Historical background of products
Sugar
Sugar, from the Sanskrit word “sarkara” finds its origin in Asia (China, India, and Persia).
Since the IIIrd century B.C., sugar cane was known in the Indus Valley where it used to grow in the wild. Greeks and Romans described sugar as the “Indian salt” or the “Asian honey”. Honey was used as a medicine in Ancient Egypt. In the Xth century, Egyptian industries were producing sugar.
In the Middle Ages, Venetian merchants introduced in Europe the first toffee which had been previously invented by Arabs. Crusades magnified the craze for sugar cane, called “sweet salt” in the West. Later on, the Iberian colonizers exported it to the Caribbean Islands and America.
At the beginning of the XVIIth century, sugar cane harvesting and sugar production started in the United States, around the New-Orleans: the production of sugar in tropical and sub-tropical regions became a most profitable operation.
During the following century, a first sugar refinery was created in Bordeaux in 1830.
The XIXth century saw the development of beet sugar and in 1875 France was the first producer in the world.
The average sugar intake per person and per year was multiplied by 12 in Europe during the XXth century. Today it reaches 77 pounds a day.
Cinnamon
The Cinnamon tree is a small evergreen tree which grows in the wild, in the mountain forests. It originates from the Indian Malabar Coast, the Isle of Ceylon and China.
In Egypt, cinnamon was used to embalme mummies.
Still, cinnamon was not harvested in Egypt. It therefore had to be traded over long distances, records of which can be found in Egyptian works dated 2500 B.C.
Arab traders brought cinnamon (with other spices) to Europe, at the beginning of the christian era, via Constantinople and Venice. In the late XVth century, Spain, Portugal and England tried to get their hands on the control of the main spices trade. Portugal won it thanks to Vasco de Gama who opened the sea route to India, getting around Africa. Meanwhile Christopher Columbus, sent by Spain for the same mission, got lost and ended up in America!
Cinnamon is obtained by cutting small branches when 3-years old, on which 2 or 3 cuts are done lengthwise. When drying, the bark curls into rolls forming little 1 cm-diameter sticks 7 to 8 cm-long looking like little pipes.
Vanilla
Vanilla is a climning plant of the orchid family which only grows naturally in Mexico. Among the 30 sub-species of vanilla, “Bourbon vanilla” is the most noble one. Aztecs used to mix it with cocoa to prepare a chocolate drink … somewhat spicy.
Today, vanilla is mainly produced in the Indian Ocean and 80% of the world production comes from Madagascar. But it is through Réunion that vanilla has been introduced into the Indian Ocean around 1820. At that time, we did not know about artificial fertilization. Yet, the vanilla orchid could only be fertilized by a tiny bee, the Melipone, which is found only in Mexico. As a consequence, during the first years, vanilla plants never bore fruits.
It’s not until 1841, that a young slave named Edmond Albius, found the right techniques to fertilize vanilla plants. According to the legend in Réunion, the young boy punished by his master, started to triturate the vanilla blossoms, to take revenge on him; which brought about a large scale spontaneous fertilization and launched the production of vanilla in the region. The story does not tell us about what happened to young Albius…
Vanilla is a capricious and delicate plant which requires a long preparation before being commercialized. After harvest, the green vanilla pod is put into water heated up to 65°C to stop all vegetative life. It then turns into a rich chocolaty color. It is then dryed in the sun for a week and in the shade for a month. When the vanilla has dryed long enough, it is put in wooden trunks for eight months to mature and let the aroma develop. Every week, the trunks are opened to look for traces of mold. One kilo of green vanilla yields 250g of dry vanilla
This work is entirely done manually which explains why the prices of vanilla are so high.
Coffee
Coffee beans, known since the Antiquity, are the fruits of a shrub growing in the wild which is said to originate from Ethiopia or Yemen.
According to the legend, Prophet Muhammad, was ailing. Archangel Gabriel, sent by Allah, came and offered him a black drink to comfort him. After drinking this brew, Muhammad was said to have been restored to his health and strength. He called the beverage “Qahwa”.
Later on, in the VIIIth century, Arabs used to make decoctions adding freshly gathered leaves and fruits in hot water. They used this beverage as a medicine. It is only in the XVth century that they came upon the idea of drying and roasting coffee beans. The first Coffee Houses were created in Mecca. “Qahwa” was then served hot in bowls.
Later, the beverage went across the Turkish border to Constantinople. From Turkey, it then went on to conquer Europe. The city of Venice, which owed its renown and prosperity to its trade with the Eastern world was probably the first city in Europe where coffee became a popular drink (1615).
In France, coffee made its formal entrée in 1669 when Soliman Aga, Turkish ambassador, offered coffee at Louis XIV’s court, during a great reception. This new beverage became immediately popular.
The great “wave” of coffee-houses was launched by a Gentleman from Palermo, Francesco Procopio Dei Coltelli, who opened a House called “Le Café Procope” in 1886.
At that period, coffee is a luxury good. The invention of the coffee grinder in 1687 is a stepping stone to the diffusion of coffee and its usage rapidly spreads throughout Europe. In 1732, in Germany, Johann Sebastian Bach composed his Cantata n°211, the so-called “Coffee Cantata”. Beethoven was a scrupulous coffee lover who meticulously counted exactly 60 beans of coffee for each preparation… Balzac himself used to drink up to 30 cups of coffee per day; he even devoted an extensive study to coffee and its effects on human beings.
Today, coffee is a moment of pleasure and relaxation to be savoured at any time of the day.