| Customs around
the cooking and drinking of coffee Coffee has had a long-established place in the lives of Sami folk for well over 100 years in most parts of Finnmark and in those years, many customs have grown around its use. For the greater part of that history, it's realm was the goahti and the lavvu and so many of the traditions began with an adaptation to that lifestyle. Customarily, coffee was prepared by the man of the household, perhaps because he was also responsible for the cooking of the meat. In the earliest years of its use, the 18th Century, coffee was, like the meat, a difficult task to prepare. By 1900, however, women had taken on the task. Coffee was purchased in a more processed form and became a companion duty to bread making. Roasting and grinding In the earliest years of coffee use, men purchased the beans in unroasted form. In West Finnmark, the custom was to get a supply at the fall and spring markets in Alta and Bossekop - the coffee coming in 50 kilo jute sacks. Families customarily bought a couple of sacks at a time. In some areas, roasted beans were sometimes available, but Sami had become accustomed to roasting their own. For families closer to populated areas, coffee beans were sold by Swedish distributors in 10 and 15 kilo sacks. Coffee roasting in the lavvu was done in a large pot - a 20 liter size wasn't unusual - not more than a kilo at a time. The roasting process required constant stirring the beans over the heat so it was a time-consuming task to keep a supply at the rate that coffee was consumed. Migratory folk roasted a supply during the winter before leaving winter pasture, and then in summers roasted as needed in smaller amounts. The frying pan was sometimes used for smaller amounts and a special roasting appliance also became available. Apparently from the beginning, Sami liked their coffee roasted strong, stirring until the beans were appropriately coal black. Home roasting remained a custom for rural areas until World War II, when all beans available came in pre-roasted form. Protocol and superstition Customs around the use of this most-favored beverage evolved in the lavvu, and so found a place within the complexity of close space and Siida social customs. Many of the customs are repeatedly documented from early visitor accounts and some remained into the Twentieth Century. Here are some of the commonly-held beliefs and expectations around the use of coffee:
Coffee Comes to Sápmi The Sami people probably had their first experiences with coffee from sources through Sweden where it had been first imported after 1680. By 1720 there were coffee houses in Stockholm and some believe that it had reached Finnmark coastal communities by 1750. But by the end of the century, a ban had been imposed on the indulgence throughout Sweden and coffee became a bit of a black-market item. Accounts of travelers in the far north mention the use of tea for the most part, but in Alta, a group provisioning for a trip to North Cape had assembled; "...all of the good things you can imagine including white wine, red wine, cognac, salmon, game fowl. veal, pork, coffee. tea, and good service!" By 1822 in Hammerfest, coffee as a shopkeeper's daily drink is recorded in journals. "Before one gets up one has to have a cup of coffee in bed, drinks coffee for breakfast,and serves coffee around the fire in the evening." Arthur de Capell Brooke. In 1823 Brooke traveled with some traders from Alta to Torneå.and in Kautokeino noted that they were out of everything but were still able to have their evening coffee and punch! Several travelers in those years mention the fact that the migrating Sami that they met were using coffee constantly. In the diaries of a traveler named Stockfieth, he mentions traveling with migratory Sami where he was given frozen reindeer milk, marrow and reindeer tongue. To reciprocate he gave a supply of coffee beans. Everyone in the lavvu enjoyed coffee which the daughters took turns making. Stockfieth noted in 1843 that coffee was in common use in Lule Lappmark and six years later he noted that the ensuing ban on alcohol had resulted in a sharp rise in coffee drinking even though coffee was still difficult to find in some areas. In 1863 a traveler to Utsjoki noted that all Sami used coffee and tea. The local sheriff's record estimates the amount of coffee consumed was between 5 and 7½ kilos per year for every man, woman and child - and that they probably used an equal amount of sugar. Johan Turi mentioned that even though coffee was commonly used by most Sami on a daily basis, it was very rare and too expensive for many who continued to create a brew from plants, grain and birch pitch. Most records note, however, that by 1880, most were able to replenish their coffee supplies. In 1851, Marit Somby was the first person in Kautokeino buy coffee. She was 15 years old when she bought coffee and a pot from a Swedish traveling salesman. She told of boiling the coffee, throwing out the water and trying to eat the beans - then concluding that coffee wasn't fit to eat. After 1845 the Swedish Sami preacher Lars Lev! Laestadius of Karesuando urged parishioners to replace liquor with coffee. The Laestadian movement, overtime, reinforced the association of Sami with coffee and the familial and social customs long associated with the brew. Why Coffee? It seems, in the societal analysis, that coffee was meant for Sami folk. In the earlier years of its use, nearly all Sami still observed some migratory traditions. Coffee was dry, stored and transported easily and had some resemblance to brews that had been concocted since ancient times. It was easier to prepare, was an appropriate hot beverage, and was easy to drink; flavors were rich and the cook could control the results. Why it became more popular than tea, which was already in use, may have to do with flavor and the fact that it was in use by other cultural groups across Scandinavia as a first-in-the-morning, last-at-night drink. Coffee the Sami Way As already mentioned, the Sami love for coffee was observed with interest by many visitors to Sápmi. It seemed that they drank an awful lot of coffee! Typically in the lawo, the whole family enjoyed the drink and commonly the older children inherited the brewing duties. A two liter pot was most often used and the coffee brewed seven times a day, each family member drinking three or fours cups in a sitting. Coffee was ground for each pot, although herdsmen usually took along ground coffee, according to Turi. The earlier grinding was done with a stone on another flat of concave stone. Some grinding was done in hallowed wood with a stick as a pestle. Still a third method was to put the roasted beans in a skin bag and strike the bag with a stick until the grounds were suitable. Early in this century, coffee grinders came into use and a small, brass version was marketed especially for the Sami. Among the coffee provisions were three or four coffee pots. sometimes as large as five or six liters, but the two liter version was more common. Herders kept a smaller two cup size pot. A hide bag held one or two kilos of ground coffee and was always filled before moves. There was also a special cloth bag made especially to hold the pots. The sugar box was also important. It was usually wood and held lump or loose sugar. Also important to good Sami coffee was the salt, commonly kept in a salt horn, closed with a cork and tied to the coffee bag. Into the provisions also went the cups: wood, hewn cups for herdsmen and migration, and porcelain cups for proper use in the lavvu - and the only ceramic utensil used by Sami. All coffee-associated provisions went into a special chest. Early techniques for making coffee appear to be common across Sápmi too. Beginning the coffee-maKing process with cold water meant more flavor was soaked from the crudely-ground beans. As for measure, to this day the common way is to fill the coffee pot lid to the brim with grounds. After the boiling, the pot is placed beside the fire to steep and before drinking the coffee is cleared. To clear coffee in a Sami way, put a dried pike skin into the pot. Because of roasting practices, the coffee was usually very murky and the slime from the skin picked up the grounds and took them to the bottom of the pot. A few records mention the use of chicory for clearing and there was eventually also the use of cold water. Sami enjoy a sprinkling of salt in the coffee too, a tradition that seemed to be particularly northern. In Arjeplog the use of a fish skin to clear lightly-salted coffee was still the practice well into this century. In Kautokeino and Masi the practice disappeared at the turn of the century with the availability of commercial grinds. But in spite of the changes, Sami had brought coffee with them into the modern era. |
Copyright ©1996-2007 Árran