Sinan Lived 98 Years

Have you heard of the hidden gem in Sultanahmet yet? Within the serene courtyard of Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum, the very first Turkish coffee museum has been opened. 

For those who love coffee or who are curious to learn how Turkish coffee is prepared, this is the perfect spot. You can learn about the whole process from A to Z, grind the coffee yourself, choose which flavours you want to add to the mixture such as mastica or cinnamon. At the end of the workshop, you even get an official certificate to show you know how to prepare Turkish coffee and a small gift!

Back to coffee..

Here are some interesting facts about Turkish coffee:

• – Did you know that the word ‘coffee’ in most languages is derived from the Arabic word ‘qahwah’

• – The first coffeehouse in Istanbul is said to be opened in 1640s

• – Coffee has always had such a huge place in Turkish culture that it influenced the creation of some common words such as breakfast (‘kahvaltı’ in Turkish) meaning ‘before coffee’. Another example is the word for brown which in Turkish is ’kahverengi’ (literally meaning the color of coffee).

• – Until the 80s, in Turkey when one said ‘kahve’ they would refer to Turkish coffee. With the introduction of instant coffee to the Turkish market, the customs changed. Today, younger generations say ‘Türk Kahvesi’ (Turkish coffee) when referring to Turkish coffee.

• – In the old days, when one was going to visit a friend, they would grind their coffee in advance and take their grinders with them to save time for the host. This should remind us that grinding coffee is no easy task. Thus, it might be the reason that Turks say ‘bir kahvenin 40 yıl hatırı olur’ literally meaning that  a cup of coffee has a sake for 40 years!