Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony by Bereka Coffee

Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony has been a major part of my life since I was a little girl.  Growing up, my mom used to send me to a local store to shop for coffee. When I tell you this, I am not referring just to go grab a pre-processed & packaged coffee. We are used to getting fresh picked green coffee beans, selecting the best one by looking & smelling!  In the process, I learned how to select the best quality coffee, how to hand roast them, and how to brew the most natural and delicious fresh cup of coffee.  But for me, my love for Coffee goes beyond just getting the best cup. 

I value the culture & history behind it; it is intriguing to me how coffee interconnects the entire world. Groups of families from a small village in other parts of the world such as Ethiopia worked on a coffee farm to produce the coffee you and I consume on the opposite side of the globe! But how many of us think about these things as we sip through about 2.25 billion cups of coffee each day?  Have you ever had a chance to sit in on an Ethiopian Traditional Coffee Ceremony? Well, now is your chance. 

Being invited to an Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony is a wonderful means of friendship expression. Ethiopians incorporate coffee ceremony in their daily routines. It is meant to give attending guests an opportunity to interact while the aroma of freshly roasted coffee & incense encompasses their senses. Long before coffee houses became a place for coffee lovers, Ethiopians developed a culture of ritual around the roasting, grinding, brewing, and drinking of coffee.  According to the National Coffee Association of the United States, Coffee was discovered in Ethiopia. A story of Kaldi, the young goat herder discovered coffee after watching his goats frolic energetically following a snack on the fruit of a coffee shrub.  It seems like a special occasion, as a traditionally authentic barista in uniform of flowing white cotton enters a room.  Then the aroma of frankincense, and myrrh mingling with that of freshly roasted coffee caress you into a state of enlightenment.  But in coffee’s native home, Ethiopia, it is simply the everyday manner of enjoying the company and the process of making coffee.  

When I started Bereka Coffee in 2016, I wanted to give my customers more than just a fresh cup of coffee.  I wanted to offer history, an opportunity to notice a unique culture, and a chance to interact with others.

By Nardos Street, Director of Operation at Bereka Coffee