There are many legends in Ethiopia about the origin of coffee. One of the best known concerns a goat herder from Kaffa, where coffee beans still grow wild in the forest hills. One day the man noticed that his goats were excited, almost dancing on their hind legs. He noticed a few mangled branches of a plant hung with bright red berries. He tried the berries himself and rushed home to his wife who told him that he must tell the monks.

The monks tossed what they assumed to be a sinful drug into the flames. A few minutes later they smelled that aroma that the world has come to love so much. Within minutes the monastery filled with the heavenly aroma of roasting beans, and the other monks gathered to investigate. After sitting up all night, they found a renewed energy to their holy devotions. Well, it could be true...

The coffee ceremony is a central part of Ethiopian culture. The roasting of the coffee beans is done in a flat pan over a tiny charcoal stove, mingling with the heady scent of incense that is always burned during the ceremony. The lady washes a handful of coffee beans on the heated pan, then stirs and shakes the husks away. When the coffee beans have turned black and shining, they are ground by a pestle and a long handled mortar. The ground coffee is slowly stirred into the black clay coffee pot locally known as ‘jebena.’ The first cup goes to the eldest in the room and then to the others, connecting all the generations. The lady finally serves the coffee in tiny china cups to the guests who have waited and watched the procedure for the past half-hour. Gracefully pouring a thin stream of coffee into each little cup from a height of one foot requires years of practice.

Coffee is taken with plenty of sugar (or in the countryside, salt) but no milk. Often it is complemented by a traditional snack food, such as popcorn, peanuts or cooked barley. In most parts of Ethiopia, the coffee ceremony takes place three times a day - in the morning, at noon and in the evening. It is the main social event within the village and a time to discuss the community, politics, life and about who did what with whom. If invited into a home to take part, remember - it is impolite to retire until you have consumed at least three cups, as the third round is considered to bestow a blessing.