History of Espresso - Started from a Herder's Curiosity
http://www.foodndrinks.net/articles/5276/1/History-of-Espresso---Started-from-a-Herders-Curiosity/Page1.html
Ryan Round
Ryan also runs a site for internet marketers providing new private label rights products, master resell rights products, articles, training and much more. By Ryan Round
Published on 01/20/2010
So, how would you react if while reading this and having coffee, you found out that your favorite espresso was actually discovered by a sheep, err, an Ethiopian Shepherd that is?
So, how would you react if while reading this and having coffee, you found out that your favorite espresso was actually discovered by a sheep, err, an Ethiopian Shepherd that is?
There's this popular theory that coffee originated in Caffa Ethiopia where a shepherd by the name of Kaldi noticed that his sheep got "high" after eating some red "cherries", which we now call coffee beans. Teeming with curiosity, Kaldi decided to have a taste of these red cherries. Soon enough, he was exported into a trance-like state which we know now as caffeine frenzy.
The monks initially scolded the poor shepherd for having discovered a drug, but when they took some themselves, they realized they could stay up longer for their prayers and so they started becoming the first coffee-holics" or so the story goes.
Anyway, from Ethiopia in Africa, the coffee beans found their way to the Arab countries, then to India, then to the US, then to Italy, then to England and to the rest of the world. But going back to espresso -- the strong coffee made by forcing live steam under pressure through ground dark-roast coffee beans, it is believed to have started in Italy.
The word "espresso" itself is Italian meaning "fast". It is said to have begun during the earlier years of the 20th century. An inventor by the name of Luigi Bezzera made a coffee machine which had a boiler and four divisions. Bezzera's machine forced boiling water and steam through the coffee beans into a cup. Thus, the first espresso came into existence.
Due to lack of funds though, Bezzera couldn't promote his invention so a man named Desiderio Pavoni brought the patent from him instead. In 1927, "La Pavona" espresso machines reached the United States and created hype in the market.
As expected, the first machines had their flaws. Coffee beans would sometimes burn and this gave an undesirable burnt flavor to the coffee. Occasionally, some machines even exploded when used. For this reason, a piston pump was developed to force hot water through the beans instead of boiling water. This prevented dangerous and exploding machines from scaring more coffee lovers.
In 1945, an Italian inventor by the name of Achilles Gaggia came up with coffee makers that included a lever action. He too, was the one who coined the term Cappuccino because of its resemblance to the color of the monks' robes in the Capuchin order. In 1950, Ernest Valente made Gaggia's machines even better by creating an electric pump which allowed balanced and nonstop flow of water through the coffee makers. This led to the super automatic espresso machines born in the 1970's. The standard espresso makers we know now came from them.
Anyhow, everybody's favorite coffee shop Starbucks is now a staple shop on every block, and sometimes, even on every corner all over the country. It started in 1971 and became a pop culture reference in 1995. From this year on to 2000, the consumption of coffee is said to have increased up to 700 percent! Now, who would have thought that a Shepherd's curiosity could lead to that? Interesting, don't you think?
There's this popular theory that coffee originated in Caffa Ethiopia where a shepherd by the name of Kaldi noticed that his sheep got "high" after eating some red "cherries", which we now call coffee beans. Teeming with curiosity, Kaldi decided to have a taste of these red cherries. Soon enough, he was exported into a trance-like state which we know now as caffeine frenzy.
The monks initially scolded the poor shepherd for having discovered a drug, but when they took some themselves, they realized they could stay up longer for their prayers and so they started becoming the first coffee-holics" or so the story goes.
Anyway, from Ethiopia in Africa, the coffee beans found their way to the Arab countries, then to India, then to the US, then to Italy, then to England and to the rest of the world. But going back to espresso -- the strong coffee made by forcing live steam under pressure through ground dark-roast coffee beans, it is believed to have started in Italy.
The word "espresso" itself is Italian meaning "fast". It is said to have begun during the earlier years of the 20th century. An inventor by the name of Luigi Bezzera made a coffee machine which had a boiler and four divisions. Bezzera's machine forced boiling water and steam through the coffee beans into a cup. Thus, the first espresso came into existence.
Due to lack of funds though, Bezzera couldn't promote his invention so a man named Desiderio Pavoni brought the patent from him instead. In 1927, "La Pavona" espresso machines reached the United States and created hype in the market.
As expected, the first machines had their flaws. Coffee beans would sometimes burn and this gave an undesirable burnt flavor to the coffee. Occasionally, some machines even exploded when used. For this reason, a piston pump was developed to force hot water through the beans instead of boiling water. This prevented dangerous and exploding machines from scaring more coffee lovers.
In 1945, an Italian inventor by the name of Achilles Gaggia came up with coffee makers that included a lever action. He too, was the one who coined the term Cappuccino because of its resemblance to the color of the monks' robes in the Capuchin order. In 1950, Ernest Valente made Gaggia's machines even better by creating an electric pump which allowed balanced and nonstop flow of water through the coffee makers. This led to the super automatic espresso machines born in the 1970's. The standard espresso makers we know now came from them.
Anyhow, everybody's favorite coffee shop Starbucks is now a staple shop on every block, and sometimes, even on every corner all over the country. It started in 1971 and became a pop culture reference in 1995. From this year on to 2000, the consumption of coffee is said to have increased up to 700 percent! Now, who would have thought that a Shepherd's curiosity could lead to that? Interesting, don't you think?