coffee banned?!

Could you imagine coffee being something that was considered morally wrong and even illegal? As something that is rooted in our culture today, it is hard to fathom.

Furthermore, in the year 2022 in the United States, and a large portion of our world, it is hard to think of a time when safe drinking water was not readily available. Most individuals in developed countries do not have to question whether their tap water is safe to drink or if it has been contaminated. 

There have always been moral questions raised by beverages that alter one's mind, such as beer and wine. This has largely been a religious issue and logically so, but did you know that in the early years of coffee's popularity it was often just as divisive as alcohol? Beverages such as wine and “small beer” were certainly safer to drink than most available water sources, in say the 1500s and prior, since they used means of boiling and fermentation which removed any bad bacteria that could be present. We see that coffee emerged as another alternative to normal alcoholic options. Coffee was even considered a sort of “fix” or “sobering” to excess alcohol consumption, and many still regard this as true. However, there is no such evidence that reveals this to be true, in fact, it is quite the opposite. While the caffeine in coffee can help aid in alertness, the consumption of it actually causes the alcohol in the bloodstream to be slowed down and reduced! 

For the beginnings of coffee consumption, we look east,

with many Arab historians agreeing that the middle of the 15th century was when coffee drinking really took off in Yemen. Arab traders had traveled to Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee, where coffee was brought back (actually stolen, as we should find out when speaking with Cxffee Black on a future episode) and cultivated.

As coffee consumption ramped up, the effects the beverage had on the mind took on quite the controversy, especially in religious sectors. In 1511 we find some early examples of coffee being on trial to be prohibited. In fact, coffee was put on proper trial by local governor Kha’Ir Beg. His trial proved to be in his favor, as the council decided to ban the sale and consumption of said coffee. This decision echoed throughout Mecca with vendors and consumers of coffee being punished even by means of beatings for their actions. Yet coffee consumption would not so easily be halted. Just a few months later Kha ‘Ir Beg’s higher-ups, specifically the sultan of Cairo, would lift the band and the open, proud, joyful consumption of coffee would resume.

This lift would not cease the moral questioning of coffee and its effects. Muslim scholars had been relying on the teachings of Muhammed which prohibited the consumption of drinks that caused one to be intoxicated. The debate centered around the question of consuming drinks that could be intoxicating altogether or merely the overconsumption of said beverages which would lead to intoxication. This seems silly to us now, but could coffee really be an intoxicating beverage? At this time there were various definitions of what intoxication meant, and the various interpretations were applied to coffee. Most of the defining factors had to do with the absent-minded nature that comes with being intoxicated, along with any foolishness or simply dumbness that one could experience. Even in the face of these loose definitions and understandings, coffee could prevail since its effects did quite the opposite of those experiences of intoxication. Many defended the argument in favor of coffee stating that broad generalizations could be applied to other foods such as spicy foods, herbs, and vegetables that could make the eyes water and the physical effects of such ingredients. 

While the ban was lifted, it would be hard to shake the disapproval of those in favor of the prohibition. Coffeehouses, as they were, tended to be places that yes, the distinguished, non-tavern patron would frequent, but also were homes to gossiping, rumor-sharing, and other conversations that would be deemed inappropriate.

If religious reasons were, on one hand, to object to coffee consumption, political reasons were on the other.

Many secular authorities were in opposition to coffee not so much because of the drink itself, but rather because of the possibility of it uprooting social norms and fostering dangerous speech and even evil plots. This was in fear of the sort of culture that the coffeehouse would represent regardless of their efforts against it. These new public meeting places were not only a way to enjoy some new-to-them beverage but would also cause a blurring effect across classes through means of being accessible to anyone. Naturally, this sort of open mixing of classes gave the power and wealth-driven elite a great deal of fear for the stability of their statuses. Regardless of these things, coffeehouses prevailed and soon outnumbered taverns in most towns.

Apart from general disapproval regarding coffeehouses, there would still be attempts to ban coffee itself yet again. Looking to Europe, Pope Clement VIII was asked to state the official Catholic position on coffee in 1605, which had largely been viewed as satanic. The Pope was presented a small sample for inspection by a merchant of Venetia. Upon the introduction of the aroma and taste, Pope Clement VIII approved immediately coffee consumption for Christians.

Let’s move across the globe some more and observe the bans that plagued Sweden.

When coffee arrived in Sweden at the end of the 1600s it was a popular beverage for the wealthy. In the early 17th century Sweden would not have long until they faced similar prohibition of coffee as the Middle East and Europe had. It would begin with a heavy tax implemented by Fredrick I, the King of Sweden, on coffee and even tea. The ban would not hinder smuggling tactics by coffee lovers during the time, but the reigns were tightened in 1766 under a new King Adolf Fredrick where coffee be further restricted. It was Gustav III who would continue the trend of halting coffee consumption in his country. Gustav had a unique approach, however, where his aim was to display the health dangers of coffee consumption. Through a clinical trial, identical twins were assigned one to drink three pots of coffee and the other three pots of tea every day and would face the death penalty otherwise. Physicians were assigned to track their health but were outlived by the twins and the coffee drinker succeeded their tea counterpart. With stricter bans and taxes continuing through the 1820s, the Swedish government finally gave up the fight and let loose its grip, allowing the people to enjoy coffee at their whim. Sweden is still in the top ten coffee consumption countries in the world as of 2022, and the USA is among the very least.

Sources used:

https://www.ozy.com/true-and-stories/the-islamic-roots-of-coffee/32702/

http://www.deathbycoffee.net/ourjourneycoffeeblog/coffeebansinhistory

https://coffeeabout.com/coffee-consumption-by-country/