Coffee
Coffee history
The cultivation of coffee began in Ethiopia in the Kaffa province. From here it came to Yemen via the port city of Mocka. Coffee drinking was spreading rapidly in the Islamic world and our word for coffee comes from the Arab qahwa "coffee, wine". In 1615, Venetian merchants brought home roasted coffee beans. The prayers were sold under praise of the medical qualities. The Dutch spread the coffee plants to the colonies in Southeast Asia, including Java in 1699 and Ceylon , and the coffee was then distributed to the Caribbean and around 1718 to Brazil , which is the largest coffee-growing nation today. The coffee is believed to have come to Denmark in 1665.
The coffee's bioactive substances
Coffee contains a number of bioactive substances. chemical compounds that affect the central nervous system , fat metabolism and glucose metabolism . The most important are caffeine , cafestol , kahweol, chlorogenic acids , trigonellin and magnesium . It has been shown that coffee has a health-promoting effect that includes a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes , Parkinson's disease , blood clots and cerebral hemorrhage , as well as a beneficial effect on Alzheimer's disease and depression . Here are the 5 varieties of coffee beans that are grown in the world, but all varieties originate from Arabica ( Coffea arabica )
- Arabica ( Coffea arabica ) accounts for 70-75% of the world's coffee production.
- Liberia Coffee ( Coffea liberica )
- Excelsa coffee ( Coffea dewevrei )
- Robusta Coffee ( Coffea canephora )
- Kona coffee - coffee from the Kona district in Hawaii .
Arabica is considered the coffee that has the best taste. Unfortunately, the yield is also the lowest, while the variety is more vulnerable to diseases, parasites and insect attacks.
Robusta coffee ( Coffea canephora ) originates from the Democratic Republic of Congo . It is, as its name suggests, more robust than the arabica, but unfortunately has a less appreciated taste, where the bitter substances fill more.