The world's most ancient coffee ritual, brewed in clay and scented with incense
Origin: Addis Ababa / Kaffa Highlands, Ethiopia
From the journey of Coffee.
Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee: the wild Coffea arabica plant is indigenous to the highland forests of Kaffa and Jimma, where the Oromo people have consumed coffee for over a thousand years, chewing the berries, mixing ground beans with butter and salt, long before the practice of brewing took hold. The word 'coffee' itself likely derives from 'Kaffa', the region. The Ethiopian Bunna ceremony is among the most elaborate and socially meaningful coffee rituals in the world: green beans are dry-roasted in a flat iron pan (menkeshkesh) over charcoal, then hand-ground with a wooden mortar and pestle (zenezena), and brewed in a porous clay pot called a jebena, whose round base and narrow neck naturally filter the grounds. The ceremony is performed by a woman, takes 45–60 minutes from first roast to first cup, and proceeds in three rounds: Abol (the first and strongest pour), Tona (the second, slightly diluted round), and Baraka (the third, meaning 'blessing'; lighter still but considered the most spiritually significant). Guests sit on grass-covered floors with frankincense or myrrh burning nearby, creating a ritual space that is simultaneously domestic and sacred. In Oromo and Sidama traditions, coffee is still occasionally prepared with salt or a knob of butter rather than sugar: a practice that predates the global sweetened-coffee convention by centuries.
If a jebena is unavailable, a French press is a respectable approximation: steep the freshly ground coffee for 4 minutes, then press and pour. The ceremony is as much about time, presence, and hospitality as it is about the coffee itself; rushing it defeats the purpose. Kolo (roasted barley, chickpeas, and sometimes sunflower seeds) or fresh popcorn is the traditional accompaniment. Store any roasted beans in an airtight container away from light and use within a week for peak flavour.
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