After retracing the history of many of the objects that are part of our daily life, today we have chosen to focus on one of the most popular beverages in the world, coffee. After all, if we think about his physical form, he hasn't changed at all. But what has evolved, however, is the way of Drink coffee. Over the last few years, in fact, technology has totally changed our habit of preparing coffee, making the mocha an almost obsolete object. But let's take a closer look at this evolution that interests us so closely.
Drinking coffee: the origin of a centuries-old habit
Have you ever wondered when it really started there history of coffee? Probably sooner than you imagine. In the distant 500 AD, in the ancient province of Kaffa / Kefa - from which the drink apparently takes its name - from southwestern Ethiopia the seeds and berries of coffee were used to prepare some of the traditional local recipes. A very different use from the one we know today, but which highlights how coffee plants were already taken into consideration at the dawn of history. In fact, the Ethiopians had already noticed the invigorating properties of these prodigious grains, so much so as to convince the warriors to take them with them even in military campaigns. We are around the XNUMXth century, when for the first time coffee leaves Ethiopia and reaches Yemen, Mecca and then Medina.
And actually they are right the Arabs to introduce the practice of drinking coffee as we still know it today. Not particularly appreciating the Ethiopian way of consuming coffee, the Arabs initially began to use the beans to prepare of the decoctions. And then someone (whose name has been lost) had the brilliance of roasting the beans and chopping them before using them to prepare a drink. This is how coffee was born. And, at the same time, too the cafes, who quickly invaded Arabia. With alcoholic beverages banned, coffee quickly became the drink of aggregation. But how did it get from Mecca to Europe? It took a few centuries, but it seems that after the capture of Vienna sacks of coffee beans were found in the Ottoman encampments. And from there began the rapid spread of the drink. It took very little to make it appreciated in London, Paris and Italy. And from that moment nothing changed, or almost.
From coffee beans to capsules: the evolution of coffee
As you can imagine, the advent of coffee capsules on the market is quite recent. In 1975 Eric Favre, an engineer specializing in aerodynamics, starts working in the packaging department of the multinational Nestlé. And it is on this occasion that his wife Anna Maria begins to make fun of him, claiming that the Swiss do not really know anything about coffee. But Éric doesn't like it, and he decides to prove to his wife that he's not like that at all. He then decides to travel to Rome to discover the secrets of preparing and drinking deli coffee Sant'Eustachio, one of the best known bars in the capital. By carefully analyzing the mechanisms of the machines used by Roman baristas, the engineer develops a machine that guarantees the maximum aeration of the water, then destined to cross a capsule containing coffee powder.
I don't know about you, but this mechanism immediately reminded us of something. On the other hand, the much loved Nespresso machine does nothing but re-propose the Favre principle. Except that it took at least ten years before Nestlè recognized the real potential of the coffee capsule, and gave the engineer the opportunity to found the Nespresso brand. The first capsule, in fact, was launched on the market in 1986. It is intended for a select public of hotels, bars and offices. The success, however, was not immediately explosive, so much so that the company was forced to expand the availability of the capsules to private customers as well. And it will actually take a few years for this new coffee drinking habit to spread. And the pandemic in this was truly providential.
Home Bar, that is the habit of drinking coffee at home
Thanks to the pandemic and the lockdown, which forced the closure of bars and cafes, in recent years Home Bar trend, that is the habit of drinking coffee at home. On the other hand, it was to be expected. The Italians would not give up the coffee break for anything in the world, and so they tried to reinvent it by adapting it to the conditions imposed by the pandemic. That is, by increasingly resorting to the use of automatic machines e coffee capsules, setting aside the mocha momentarily - always present in the house, mind you! -. This is confirmed by a recent report by Nielsen, which revealed an exponential growth of the capsule and pod market, which has reached the share of well 551 million to June 2021.
In the first half of the year, in fact, the volume of capsule consumption is raised by 22.6% compared to 2020. And almost 16% in terms of economic value. In short, an important growth, which clearly went to the detriment of the moka, which lost about 3% of its value compared to the previous year. “The capsules have grown year on year revitalizing the coffee industry without ever experiencing a moment of tiredness. In addition, the capsules have increased the value of the category compared to ground coffee “, said Cristina Farina, Sales Manager of Nielsen. This means that we are faced with a phenomenon that is destined to grow further. Supported by technology and the spread of smart working.
When coffee becomes hi-tech: the Lavazza case
Some time ago we would never have imagined being able to drink an artfully prepared coffee from a highly technological machine. The mocha was the only useful tool to prepare our favorite drink, and we never thought we could replace it so easily. But times change, and also very quickly. And it shows it well Lavazza A Modo Mio Voicy, the first coffee machine with integrated Alexa. Thanks to the ira “Piacere Lavazza” application it is possible to check the status of the machine, order the capsules and prepare your favorite espresso coffee using voice commands. In short, a gigantic step forward compared to the habit of having to sit down to wait for the coffee to come out of the moka pot.
"IoT technology has now become pervasive, as evidenced by Lavazza a Modo Mio Voicy for espresso coffee which has the ability to interact with other Echo devices, improving the user experience of the consumer: who still has to get up, put the capsule and cup but the commands of the machine are only vocal “. So explained Alessandro Cocco, Lavazza's Italy Training Center Manager. “The technology, used today, makes it possible to offer the best possible product because it uses systems that control the pressure and temperature of the water, making the extractions in the cup more and more efficient. This technology is only the starting point of what will happen in the future when super-automated machines arrive on the market “. What should we expect in the future then? A machine that brings us coffee to bed?
Discount
Lavazza A Modo Mio Voicy, Espresso Coffee Machine with Alexa ...
- VOICE CONTROL Ask Voicy for your favorite coffee: espresso or long espresso, customized according to your tastes ....
- AT HOME AS AT THE BAR Personalize your coffee experience and create your coffee with Voicy. Program length and ...
- YOUR DAILY ROUTINE Alexa built into your coffee machine. All Alexa functions, with assistant ...
Nespresso Vertuo ENV150B Espresso Machine by De'Longhi, ...
- Coffee machine with Nespresso Vertuo Line system
- Complimentary 30 € voucher that can be spent on the purchase of Nespresso products.
- Nespresso Vertuo uses a new dispensing system based on Centrifusion technology: by reading the code ...
