Coffee in Russia – history and modernity

In one of the previous publications, we turned to the history of the origin of coffee and its cultivation in the East and the further migration of this delicious drink to Europe and other parts of the world. Today it’s time to talk about the history of coffee in Russia from the moment of its first appearance to the culture of coffee and its drinking today.

The first sprouts of coffee beans – the early history of coffee in Russia

Perhaps even people who are far from both the history of Russia and the history of coffee, when asked who is the most famous Russian innovator and initiator of countless innovations in all spheres of ancient Russian life, there will be one answer. Of course, this is the great tsar Peter Alekseevich, a huge lover of European culture, traditions, fashion and technical achievements.

So it is Peter the Great who also has the most direct relation to the spread of coffee in Russia. Although it is fair to say that the history of coffee in Russia still began a little earlier.

Back in the pre-Petrine era, during the reign of the father of the future emperor Alexei Mikhailovich, the court physician prescribed an unprecedented decoction of coffee beans to the tsar as a remedy for headaches and other ailments. But it was under Peter that coffee began to spread everywhere. The tsar personally tasted and appreciated this amazing drink during one of his visits to his beloved country, the “ship Mecca” of those times – Holland. Having appreciated the taste and invigorating properties of coffee, the tsar, according to his custom, began not just to recommend it for use, but in fact to plant it.

It was quite in the spirit of the first emperor of Russia – in the same way he planted “beards to shave”, and “potatoes to eat”, and much more. And, as has happened more than once in history, Peter’s passion for coffee in his native Russia was not greeted warmly and joyfully. Neither the boyars, nor the merchants, nor even the royal nobles from among the inner circle wanted to drink coffee. However, the tsar did not like objections and introduced the order to drink not only vodka, but also coffee, at his legendary assemblies, where the most notable people of Russia gathered – and not always of their own free will.

But as time went on, coffee gradually ceased to be called a “satanic drink”, and the number of its fans gradually grew. The first coffee shop (more precisely, then this institution was called a coffee house) was organized in the Russian capital under Anna Ioannovna. And, perhaps, this is almost the only achievement of the inglorious ruler in general, for which descendants can be grateful to her.

By the way, many great representatives of Russian culture and not only who left a noticeable mark in the history of our country were great coffee lovers later. These are Belinsky, Herzen, Ostrovsky, and other prominent writers, politicians, artists and composers.

From the time of the first open coffee shop to the present day, the culture of coffee and its popularity, first in Russia and then in the USSR, has been constantly growing, and rapidly. And by the time Russia once again became an independent and independent state, in terms of coffee consumption, our country was already confidently among the top ten leaders in annual coffee consumption.

Simple statistical data will be eloquent and convincing – in just a couple of decades, from the end of the XIX to the beginning of the XX century, coffee imports to the territory of Russia increased by almost half.

Coffee culture nowadays

The culture of coffee in modern Russia is fit to be called not even a culture, but in many ways a cult. The free market, which allowed Russians to forget about the shortage of products and get, among other things, access to really high-quality coffee, gave rise to an army of genuine connoisseurs and even fans of this drink in our country. Surely everyone reading these lines has friends who sometimes say something like this – there may not be bread in the house, but there must be good coffee!

And they are easy to understand. After all, a morning started over a cup of fragrant and properly prepared coffee is the key to a great mood and a good day for millions of Russians. And a cup or two of a fragrant drink during breaks in work also helps us to cheer up and get a few minutes of enjoyment and pleasure.

source:

https://www.coffeedom.ru/post/history/kofe-v-rossii-istorija-i-sovremennost