a tale of a coffee merchant part 2

My acquaintance with the coffee merchant began one day when I was only a youngster. My mother worked as maidservant at a seaside cafe at Silver Sand beach. I used to hang around after school swimming in the ocean among the reefs, collecting rare sea shells, and once in a while trying my luck to hunt for Caribuster. Folks nearby called it fighting prince because it has a belligerent attitude and its pearl-like shell is strikingly beautiful. I can't blame their aggressiveness because they were largely hunted for its highly priced shell and their meat were a delicacy for a king. I apologize for not being clear in what I was talking about. Caribuster is a giant lobster with a unique spear-like head. It can propel itself for approximately 6 feet forward in a harpoon like manner. The adult caribuster can weight up to 7 lbs. Its exoskeleton has a pearl like quality and can fetch good money from the jewel merchant. Supposedly it has some kind of magical property as well but I wouldn't know much about it. To make a long story short, I was trying to catch one of this dreadful creature but it strike me first because I swam to close to its territory. I came home empty handed and an open wound from my left thigh. It just so happened that the coffee merchant was there taking his break on the way to his destination. He offered his assistance to my frantic mother. He took a good look at my wound and took some coffee powder from his bag. Then using only his finger, he mixed it with the extract from an alligator-tongue plant. I know for fact that the plant extract has soothing anti-inflammatory effect on the skin, but the coffee? I have no idea. Well I tell you, my ignorance was quickly enlightened by what I saw. The paste he smeared at my wound stop the bleeding almost instantly leaving only a cooling sense with a slight numb on the area. I got up and didn't even feel any pain. My mother was astonished and the rest was history, literally.

Before he left, we had exchanged many words and he promised to stop by on his way back. He was almost twice my age but he has a vigor of a hunter. My mother sent him away with a bag of house special. At first, he refused to take it but after some time he decided to gave in because no one ever say no to my mother and prevail. The meal was on the house as well. The owner of the keep thought that it was a good entertainment and will help his business. Thanks to the coffee merchant, everyone had a happy ending that day. Everyone, including the caribuster.

a tale of a coffee merchant

Once upon a time, there live a coffee merchant in the land called Duneshara. He was only a merchant, or so he said but I seen much more than what meets the eyes. He spent most of his life traveling the world, looking for a perfect coffee beans to be purchased and later on sold to a prospect buyer far away. He also a coffee connoisseur and greatly respected for his knowledge of the perfect brew. Well, you can't be a coffee merchant if you don't drink what you sell. You see, not every coffee merchant have the aptitude to brew perfect coffee, let alone priests. A priest you asked? That's correct my friend, for this highly coveted trade has been inherited and passed down by the brotherhood of The Gangin Monastery for hunderd of years. Legend said that their forefathers once travelled across the Great Dune and met with the Pharaoh of the time. Another legend said that they served the spiced coffee to Queen Sheeba herself. Whether it was true or fiction, I have not find anyone who can brew those beans as well as they do. They invest much of their time, when not praying or chanting off course (not to make fun of them), making those excellent coffee. People flocked into their monastery to taste the heavenly brew and in return they will pay a small fee as token of charity. This small charity kept the monastery alive and also used to help those who in need of helping hand. Not a bad idea if you asked me. Those priests know a thing about coffee entrepreneur or two. Having God on your side didn't hurt either.

Now where to begin you may asked? Obviously you need to have good beans to begin with. Not too light and not too dark, not to oily but waxy is acceptable. Preferably grown over temperate soil in high altitude surrounded with berries. An inch of rain every other week and misty in the morning but not to gloomy. Some sunlight is required nevertheless. Once the beans were harvested, it must be kept in cold and dark places away from vermin and mold. Keep it dry at all time. And that's the start my friend. If you make it this far, you have a very small chance to be a master brewer or Brewmeister.

In order for one to achieve a title of Brewmeister, one must learn from the brotherhood. Studying closely with the priests and to learn their secret, the history of the beans, the apparatus, to read the weather, from the wind and the rain and finally to become the alchemy of beans one may say. Although we are not try to change the beans into gold nugget but essentially, the beans are black gold in itself. Nothing else that grow in the land is more precious than the beans.

The coffee merchant achieved the title of Brewmeister couple years ago from this day. He no longer sell coffee from day to day, but he still call himself a coffee merchant. People who knows him will refer to him as the coffee merchant of Gangin. He is not of Gangin nor is he an alien reside there, but once you have step into the monastery and learn the secret, where you came from does not matter anymore for you will always be know as the one who has given the honor to be Brewmeister of Gangin Monastery. One no longer an old self but a new one. Have a good coffee...we will continue our conversation some other time.