Friday, February 08, 2008

Brewing Coffee for an Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony

In Middle Eastern homes, guests are
often welcomed with a traditional coffee ceremony.

A pan of green beans is roasted in a flat, open pan
for all to smell. They're cooled on a small straw mat
and then ground using a large mortar and pestle.
The coffee is brewed in the traditional clay pot
and served in small cups.

The ritual is as much about enjoying the process
and the coffee as it is each other's company.



Mortar shell from fields in Ethiopia being
torn apart and cleaned up.

This story was covered in 2006.

Read it here.

This gentleman goes through the fields and collects
the used mortar shells and uses them to make
Espresso Machines.

The machines are then sold for a small sum of
about $1,300.00. Evidently they work well
and are in high demand.

Just goes to show with some ingenuity
and unorthodox recycling, even "shit"
from peoples dirty Wars can be used
for something useful.

9 comments:

Squirrel said...

This is a beautiful and inspiring post!

It's true--so much could be re-used, and their are just some men & women who are genius at taking some old discard apart and creating some new useful object. In HS I had a female friend who could fix anything, (we always thought she'd work as an auto mechanic) but she was an artist when it came to thinking up new uses for things-- she grew up to work in Houston for the aerospace industry!

dennis said...

Dennis believes in recycling.

robin andrea said...

What a great story, coffee. It made me think of turning swords into plow shares. A grand concept.

Fred said...

We have linked you as our Barista and Philosophy Professor.

Coffee Messiah said...

squirrel: Wow, how nice to know someone who was able to use their abilities in such a positive way!

dennis: I bet you do.

robin:If only, and if only people would stop killing each other for no real reason! ; (

ched U: Thanks for the nod. I'm not so sure about the philosophy though, that may be a bit out of my league. I'll accept, until someone more worthy comes along.

As your barista, I must be stocked with an endless supply of french pastries ya know. ; )

H said...

Thanks for that. I read a novel last year by a famous Canadian author (Sweetness in the Belly, Camilla Gibb) and it partly takes place in Ethiopia. They made a lot of coffee, and now I understand it better.

earlbo said...

Just goes to show with some ingenuity and unorthodox recycling, even "shit" from peoples dirty Wars can be used for something useful.

I just saw the movie "Bucket List" yesterday which uses Kopi Luwak, which is a coffee that comes from "shit" that Nicholson likes to drink in the movie.

Oprah had it on her show 4 years ago, coffee connoisseurs laugh at the fools who waste their money on it, and media people mistakenly cite said coffee connoisseurs as fans of this novelty gag. This is coffee for people who know nothing about good coffee and haven't tired themselves of fart jokes.

Michael Bains said...

Shades of "Up in Smoke", eh Earlbo? Or, perhaps more likely, vice-a-versa.

;]

Still, those mortar 'spresso machines do look tempting; even at $1300. If only they were unimaginable though.

Coffee Messiah said...

h: Will have to look into the novel and author.

earl: Haven't seen nor heard of the movie. As far as the other coffee info, like most things in life, much is offered to those unaware of the "real deal" be it coffee, politics or whatever.

mb: Oh yeah! ; (