Jazan, Saudi Arabia

Coffee as a roasted beverage was first documented to have been consumed in the craggy Sarawat mountains between Saudi Arabia and Yemen in the 15th century. It’s not a stretch to call these mountains the birthplace of coffee as we know it.

While coffee plants originated in Ethiopia, the first documented use of coffee as a roasted, ground, and consumed hot beverage came from greater Yemen, which is today part of southwest Saudi Arabia and northwest Yemen.

Around 700 farmers on the Saudi side of the border continue this harvesting, roasting, and drinking tradition today on an artisanal scale. They grow Khawlani coffee, which had been largely ignored by the Saudi elite in Riyadh and Jeddah until recently having been “rediscovered” as a premium homegrown product. But for the local Bedouins of these mountains, coffee is not just a drink or a fancy export, it’s a piece of their heritage and hospitality.