Cafe. Kaffee.

No. 524. - Coffee is produced on a small bushy tree. The flowers are odorous, and the fruit jelly-like, having two seeds. Coffee is said to have originated in Arabia, but is now cultivated in different parts of the world. The Arabian historian, Ahmet Effendi, wrote that Coffee was first used in Arabia in the fifteenth century. The Egyptians prepare a drink with Coffee which the Arabs call Kawa. Coffee was introduced in France by the Venetians in 1657, after which its use became universal. There are live principal varieties of Coffee. The Mocha is considered the best, and is divided in three classes - namely, the Baouri, which is the best and is hardly ever obtainable in this country, as it is reserved for the highest classes in Arabia and Turkey; the Saki and the Salabi. The Coffee from Martinique, Java, Rio and Guadaloupe, is considered next best in quality. The grades from Santa Domingo, Costa Rica, and all other kinds, are of inferior quality. Coffee is now in use all over the civilized world, and is largely adulterated with the chiccory root, especially when ground. For this reason Coffee should always be procured in beans and ground when required. It will keep its flavor better in this way. Adulterated Coffee was first used in 1808, during the campaign of Napoleon. The dealers, seeing the large profit that could be made by combining chiccory with Coffee, adopted it, and even claimed that chiccory improved Coffee, which is not so. Most of the ground Coffee now prepared and sold by unscrupulous dealers is adulterated with chiccory, ground peas and common Coffee beans. Coffee beans are roasted in Coffee roasters that can be purchased from dealers. It is better to buy Coffee beans in their green state as their quality can then be better distinguished than when roasted. The interior of the Coffee roaster is round, and the beans when being turned in the receptacle will roll over and over, and thus get evenly roasted on the surface of the hot roller. Commence to roast the Coffee over a slow fire, so it will be gradually and thoroughly browned, which will take place in about forty-five minutes. When it is browned take it out of the roaster and spread it on a blanket. It will then emit an agreeable odor. Turn it occasionally to cool it, and when cold put it in jars corked tight and grind it when needed. The Mocha Coffee has the best flavor, and is generally mixed with Java or Rio. This makes the best black Coffee. The Coffee from Martinique and Costa Rica, when mixed, is the best to use when milk is added. Coffee when ground is made by infusion. French and American coffee pots are so well known that no description of them is necessary. Either can be used. Coffee should always be made fresh, and care should be taken to have the water to the boiling point before it is poured over the Coffee. Coffee should not remain long in tin pots, as it contains an ingredient that combines with tin or iron, and imparts a disagreeable flavor when it lays for any length of time. For this reason when large quantities are made at a time it should be kept in earthen jars. When Coffee is left over, after a meal, always put it in an earthen jar to use the following day.

Coffee is now made as it was years ago. The Orientals do not strain it. They boil it with the sugar in and serve it in cups, suspended below a punctured shell, called fitzyanes. Coffee made and served in this manner does not excite the nerves as when made in the French or American styles, but the latter modes are considered the best. When using a French coffee pot the boiling water has to drain through the ground Coffee and runs clear immediately. Hence it is unnecessary to clarify it. When it is boiled in a saucepan and clarified with eggs or other substances, it loses much of its strength and flavor. Some physicians advance the theory that Coffee is injurious to health, but this is a fallacy, when it is used in moderation. A certain gourmet of advanced years, yet in robust health, was in the habit of imbibing a cup of Coffee after every meal. One evening while at dinner in the Palace Hotel with his friend, a well-known physician, the latter remarked casually that Coffee was a slow poison, and urged the gourmet to discontinue its use.

"Well," remarked the gourmet, with a sly twinkle in his eye, "I agree with you on that point, but I must say that it is terrible slow, for I have been using it continuously for the past seventy years, and am still alive and well." The doctor then subsided.