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About Greek Coffee &
Tales |
Greek
coffee (sometimes also referred as Turkish, Arabic, Byzantine or Armenian Coffee, depending on location) is coffee that is prepared in a specific way. It is common throughout
the Middle
East, North
Africa, Caucasus and Balkan countries. Coffee culture is highly developed in the Balkans
region, where this kind of coffee is the dominant method of
preparation. It also remains a traditional beverage served in Turkish, Greek, Cypriot, Armenian,
Balkan and Arabic restaurants around the world. |
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History
Coffee
has its origins in the Arabian
peninsula in 1100 AD, when coffee
trees were cultivated for the first time. Coffee was first roasted
and boiled by Arabs making "qahwa",
a beverage made from plants.
In 1475, the
world's first coffee shop was opened in the ex-capital of the Byzantine
Empire soon after its conquest
by the Turks. According to a legend, the shop-owners were Greeks. That was followed by the establishment of more coffee
houses in Istanbul (former Constantinople).
Other sources state that the shop was founded by two Syrian men.
Pecevi, an Ottoman historian of the early seventeenth century,
writes:
Until the
year 962 (1554-55), in the High, God-Guarded city of Constantinople,
as well as in Ottoman lands generally, coffee and coffeehouses did
not exist. About that year, a fellow called Hakam from Aleppo and a
wag called Shams from Damascus, came to the city: they each opened a
large shop in the district called Tahtalkala, and began to purvey
coffee.[5]
Name
In Turkey,
it was known simply as "coffee" (kahve) until instant
coffee was brought in during the 1980s. Today younger
generations refer to the beverage as "Turkish coffee"
(Türk kahvesi). It is also known as Armenian Coffee (Armenian: Հայկական սուրճ Haykakan surj), Greek coffee (Greek: Ελληνικός καφές) or Byzantine coffee (Greek: Βυζαντινός καφές). In Cyprus it is also
known as Kypriakos kafes (Greek:
Κυπριακός καφές). In Croatian communities, the most common names are turska kava (Turkish coffee), domaca kava (domestic
coffee), and kava (coffee). In Serbian communities, it’s
called turska kafa (Turkish coffee), srpska kafa (Serbian coffee), domaca kafa (domestic coffee), or kafa (coffee). In Romania it is known
as cafea turceasca (Turkish coffee).
Equipment
The
necessary equipment to prepare Turkish coffee
consists of a narrow-topped small boiling pot called an ibrik or cezve or džezva (basically a ewer), a teaspoon and a
heating apparatus. The ingredients are finely ground coffee,
sometimes cardamom, cold
water and (if desired) sugar. It is served in
cups (fincan or fildžan) similar in size to Italian espresso or
Japanese sake cups. Some modern
cups do have handles. Traditional cups did not, and coffee was drunk
either by handling the cup with the fingertips or, more often, by
placing the cup in a zarf, a metal container
with a handle.
Traditionally, the pot is made of copper and has a
wooden handle. The size of the pot is chosen to be close to the
total volume of the cups to be prepared, since using too large a pot
causes most of the precious foam to stick to the inside of it. Also,
a certain depth of water is necessary in order for the coffee
particles to sink. The teaspoon is used both for stirring and
measuring the amount of coffee and sugar. The teaspoons in the United States are much larger than the teaspoons in countries where Turkish coffee is
common: The dipping parts of the teaspoons in these countries are
about 1 cm long and 0.5
cm wide.
For
heating, an ordinary stove burner is sufficient, but too strong of a
heat source is undesirable, as the brewing time needs to be at
least five minutes. As an alternative, the heating source can be
a tray about 10cm (4in) deep filled with sand. The tray is placed on
the burner. When the sand is hot, the coffee pot is placed in the
sand. This allows for a more even and gentle heat transfer. The
coffee prepared this method is called la nisip ("on sand") in Romania
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Preparation |
Preparation of Greek
coffee
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As with
other ways of preparing coffee, the best Turkish coffee is made from
freshly roasted beans ground just before brewing. A dark roast is
preferable but even a medium roast coffee will yield a strong aroma
and flavour. The grinding is done either by pounding in a mortar (the authentic method) or using a mill (the more usual method
today), and the end result is a fine coffee powder. Beans for
Turkish coffee are ground even finer than the grind used in
pump-driven espresso makers;
therefore, Turkish coffee should be powdery. It is the finest grind
of coffee used in any style of coffee making.
For best
results, the water must be cold. Therefore, if sugar is desired, an
easily dissolvable form should be chosen.
The amount
of water necessary can be measured using the cups. The coffee and
the sugar are usually added to water, rather than being put into the
pot first. For each cup between one and two heaped teaspoons of
coffee are used. In Turkey, four degrees of sweetness are used. The Turkish terms and approximate amounts are as follows: sade (plain; no
sugar), az şekerli (little sugar; half a levelled teaspoon of
sugar), orta şekerli (medium sugar; one levelled teaspoon),
and çok şekerli (a lot of sugar; one and a half or two
levelled teaspoons). The coffee and the desired amount of sugar are
stirred until all coffee sinks and the sugar is dissolved. Following
this, the spoon is removed and the pot is put on the fire. No
stirring is done beyond this point, as it would dissolve the foam.
Just as the coffee begins boiling, the pot is removed from the fire
and the coffee is poured into the cups. |
Utensils to prepare Greek
coffee (handmade from Crete)
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A
well-prepared Turkish coffee has a thick foam at the top
(köpük in Turkish), is homogeneous, and does not contain
noticeable particles in the foam or the liquid. This can be achieved
only if cold water and a low heat are used. Starting with warm water
or a strong heat does not leave enough time for either the coffee to
sink or the foam to form. It is possible to wait an additional
twenty seconds past boiling, which makes a homogeneous and delicious
coffee, but the foam is completely lost. To overcome this, foam can
be removed and put into cups earlier and the rest can be left to
boil. In this case special attention must be paid to transfer only
the foam and not the suspended particles.
There are
other schools of preparing Turkish coffee that vary from the above.
One such method involves starting with hot water alone, then adding
and dissolving the sugar. The product is in essence a sugar syrup,
with a higher boiling point than water. The coffee and cardamom are
added, and the mixture is stirred. It is then brought to a boil and
just before serving is removed from the heat for a few seconds and
returned to it, being brought to a brief boil a second time. This
double (and sometimes triple) boiling is an essential part of the
process, both ceremonially and—as connoissieurs claim—on the
palate.
Drinking
All the
coffee in the pot is poured into cups, but not all of it is
drunk.
Turkish
coffee is drunk slowly and is usually served with a glass of cold
water (to freshen the mouth to better taste the coffee before
sipping), though sometimes, especially after dinner, with a small
glass of mint liqueur.
The thick
layer of sludgy grounds at the bottom of the cup is left behind. The
cup is then commonly turned over into the saucer to cool, and then
the patterns of the coffee grounds can be used for a kind of fortune
telling called tasseography,
or tasseomancy (Turkish: kahve falı, Greek: kafemandeia). These terms also refer to the reading of tea
leaves.
Turkish
coffee grounds are sometimes flavored with cardamom,
eliminating the need to have the spice added during
preparation.
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| READING GREEK COFFEE: A cup of
your life |
How can a cup of coffee tell you about the past, present
and future in your personal, social or professional life, sceptics
will ask. This method of fortune-telling, known as tasseography, or
tasseomancy (kafemandeia in Greek), has been practised for
centuries and originates in China, where tea leaves were read in the
bell-shaped cups (before that, monks used to read patterns formed on
the internal part of bells in temples, so the handle-less tea cup
was a logical progression). The author of the above-mentioned book,
who uses the pen-name "Sophia" (which also means wisdom in Greek)
writes that she was taught coffee-reading by her grandfather, who
did it professionally. It is her theory that each individual's DNA
and thus the emotional, mental and physical condition of each
affects what shapes will be formed in the grains. Some images will
simply reveal something we are already aware of, consciously or
subconsciously, whilst other symbols are said to foretell events
beyond our knowledge or expectations.
Today, people around the world continue to look for
answers in the residue of their tea or coffee and lessons in how to
do it correctly are passed on through the generations. It goes with
the dramatic Greek nature to be both curious (and often anxious)
about the present and future, as well as to enjoy making
Cassandra-like predictions about how events or situations will
unfold. The trick is not to take it all too seriously, but also to
consider the possibility that some, if not most of it may be likely,
indicative of something important or de facto true; certainly
everyone who has had their cup read comments that what it reveals
often is uncannily spot-on. Try it and see for yourself:
Step one
Ideal for reading are African, Greek or Turkish ground
coffees, rich in taste as well as consistency (not to mention
caffeine levels - tell me about it!). The drink should be
brewed in the traditional long-handled briki and served in
the suitable small cup. Whether there's a particular issue one
requires some enlightenment on or not doesn't matter, for the coffee
will always have something to reveal. If one wants answers to a
specific question, this concern should be focused on whilst sipping
at a leisurely pace. Overall, it's important to enjoy the experience
and keep an open mind.
Step two
Once the coffee is finished, the cup should be held
facing out on its side and be turned three times clock-wise, whilst
spilling out the sludge and simultaneously spreading it around the
entire surface of the cup. Whatever excess remains should be poured
out from the side where the cup-handle is. The cup should then be
overturned onto a napkin and left for a few minutes. Take this
moment to take a deep breath and ask for guidance in reading your
cup; who or what you ask about is completely up to you.
Step three
Overturn your cup and hold it upright. Remember to keep
an open mind and not try too hard to see things. Also, try to put
your scepticism aside. If you see something that looks like one
particular symbol but not exactly, you're probably right. How you
interpret things is up to you. What looks like a smudged cow to you
may be a clear dog to someone else - asking for a second opinion is
a good option if you're not sure. Often, the most important messages
appear surprisingly clearly.
Types of symbols
Animals, initials, natural landmarks such as rivers,
lakes or trees and many other things known to the human eye - from a
fork to a golf club to a moon - can all be found in the cup.
important guidelines!
Generally, the bottom part of the cup represents people,
situations, or ideas from your past, the middle part on the sides of
the cup represents the present whilst the top part indicates what's
approaching in the future. Where a symbol appears on the cup can
create different meanings.
If
going through the coffee-reading process seems like too much of a
hassle, don't despair. There will always be Kiria Roula or Mario the
friendly coffee-reading neighbour, or a professional fortune-teller
a stone's throw away - ask anyone. Either way, take heed!
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