STiR coffee and tea magazine

Volume 3, Number 2

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STiR tea & coffee industry international 47 VISIT US AT FHA STAND 5G2-07 The Ottomans arrive History is dictated by those who win wars. In 1517 the Ottomans arrived as conquers or guests (de- pending on who wrote the history). Their empire became one of the largest and longest lasting empires in history. The Ot- toman Empire included not only Turkey and most of Arabia but the Mediterranean including Egypt and the coastal strip of North Africa. At its height the Middle East, the Balkans and Europe, including Russia, along with some of Asia was under the sultan's rule. Ottomans kept expanding their empire until defeated at the gates of Vienna in 1683. In retreat they abandoned not only their green coffee but also roasting, grind- ing and brewing equipment, serving trays and cups. It was an entire culture "in a box" preserved in detail to this day at the Coffee Museum in Vienna. It is all there, even clothes and paintings. Coffee remained long after memories of the siege faded and gradually, over the decades, also gave birth to The Viennese Coffeehouse. The Ottoman legacy As the Ottomans spread they absorbed and the re-exported local food and beverage cultures to the rest of the empire. Cof- fee is the best example. It was easy to make and the process of making it had a value of its own. The ritual is an Arab ver- sion of the Japanese tea ceremony. The Ottomans brought the habit first to Cairo and Aleppo then to Istanbul. During this period coffee houses became highly fashionable gather- ing place as they later would become in London and the rest of Europe. These same coffee houses can still be seen in the bazaars in Istanbul and Cairo. Photo © mike tsolis

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