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Where Does Coffee Come From? The Legend of Kaldi and the Monks

June 18, 2015
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Where Does Coffee Come From in the Origin Story?

Coffee's discovery is traced to the Ethiopian highlands in the seventh century AD. A shepherd named Kaldi noticed his goats leaping and staying awake all night after eating red berries from a low bush. He took the matter to an Abyssinian monastery, where the monks investigated and identified the cause.

The monks boiled the berries in water and produced a fragrant brew that kept them alert through evening prayers. The berries were later used as a stimulant medicine and praised by physicians, then spread more widely. That is the traditional account of where coffee comes from and how it first entered daily use.

The discovery of coffee is often traced back to a curious tale from the Ethiopian highlands in the seventh century AD. A shepherd named Kaldi noticed that his flock became unusually energetic after nibbling certain red berries, even staying awake all night. Puzzled, he sought help from an Abyssinian monastery, where the monks investigated and confirmed that the goats had become excited after eating the red berries from a low bush. The monks gathered the berries and boiled them in water, producing a fragrant, invigorating brew. Thereafter, the berries were first used as a stimulant medicine, won praise from physicians, and gradually spread far and wide. This article tells the legend in full, while preserving coffee product information related to Front Street Coffee, taking you back to the very moment coffee was first discovered. [Image 1]

Around the seventh century AD, in the Ethiopian region of the Ethiopian highlands, there lived a shepherd named Kaldi. One day, as he drove his flock to a new pasture, he suddenly noticed that the goats would not stop jumping and bounding on that patch of grass, appearing exceptionally excited, and even late into the night they showed no sign of sleepiness. Perplexed, Kaldi hurried to an Abyssinian monastery for help.

After some investigation, the abbot and the monks finally figured it out: the goats had become so excited because they had chewed the red berries growing on a low bush. So everyone picked these berries, took them back, and boiled them in water. Unexpectedly, the brewed liquid filled the room with fragrance, and after drinking it, people felt greatly invigorated, unable to close their eyes all night.

The abbot then distributed this brew to the monks who tended to doze off during evening prayers. After drinking it, they all felt clear-headed and full of energy—the effect was most satisfactory.

Later still, these berries came to be used as a stimulant medicine and won the approval of many physicians, and from then on they gradually spread.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.

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