Few people know about Kaldi, but he is perhaps one of the most important historical, agricultural and cultural figures. The legend starts in the Ethiopian highlands where Kaldi, a goatherd, tried a berry from a tree his goats were eating. He was curious as to why his goats would be suddenly full of energy after eating the berry. After eating it, he took the berries to his local monastery, who then made a drink out of it that help him alert through long evening prayers. Word spread about the energetic berry, which soon became traded and cultivated throughout the Arabian Peninsula. By the sixteenth century, the drink, now known as coffee, made its way to Persia, Egypt, Syria and Turkey (Civitello). Six centuries later, coffee continues to be a staple in many persons’ daily lives and has impacted the culture of multiple countries, especially Italy. Italy is in part famous for its coffee culture: how they drink it, what they drink and the Italian Roast. This research paper examines the religious, social and political contexts of the start of the coffee phenomena in Italy before exploring contemporary Italian coffee culture and proposed health effects in order to better understand coffee’s role in the country’s culture as a way to unify all Italians.

 

Part of coffee’s success has been because of two Abrahamic religions: Islam and Christianity. Coffee was accepted and praised by Muslims first. They found coffee wondrous for their religious practices because the energizing effects helped them stay awake through prayer. Its energizing effects also lead Muslims to consider it a good substitute for alcohol, a drink forbidden by the Qur’an. Opponents of the drink used its popularity in Islam to try and get the drink banned through Christianity. In another attempt to ban the drink, opponents also referred to coffee as the “the bitter invention of Satan” (NCA), again focusing on the Christian religion. Coffee came to Europe in the early 17th century through Venice and after hearing of the controversy, Pope Clement VIII took interest. Instead of listening to his strongly opinionated clergy, he drank the drink himself before making a decision. Instantly loving the drink, he gave coffee Papal approval (NCA). The Pope’s decision made a huge impact on Italy’s view of coffee because of its ties to the Papacy. Italy was not unified until 1870, but the Lateran Treaty that politically separates the Holy See from the country was not signed until 1929. Until then, the region was heavily influenced by the Papacy, and Papal approval was significant in terms of coffee’s acceptance and use in the region.

 

Venice was not only the first European city to enjoy coffee; it also opened the first European coffeehouse in 1683 (ICO). 17th and 18th century ideas about coffeehouses are pertinent to understanding the social context of coffee in Italy and even Europe. The Venice coffeehouse was not only important so that people could access the popular drink, the coffeehouse “soon became synonymous with comfortable atmosphere, conversation, and good food, thus adding romance and sophistication to the coffee experience” (DeLonghi). It was not long before people could go to a coffeehouse to socialize, relax and eat good food. The entire idea behind the coffeehouse was a fantasy – finally the entire coffee experience was complete and not only was the drink itself enjoyable, but so equally was the surrounding atmosphere. Coffeehouses were not for everyone. A wealthy person would probably not be seen inside of one. According to Linda Civitello, author of Cuisine and Culture: A History of Food and People, a wealthy person built a separate room in their house to enjoy coffee, while people of the lower classes would go to the popular coffeehouses. Besides changing the eating and social habits of the people, it changed their political habits. As Civitello goes on to say, “for the first time, people had a public place and reason to congregate that did not involve alcohol”. The endless and enjoyable flows of conversation soon turned to associating coffee and politics.

 

As coffeehouses established themselves as an important social center, they became known by some as “Schools of the Wise” (NCA). Coffee was brought to Europe through Venice in 1615, but it is important to understand the Hot Chocolate was brought to Spain in 1528 and Tea was brought to Europe in 1610 (ICO). Coffee had competition in the other hot beverages popular throughout Europe and from the beginning coffee was the underdog due to trade and politics. Dutch traders became the largest suppliers of coffee in Europe and it was one of the few countries that immediately accepted coffee as a drink (ICO). Believing, correctly, that people were gathering in coffeehouses to talk badly about their rulers, coffee was banned in Mecca and the United Kingdom. It was banned in France and Germany because their rulers believed it would become more popular than their respective popular drinks of wine and beer (Civitello). Italy was never a big coffee trader, nor did it ban the drink. However, it was used to manipulate the working class. An 18th century Italian businessman figured out how to reduce the time his workers spent on a coffee break. He packed tightly the ground coffee, creating a stronger, more aromatic brew known as espresso, or simply caffé (DeLonghi). Caffé was so popular that its ties to the working class, hard workers and political businessmen combined with its taste was welcomed all over the region by all social classes.

 

Today, espresso is the staple in any Italian coffee, reflecting Italian culture as both based off history and politics. Now, replacing the coffeehouses are bars. Bars are everywhere in Italy as coffee is considered a necessity. As The Rome Journal agrees, even providing the example that “when the famished contestants of the Italian version of the reality TV show “Survivor” were left stranded on a deserted island equipped only with the most basic necessities, this ‘basic equipment’ included the implements for making a perfect coffee” (TRJ). Coffee is still a social stronghold in Italy. The bars are a place to reenergize oneself while also making pleasant conversation. Contrasting the easiness to which one can find a bar to drink coffee, the particular way in which Italians drink their coffee is not at first immediately understood. The first important thing to note is the way to order: tell the barista, drink (possibly with food) and then pay. Once given the drink, one is expected to drink immediately, hence the cooler temperature. It is possible to drink the coffee drink quickly due to the size of the drink. Italians do drink a lot of coffee, but in small doses multiple times throughout the day, avoiding fancy drinks and sticking to variations of caffé, cappuccino and caffé latte (Marshall). Italians start the first meal of the day with coffee and end their last meal with coffee, and without a doubt coffee drinks are in between. The time of day is also important to which drink one might drink. Milky coffee drinks, such as a cappuccino, are only drunk in the morning and never after a meal. Espresso drinks, however, can be drunk throughout the day (Marshall). This particular way in which coffee is consumed reflects the social aspects in daily Italian life.

 

The bar is a place to socialize: talk to the people, friends and the barista in pleasant conversation throughout the day. There is a noticeable trust factor in the bars as well. A customer gets to enjoy the product first and then pay. The customer, although should be drinking the drink quickly, can take time to still socialize. Finally, the pace of the bar scene reflects the bridge Italy tries to make between its past and future. The place to get coffee is still an important area for socializing, but the pace of the place reflects the pace of the new era. Just like things are moving quicker in the 21st century, people drink the coffee quicker. However, Italy has not made its way completely into the modern era as big to-go cups, or even small ones, are rarely accepted. Coffee has important social connotations that cannot be ignored when looking at coffee consumption in Italy.

 

Just as coffee caused a brief moment of controversy amongst religious and political figures, it causes controversy in the contemporary world amongst health enthusiasts. The health problems associated with coffee stem from the main ingredient, caffeine. One additional reason, perhaps, that coffee has taken the world is that caffeine does have a small addiction property. The bad health effects from drinking coffee have been associated with an increased heart rate, blood pressure and maybe even an occasional irregular heartbeat (Harvard). Besides effects on the heart, women drinking coffee could be exposes to more health problems such as breast cancer and osteoporosis (Harvard). However there are positive health effects to the drink as well, in which people are divided as to whether or not they outweigh the bad. According to the same source, Harvard Health Publications, drinking coffee in moderation can actually improve ones health by reducing the risks of developing various health problems. Amongst these health improvements, coffee can lower the risk of a drinker developing type 2 diabetes, developing gallstones, the speed of development of colon cancer, the risk of liver damage amongst people who are at a high risk for liver disease and the chances on Parkinson’s disease. Coffee is also believed to help one’s cognitive function. Coffee, which comes in Italy with good taste, socialization and culture, also affects ones health – some believe for the worse while others see improvements.

 

The drink discovered by legend in Ethiopia now carries with it the legend of Italy. It was Italian traders who brought it to Europe, an Italian Pope who gave it Christian meaning, it was the Italian government that lead the political talk in coffeehouses slide and the Italian businessman invented the espresso so workers could drink. Italy now has a particular way of drinking coffee that it prides itself on and focuses on the drink and the atmosphere coffee brings with it. The worldly and local importance of Italian coffee stems from its social and consumer culture that combines Italy’s history with Italy’s future in order to create a phenomenon for citizens and tourists. Despite good and bad health affects, Italian coffee is important because of the appealing manner to which it is taken. The significance of coffee in contemporary Italy goes farther than what can be seen today. It is a symbol of the hard-workers, politicians, tradesman, the religious, the amicable and the informed combined with national unity and national pride.

 

Bibliography 

 

Civitello, Linda. Cuisine and Culture: A History of Food and People. 2nd ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. Web. 7 May 2013.

 

Marshall, Lee. "Italian Coffee Culture: A Guide." The Telegraph 30 Sept. 2009. Web. 7 May 2013.

 

"Art, Culture and Variations of Italian Coffee." The Rome Journal (2009). Web. 7 May 2013.

 

"Coffee Health Risks: For the moderate drinker, coffee is safe says Harvard Women’s Health Watch." Harvard Health Publications. Harvard Medical School, Aug. 2004. Web. 7 May 2013.

 

"History of Coffee." The Great Italian Cafe. DéLonghi, 2009. Web. 7 May 2013.

 

"The History of Coffee." National Coffee Association USA. NCA, n.d. Web. 7 May 2013.

 

"The Story of Coffee." International Coffee Organization. ICO, n.d. Web. 7 May 2013.