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Mexican Koffee

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Mexican Coffee
by Elaine Sosa


Coffee arrived in Mexico at the start of the nineteenth century, although it wasn't
exported in significant quantities until the 1870s. The Mexicans themselves consume over half the coffee produced in their country, with the US being the largest foreign customer, receiving over three-fourths of the exported coffee.

The coffee-producing regions of Veracruz and Chiapas account for 70% of the
Mexican coffee crop, with another 10% coming from Puebla and the remainder from other states, among them fertile Oaxaca. Nearly all of the coffee growers in Mexico work on farms of 25 acres or less, a far cry from the real and imagined coffee plantations of yesteryear.

The finest grade of Mexican coffee is "altura," which means "high-grown." Where
coffee is concerned, higher always means better, and the high-grown coffees of Mexico are considered very high-quality indeed and among the finest grown in the Americas. 

When I lived in Mexico City, I often stayed at the home of a friend who lived in the Tlalpan neighborhood, an older neighborhood at the southern end of the city. Her apartment was located in the city's "hospital zone," and I'd often see white-frocked doctors scurrying to and fro, usually out on the street to grab a quick bite or a cup of coffee. Their favorite spot was near the corner of Lucy's street, a small restaurant which served breakfast and lunch only. I would invariably smell the aroma of coffee as I approached it. The coffee du jour was always cafe de olla, which translates to "coffee from the pot". This much-loved Mexican beverage really does simmer in the pot all day long, which enhances the flavors of this syrupy-sweet coffee drink prepared with cinnamon and cloves.



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Last modified: March 30, 2000