Abha Fort Coffee House, November 14, 2017
Of coffee and dates
AQ my longsuffering cultural guide and student in Saudi Arabia invited me down to the "Ottoman Bridge" in Abha. It is in the center of the old town by one of the streams that feeds the main river flowing through town. There, someone fixed up a traditional house and turned it into a coffee house with decorations from before the modern age. For AQ, this was just indulging his old teacher as he had seen this stuff a million times. For me, it was one of those moments where I felt, "you know, Saudi Arabia isn't all that bad".
Arabic coffee is a pillar of Saudi culture. Coffea arabica is the name of the plant. How much more Arab does it need to be? Coffee as a drink probably originated in Yemen from plants that had come from Ethiopia (just across the Red Sea). From Yemen, to Mecca, to Istanbul, to Vienna, to Italy, to Starbucks - that was the evolution of coffee. How is the espresso-based drink popular around the world related to original Arabic coffee? Not much - in fact, almost zero.
There are coffee drinkers and tea drinkers in the world. Arabic coffee might just be the bridge between the two. Arabic coffee beans are very lightly roasted; in fact, they are still green. Then these beans are roughly ground and boiled with cardamom and other spices to yield a greenish-yellow hot beverage. This coffee is consumed in tiny cups in great quantities. It tastes lovely and every family has its own variation so it is never quite the same each time. Nothing is ever added to Arabic coffee - no need actually as it is never bitter. In the food desert of Saudi Arabia, I fell in love with their coffee.
In Japan, sado, tea ceremony is a highly ritualistic way in which to enjoy tea. In Saudi Arabia, drinking coffee has similar cultural overtones. First of all, who made the coffee? In the traditional past, men mostly prepared the coffee for tribal gatherings and much emphasis was placed on not only how good the coffee tasted, but how it was served. These days, women make the coffee and male family members are quite proud of their grandmother, mother, wife, or sister's coffee. You simply MUST compliment it as it reflects back on the family. Additionally, in a gathering, young men become "coffee boys" who literally scamper around the room topping you up (remember those cups are tiny). You must hold your glass for it to be refilled, of course, with the right hand. In premodern times, coffee was drunk at meetings to resolve issues inside a family, a tribe, or between tribes. Proper decorum around coffee preparation, service, and drinking was essential to success. If you are offered Arabic coffee in a home, you cannot refuse it. Refusing coffee years ago was the precursor to a dispute or even a war between tribes. Accepting coffee after a conflict signaled resolution.
These days, coffee is made at home and brought outside in a thermos. Generally, very sweet treats are packed or purchased. Then it is consumed in open air, on the ground with a carpet, preferably in a lovely place. My personal favorite was coffee at sunset overlooking the escarpment in Abha. After that, coffee in a traditional house was a close second. My invitations for a drive with coffee were an essential part of my Saudi experience. Admittedly, some locations I was taken to were not all that beautiful and, yes, sometimes the coffee was not all that good. Overall, however, it was probably one of the best parts about my time in the kingdom.
Traditionally, coffee is served with dates. These days it is more likely you will get cookies or cake, but most traditionally, dates were the staple. Dates in the Gulf are a world unto themselves. Date palms probably originated in Mesopotamia millennia ago. Now they are a part of the landscape in Saudi Arabia and the place is literally covered in date palms. However, just as all those orange trees along streets of southern Spain aren't for eating, all the date palms for landscaping in Saudi Arabia do not yield edible fruit either. Dates have certain temperature and water requirements to yield good fruit. There is much argument in Saudi Arabia where the best dates are from, but most often one hears about Qasim and Medina. In fact, the largest date palm oasis in the world is in Saudi Arabia. The other Gulf countries readily admit that Saudi has very good dates. In a region of intense rivalry, that is high praise indeed.
Dates are a measure of prestige. Any office visit in Saudi Arabia will include a drink and dates at a minimum. The drink varies these days, but the dates - they indicate social status. Dates range widely in quality. A meeting with someone low on the totem pole yields mediocre dates. A meeting with a high ranking official will provide dates of such high quality that post meeting people will discuss them at length. The best dates I had were at the university vice-president level and I have to say, they were damn tasty! I used to joke that the university president's dates must fly in on cherubs and leave one in a state of near ecstasy.
In case there is a doubt about the importance of dates in my Saudi experience, there is more! Dates also vary in how they are processed and the resulting stickiness. Some come coated in a sugary date molasses called dhibs. Some dates are sticky to the touch but without syrup. Others are dry to the touch but still quite moist, and yet others are dry and almost jerky-like. Ripe, undried dates are another category. Everyone has a preference. Mine was non-sticky yet moist. By the way, dates are supposed to have seeds. Pitted dates are something for foreigners. One of the most frustrating parts of being served dates was what to do with the seeds. It almost seemed like a joke to me sometimes being served this fabulous dried fruit where the flesh must be sucked off and then there is no place to dispose of the seed that has been in your mouth. I never figured that one out even after five years there. I sometimes declined dates just for that reason.
If anyone asks me about my favorite things in Saudi Arabia, Arabic coffee and dates are right at the top of the list!
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