , the minister proved some fruit and felt the same excitement of his goats , going to join them.

In the monastery made ​​an infusion with the leaves and fruit , but the taste was so bitter and unpleasant they shot fire , emerging one entrancing aroma. A new infusion was then taken and the monks drank and got the whole night reciting scriptures . Thus was discovered this magical drink called coffee, capable of ending fatigue and stimulate the brain .

The coffee was much appreciated since the fifteenth century in Ethiopia , when he crossed the Red Sea and hit Yemen , gaining interest of the government and farmers , conquered the Arab region. At that time the drink was prepared as follows : the water was boiled in a kettle itself, the coffee powder was added and the mixture boiled for a while to lose the unpleasant taste and was due to drink it quickly. Some people were adding sugar, cinnamon and clove . This drink was called cahue or coffee . The plant species was known as Coffea arabica to have adapted very well in Saudi . In the late nineteenth century other species began to be grown as Coffea robusta .

   

Going back to the time in the sixteenth century Yemen was the leading producer of coffee, which was already well known in the Middle East . In mid 1500 the drink went on to win land of Egypt , Syria , Turkey and Greece , mainly brought by merchants crossing the region . By 1600 coffee came to South India , spreading to other regions of the country . At that time , the Yemeni port city of Mokka ( Red Sea ) was the largest exporter of coffee , taking the drink to Western Europe .

In 1616 the first coffee plant arrived in Europe , landing in the Botanical Garden of Amsterdam . This walk was in a greenhouse and gave new legs , which were brought to Ceylon ( now Sri Lanka ) and Java (Indonesia ) , the Dutch colonies . In 1706 the Dutch were responsible for the supply of coffee from all over Europe and Indonesia became the first major producer and exporter of the grain .

And the coffee was gaining the world! Coffee houses in Turkey , Europe and Arab countries were very places frequented by intellectuals , artists, religious and merchants . In London , we had about 2000 houses that sold the drink in 1715 , came before their consumption of tea , who knew?

And the fad reached the United States . Around this time several coffee houses began to appear in Boston and New York . They say it was in a cafe in Boston , on Union Street , that the agreements and covenants to the revolution that led to American independence came in 1776 . Moreover , as tea was associated with the English crown , the Americans began to consume more coffee and today is the largest consumer in the world.

Continuing the story , the increase in demand caused crops expand and at the end of the eighteenth century coffee plantations also thrived in Jamaica , Cuba, Puerto Rico , Guatemala , Costa Rica , Venezuela , Colombia and Mexico. The French brought coffee to French Guyana , Haiti , Guadeloupe , Mauritius ( Africa) , Tonkin (modern Vietnam ) and Reunión island ( known as Bourbon ) .

The arrival of coffee in Brazil began in 1718, when the Dutch sailed a coffee tree to Suriname , a colony. A year after coffee reached French Guiana clandestinely . And this French colony coffee was brought to Brazil .

 

The story goes that in the mid- 1720s the governor of Maranhão and Grão Pará , the Portuguese João Maia da Gama , was told by an informant of the Portuguese Crown , the neighboring French Guiana owned about 20 000 and 60 000 coffee seedlings planted. Furthermore , the governor of Guiana French Claude d’ Orvilliers , had broken the divide between the two colonies , which was considered an insult to the Portuguese Crown .

With the excuse enforce the border , Maia da Gama sent to the end of February 1727 one of his most competent military , the chief argent Francisco de Mello Reed , an expedition in Guyana with the task of bringing some coffee seedlings . For this, suggested his way to the capital Cayenne for an official mission with the aim of approaching Madame d’ Orvilliers , wife of the French governor.

Vane , a known and respected military, was received with full honors by Governor d’ Orvilliers . During dinner , the military was very nice , telling his adventures through the Amazon jungle and exchanging glances and smiles with Mrs. d’ Orvilliers .

It is said that one night Madame d’ Orvilliers presented Reed with a vase of flowers , which was hidden a change of Coffea Arabica , and coffee beans , which were hidden in the pockets of the military jacket. They say it was a parting gift and love it!

The expedition returned to Bethlehem in mid-May and the coffee started brewing in Pará in the year 1727 . Earlier , not much attention was given to this plant that required care in its cultivation . In addition , the colony experienced the cycle of mining gold , which dominated the Portuguese Crown attention.

Meanwhile , the coffee was gaining importance in the world and in 1730 it was marketed as a commodity , gaining momentum with the founding of the first bag of coffee in New York .

The coffee did not find great commercial interest in the northern region of the country and arrived in Rio de Janeiro between 1760 and 1762, being cultivated in several areas of the capital .

In 1820 began to be harvested the first crop of grain on a large scale and , ten years on, the coffee was already the second item of Brazilian exports , the first was sugar . In 1885 the Rio de Janeiro was responsible for 70 % of all Brazilian coffee production . The end of the mining cycle boosted the coffee activity in Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais . But the peak production began when the coffee came in the Paraíba Valley , which had very favorable weather conditions and very fertile soil. The coffee tree requires warm temperatures , fertile soil , and frost does not support takes 4-5 years to start producing . These characteristics were determinants of migration to these higher coffee and temperate regions .

The expansion of coffee in Brazil coincided with the decline of major world producers such as Java , Ceylon and Haiti. Thus , in 1890 Brazil was responsible for 70 % of world production , shipping about 15 million bags for a consumer market of 20 million .

While the coffee brought development to the country , also caused environmental damage and exploitation of immigrants .

Reference : Book “Coffee – A grain of history ” (2006 ) .

farming

Coffee is the name of the seed of the coffee plant that belongs to the botanical family Rubiaceae , whose genre is called Coffea .

Among the many species of this genus , three stand out :

Coffea arabica

Its most common varieties are Typica and Bourbon , which originated as the other cultivars Caturra ( Brazil and Colombia) , Mundo Novo ( Brazil ) , Tico ( Central America ) , San Ramon ( Central America ) , Blue Mountain ( Jamaica) and Sumatra ( Indonesia) . Yet these originated as other Catuaí hybrid of the New World and Caturra .

canephora

Its most common variety is the Robusta is grown in West and Central Africa, Southeast Asia and some parts of Brazil , where it is known as Conilon .

Coffea liberica

Their variety is called dewevrei , known as Sublime , and is native to Africa , not in great demand .

Economically , the two most cultivated species are Coffea arabica (representing about 60 % of world production ) and Coffea canephora . The first has oval fruits that ripen between 7 and 9 months, and the second has rounded fruits that take up to 11 months to mature .

The fruits occur along the branches of coffee and each fruit is formed by the outer shell, whose color is red or yellow ( depending on cultivar) when mature. Below there is a bark pulp ( mesocarp ) and then this a gelatinous layer ( mucilage ) , which is in contact with the coverage called parchment ( endocarp ) surrounding the grains ( two seeds ) .

The commercial cultivation of coffee requires specific environmental conditions such as :

• ideal average temperature of 15 ° C to 24 ° C ( acacia ) , 24 ° C to 30 ° C ( strong );

• Rainfall 1500-3000 mm / year;

• Altitude from sea level to about 800 m for the robust and higher altitudes , often mountainous regions for arabica ;

• Sunlight ;

• Adequate soil , whose properties vary with the proper use of fertilizers .

The first step for planting coffee is preparing the ground , which depends on the previous land use , usually plowing and harrowing , followed by the preparation of the pits where the seedlings will be planted are made .

Planting should be done during the rainy season , where the soil is damp . Later fertilization ( organic matter and mineral fertilizers ) and liming ( lime application ) are made according to soil analysis .

Caffeine in more nutrients used to enrich soils are fertilized with nitrogen, phosphate and potassium ( NPK ) . Secondary nutrients such as manganese, iron , boron and zinc are also used. The three elements mentioned above are combined in a specific way depending on the nature of the soil regime and intensity of rainfall , age of the coffee and genetic value of the material .

The climatic parameters are the ones that interfere with the production of coffee , because they affect the growth and development of plants in different ways . An example is frost, dew that due to extreme drop in temperature that may or may not form a deposition of ice on the surfaces of plants, which has been responsible for some of the coffee crop failures . This type of frost affects the plants by the action of very cold winds , causing the fall of the tissue temperature below the limit corresponding to the internal point of freezing . Every culture has a critical temperature at which the internal tissue freezing , in coffee is that temperature is 2 ° C ( weather station ) , according to the CPTEC ( Center for Weather Forecasting and Climate Studies ) at INPE ( National Institute for Space Research ) .

Reference : ICO – International Coffee Organization (2011 , 2009) .

Book ” Coffee – A guide lover ” (2008 ) .

Florada

The flower , by definition , is the reproductive organ of angiosperm plant group to which belongs the coffee . The flower gives rise to the fruit , which protects the seed development . Coffee is the name of the seed of the coffee .

The flowering or flowering tree is a period that goes from birth to the fall of flowers and can be divided into 4 phases :

• Initiation – Production of the floral stimulus ( induction) , forming the yolk , and floral definition ( genetic ) irreversible ( evocation ) , forming the flower bud ;

• Differentiation – Formation of modified cells that differentiate floral parts , with growing between 4-8 mm buds ;

• Numbness – Inactivity Period of variable duration ;

• Opening of the Flower – Complete growth and differentiation of floral parts .

The bloom usually occurs in the spring , between the months of September and November . However, it may happen more than one bloom , depending on the characteristics of the cultivar and environmental factors such as solar radiation , temperature , water availability etc. .

The number of flowers depends on the number of nodes ( points from where new branches and leaves ) of lateral branches formed in the previous growth ( September-May ) season. Hence the importance of having many leaves in coffee , preventing them from falling until the next flowering .

The tutorial starts probable ( view field by observing the button) between January and February . Differentiation occurs until July , when the numbness starts . This phase of inactivity coincides with winter in southeastern Brazil, dry and cold season , and the maturation of buttons on it , which eventually achieve the same level of development, even though it started at different times , hence the importance of this phase occurs . With the onset of the rains or a sudden drop in temperature , the buttons return to growth until the opening of the flowers .

At the opening of the flower plantation is gorgeous, full of delicate white flowers along the branches , like a lace veil .

However , climate changes occurring cause flowering occurs at different times , which hurts much the coffee harvest , impacting their quality.

Reference : Website CaféPoint ” The flowering of Arabica coffee and frustration of flowering 2006 ” .

Procafé Foundation ” Flowering coffee : an enigma .”

A Colheita

By having more than one bloom at the same coffee no fruit at various stages of maturation , they are: BB , green , green – cane , cherry, goes dry . The ideal is to harvest when most of the fruit is ripe , that is , Cherry phase .

Thus , the top of the coffee harvest varies according to region , but on average , the harvest is taken seven months after flowering. In the southern hemisphere this period usually happens from May to September , while near the equator , the harvest can be taken throughout the year .

There are two ways to make the coffee harvest :

Harvest by detachment

Withdrawal of all branches of fruit , the cherries, which should be the most , and those at other stages of maturation . Thus, different grains mixed with leaves and broken branches are removed . The detachment can be done manually or with the aid of machines called derriçadeiras . The fruits may fall on an outstretched on the ground , the ground itself after a sweeping or collectors ( in the case of derriçadeiras ) cloth.

Harvest finger

Selective Removal of mature grains only , which can be placed in a basket or cloth under the plants. Are only removed the grains cherries. This form of harvesting is common in places where blooms occur throughout the year, on the equator , which causes uneven grain . Very labor intensive , which increases the cost of this kind of harvest is also required.

Therefore, the use of machines reduces production costs per hectare. Spending on the harvest represents about 30 % of the total production cost of coffee.

After harvesting , the coffee can be processed by three methods :

dry process

Arrived coffee farming can pass through the sieve or the washer to remove impurities and should go straight to the drying yard . If using a dryer , the fruit should be dried in the yard before. When there is a washer before drying , it is possible to separate the fruit into two fractions , coffee – float ( less dense ) and cafes cherry and green (more dense ) . The separation of these two fractions in drying allows to obtain more uniform lots and look better .

wet process

Used are harvested only when ripe fruit starts despolpadora on a machine that removes the fleshy part of the fruit . The mucilage remains on parchment and coffee can follow to fermentation tanks where the water called degumming (fermented cherry ) occurs , this gum can still be removed in equipment called desmuciladores ( peeled and desmucilado cherry ) . Only after this process that follows for drying coffee .

Semi – dry process

This is an intermediate process between the dry and the wet , where the peeled fruits are referred for sun drying without fermentation ( shelled ) .

It is important that the fruit is harvested once referred to the dry , wet or semi – dry processing , so that does not undesirable fermentation, which affect grain quality .

The drying coffee is a very important step that influences the final quality of the coffee. There are three ways to do drying :

Natural sun drying yards

Taken in areas exposed to the sun, where the floor should be flat and coated with cement , asphalt or dirt areas . In this drying , the coffee is first spread in a thin layer revolved several times a day . After raking can be done , which protects the grain from rain , dew and frost . Almost in the final stage of drying the coffee should be heaped overnight and covered with tarpaulin to prevent moisture gain . The final drying occurs when the grain moisture reaches 11 and 13% . The drying time can vary from 10 to 20 days.

Mechanical dryers Drying

If the beans are too wet , a pre – drying should be done on ground before going to the dryer or drying system. The dryers can be vertical , cylindrical rotary or fixed bed furnace with direct fire .

hybrid drying

In this method the beans are dried on patios common , but there is a ventilation system with heated air .

In Brazil , the dry process is the most widely used because it is simple, cheap and not spend a lot of water . In contrast , the wet process requires smaller area for drying and has lower risk as undesirable fermentation. In places where it rains in abundance is difficult to use the dry process .

The coffee that uses the semi – dry process , known as pulped , usually results in a drink of good quality.

References : Book “Coffee – A guide lover ” (2008 ) .

Book ” Quality Coffee ” ( 2003 )

selection deGrãos

After drying , it is done processing the beans. The goal of this step is to peel the coffee beans ( dry and still with the shell ) and separating the husk and parchment , removing impurities such as dirt , stones and lumps to the fullest. The loss of grain should be the lowest possible .

The first stage of processing is called spout play or cleaning where impurities are removed through an oscillating sieve with a mesh of different diameters installed below the storage bins coffee beans .

After passing through the spout , the beans are for the collector of stones , which separates the heavier impurities .

Made cleaning, the beans are to odescascador , a device consisting of a cylinder with perforated walls and escameadas with swivel bar inside . When going through the peeler, the grain is pressed against the wall when turning , breaking its shell ( when there ) and parchment . The perforations of the cylinder are the coffee beans , the shells and scrolls that were removed . These grains are separated by an air column that draws them through the ventilator and removes the process.

Called a circular sieve separates sururuca husked coffee through the centrifugal force generated by its movement . The denser peeled coffee is thrown to the periphery of the sieve and unhusked coffee is thrown to the screen center , returning to the peeler .

The husked coffee is sent to the collector of choice by gravity . In this collector defective grains are separated , i.e. broken , poorly Granados and voids , which have a lower density. An upward flow of air causes the separation of these grains , which are driven to the top of the column , feeding a spout bag called coffee choice. The cafe following faultless for another sack .

The average yield improvement is about 50 wt% , or 2 kg of coffee beans produce 1 kg of green coffee .

To be sold , the processed coffee goes through another stage , orebeneficiamento , usually made in cooperatives or companies . The goal of this step is to sort the beans by size , specific gravity , color and magnetic properties , improving the quality of lots and eliminating defects .

Classifiers for processed coffee are the equipment used for this purpose . The first step is rebenefício scavenging of stones that may still be present , taken oscillatory table separating the material into two fractions : coffee (light ) , leaving the lower part of the table and stones ( heavy) , leaving the highest part .

Taken scavenging , coffee fuels the screening system that separates the boring coffee ( circular ) and mocha ( elongated ) in various fractions , depending on the marketing of the product . Below is an overall classification, where the number of sieve corresponds to the numerator of the fraction 1/64 inch:

• Wholesale Boring : sieves 17 , 18 , 19 and 20

• Average Chato : sieves 15:16

• Annoying Kid: sieves 12 , 13 and 14

• Coarse Moca sieves 24:13

• Average Moca sieves 10:11

• Mocha Kid: sieve 8:09

Kids , hollow and broken grains which were not removed in the collector of choice, are at the bottom of the sieve .

The grains classified can result from an inclined vibrating screen ( air float ) receiving injection of air beneath . Thus , heavy grains sink to the bottom and light (barely Granados , voids ) are on the top layer. The movement of the sieve makes heavy grains move to the top, while the light descend and are collected at the bottom.

For a better selection , electronic pickers , running through photoelectric cells can also be used . These scavengers the grains that are at variance with the standard pre-set color are eliminated .

Manual scavenging in collective or individual tables is also used , but the quality varies with personal factors .

The green coffee is called green coffee beans and may be stored in two ways:

• In jute sacks of 60 kg with manual stacking in warehouses

• The bulk, big bags , with mechanized stacking , which reduces the need for labor

It is important that the storage conditions are appropriate with respect to temperature , ventilation , humidity and cleanliness in order to final product quality .

References : Book ” Quality Coffee ” (2003 )

deTorra process

To prepare the drink, green coffee must pass through the roasting process , which is done by a roaster in industrial plant , although it can be done by hand on a smaller scale .

The purpose of roasting is to “burn ” the green coffee beans to almost burn in a device called roaster that uses hot air injection .

Roasting is a very important step , which directly influences the quality of the drink . The heat triggers various chemical reactions in the grain :

• sugars, starches viewed

• Acids are eliminated and others are formed

• protein molecules are broken

• oils such as cafeol reach the grain surface

• Water is evaporated

• Carbon dioxide is lost

• Volatile substances are released , the grain aromatizando

• Degradation of the cell wall of the grains

After roasting the beans must be ground to prepare the drink . The grind can be classified into coarse , medium and fine , and each is appropriate for each type of preparation of coffee ( brewed , espresso etc. . ) .

Grinding can be done in the roaster itself, producing roasted and ground coffee type, which is packed in sequence to be sold . Sometimes grinding is done on the premises itself or in the consumer’s own residence .

In the case of espresso coffee grinding can be done on machine provided mill itself or in a separate mill.

The roast and ground coffee or beans are usually sold in laminated packaging ( aluminized plastic) , which may be simple , vacuum , inert gas injected or valve. Plastic pillow type packaging or containers of paper are also used . Importantly, the vacuum packaging and retain the best valved coffee, increasing its validity . The roast and ground coffee is more sensitive to the action of oxygen , hence the importance of its packaging .

To prepare the coffee filter or strainer , you should use the roasted and ground . For the espresso can be roasted , sachets or roasted and ground beans .

References : Book “Coffee – A guide lover ” (2008 ) .

Website ” Coffee Culture Magazine ” (2008 ) .

Grand Gourmet

To differentiate quality coffee some classifications were created mainly for the export product . They are:

type

. 1 Appearance – is related to the appearance of the grain and is influenced by different coloration due to the maturation of each grain or by contact with the earth , spots due to a non-uniform drying and bleaching bad storage ;

2 Number of defects – . Blacks are grain ( originated by permanent dry grain in the soil , allowing undesirable fermentations that undermine the very quality of the coffee ) , green ( color green cane , originated more frequently by harvesting green beans ) and rot ( brown or brownish , due to water deficiency and abnormal fermentations , is a stage prior to black grain rot ) , hollow grains , poorly granados , brocades ( attacked by the parasite called the coffee berry borer ) , and impurities such as broken stones , shells , land and parchment.

Classification as to type takes into account the number of defects in a sample of 300 g of processed coffee ( we use a table of equivalence of defective grains and impurities ) . Following the classification table of Official Handbag Coffee and Goods used in Brazil , the coffee can be rated 2-8 , with the lowest value for the fewest defects .

4 Type 2 defects

Type 3 12 defects

4 26 Type Defects

Type 5 46 defects

Type 6 86 defects

Type defects 7160

Type defects 8360

drink

Classification as to drink is related to the flavor and aroma , and is done through evidence cups , a sensory analysis by trained tasters to differentiate coffees according to their senses . The official grading scale is :

• Strictly soft – very soft and sweet beverage

• Soft – Soft , sharp and sweet beverage

• Only soft – soft drink, with mild astringency

• Hard – and drink astringent taste rough

• Riada – flavored drink acid

• Rio – beverage with strong and unpleasant taste

• River Region – drink with very unpleasant taste and odor

sieve

Rating sieve separates the grains by size . Sieves circular and elongated forms , separating the rounded grains ( bucks ) of elongated ( flat ) , designated by numbers that correspond to the numerator of the fraction 1/64 inch are used . The flat grain sieves ranging from 12 to 20 grain and females ( rounded ) from 8 to 13 .

• Wholesale Boring : sieves 17 , 18 , 19 and 20

• Average Chato : sieves 15:16

• Annoying Kid: sieves 12 , 13 and 14

• Coarse Moca sieves 24:13

• Average Moca sieves 10:11

• Mocha Kid: sieve 8:09

Kids , hollow and broken grains are at the bottom of the sieve .

color

The color of the grains totally influences the evaluation of their appearance . The main shades of Arabica coffee is bluish green, green – cane , green , greenish , yellowish , yellow , brown, sinker , whitish and discrepant .

There are several certifications and seals created by accredited entities that aim to certify the coffee quality , traceability and sustainable development , among them are:

ABIC Purity Seal

The Brazilian Coffee Industry Association ( ABIC ) , created in 1973 in order to vindicate the interests of unions and associations roaster industrial activity , was the first entity to create a certification seal . The ABIC Purity Seal , created in 1989 , attests to the purity of roasted and ground coffee, assuming a maximum of 1 % of impurities ( coffee husks and sticks ) . If samples are impure , the fact is sent to the consumer protection agencies .