tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45639059197493111282024-02-20T01:01:11.701-08:00Ospina Coffee CompanyMariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-47479471984668755642012-06-28T11:21:00.000-07:002012-06-28T11:27:07.421-07:00The Story of Ospina Coffee in Korea<span style="color: #984806; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 128;">By Korean Noblesse
Luxury magazine editor Lee Jung Joo</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #984806; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 128;">Photographs by photographer Kim Chun Ho</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #984806; mso-themecolor: accent6; mso-themeshade: 128;"><span style="color: black;"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Perhaps
there are many stories and legends -a trace of time- contained in every cup of
coffee we enjoy, which could not be narrated to the end. I found that Mr.
Ospina, who brought the oldest Colombian coffee to Korea, also has such an
amazing and long story, which I should have to listen until the end for whole
nights long.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Mr.
Mariano Ospina was impressive, with his warm eyes and his gallant and graceful
look, bringing Ospina Coffee to be introduced in Korea at the Seoul Coffee
Expo, 2012. He was quite active and passionate, like a Spaniard born in
Colombia. He was quite busy looking around the Caffé Rousseau, a gourmet coffee
shop where we set to have an interview and kept asking and answering. He
smelled the different coffees on sale at the café and looked very carefully at the
brewing manner of the barista. Once our coffees were served, then I could sit
face to face with him and became relaxed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I
found Ospina Coffee, a coffee brand not popular in Korea yet, is produced from
the highest quality of Arabica Typica coffee, grown and handpicked in an
environment friendly terroir, at 2,000 meters high elevation in the Colombian
Andes. The Arabica Typica, which is the original species of coffee, is very
delicate and sensitive to direct sunlight, humidity and fungus and the
production ratio is much lower than the other species or hybrid of Arabica. To
give the best growing environment about 100 Arabica Typica trees are used to be
planted in one acre land of tropical forest. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Mr.
Ospina is not the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">coffeeologist</i></b> who learned about coffee in school or institutes,
but rather in the farm of his grandfather. Since he was a teenager he learned,
trained and experienced by touching and observing coffee trees, cherries and
beans with his own hands and eyes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“There
is no doubt that the best coffee beans are the key factor for the best coffee”.
Then, what is next? “Well, it is not possible to simplify this answer. There
are many other factors. The elevation of the plantation, the shade of the tropical
forest, the rainfall, the volcanic soil, the rich terroir, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>are as important as the process of
handpicking, pealing, washing, fermenting and sun-drying the coffee cherries.
And of course, the method of plantation can’t be ignored. Such best quality
beans earned through all those utmost devotions of planting and process with the
roasting at optimum condition can make the best of best coffee.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“Do
we have enough time for another story?” he asked me as I was viewing with
curiosity at the Ospina crest printed on the Ospina coffee box. It seemed like he
would like to tell me another story about the tradition and legacy of his
family and its coffee rather than to emphasize that Ospina Coffee is a real
ultra premium coffee. I was ready to listen to his story with curiosity as I
have only a shallow and fragmentary knowledge on coffee, in spite that I really
love to drink coffee.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">It
is said it took more than 1000 years for the coffee to arrive in Latin America
where it found the best terroir for its cultivation. Coffee was originated from
Ethiopia and merchants spread it through the Arabian countries, and later to
Paris via Venice. It was around the year of 1800 when a young coffee tree migrated
from Paris to a Caribbean island, a colony of French dominion. From there it
was spread to Jamaica, Brazil, Colombia and other countries in Latin America.
At last the coffee tree had arrived in the terrain most suitable for
plantation. The climate of this mountain area and the volcanic soil give the
perfect conditions and soil for coffee plantation. This tropical terrain is the
best because temperatures are the same all year round and especially the cool
weather of high elevation. Here is where the origin and history of Ospina
Coffee begins in the Colombian Andes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
history of Ospina Coffee starts with a complex political situation and
background of the times. Don Mariano Ospina Rodríguez, the great
great-grandfather of Mariano Ospina, was a law student in 1821 and a member of political
group opposed to President Simon Bolivar. This group conspired against Bolivar
and was arrested. While most of his colleagues were executed, he fled to the
remote Andean mountains of Antioquia, escaping from the arrest, where the
present Ospina coffee farms first started. He worked in a farm as a laborer
during the day time and studied in the night. Eventually he married with the
daughter of the land lord and took care of the farm. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Later, in 1835, he started
his first coffee plantation and coffee business. He was a pioneer of Colombian
coffee plantation and started the first commercial coffee operation in Colombia,
which records credit him as the oldest coffee firm that has survived so far. He
was later elected President of Colombia in 1857. After his presidency, there
were a number of hard times and crisis, but he could overcome it as fate was on
his side. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
Ospina family has had a positive and tremendous influence over Colombia’s
coffee industry as well as in politics and education. His great great-grandfather,
Don Mariano Ospina Rodriguez founded the first public university. Later, in
1922 his great granduncle, Petro Nel Ospina, was elected as the President of
Colombia, and in 1946 his grandfather also became the President, which gave to
the Ospina family the distinction and honor of producing three Presidents of
Colombia in three generations. His grandfather was one of the principal founders
of the Colombian National Federation of Coffee Growers, which is the most
influential coffee federation in the world, and became the first director of
the Federation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">For
Mariano Ospina, with the background lineage of three Presidents in the family,
it seemed natural to follow the political tradition of the family and to aspire
to his grandmother’s seat in the Senate. I asked him, “then why did you stay in
Charlotte leaving behind all your family’s legacy and glory, and now only dedicated
to the Ospina Coffee business”?</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“During
the 1990s it was a very dangerous time for traditional and political families
in Colombia. The social and political situation in the country was very unstable
and unsafe, and I decided to stay in the USA. My younger brother Lisandro had
gone back home to Colombia to get married, and I never saw him again. He was
kidnapped and killed.” Because of this tragedy he never returned back home.
“No,” he said, “I can’t return home.” A silence of sorrow and sadness passed by
his warm and deep eyes for a while. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">After
a short pause, Mariano Ospina offered me another cup of coffee. The legacy left
to him by his Ospina family, after all the years of glory and turbulence for
three generations, of politics and education, he decided to dedicate his time
to the coffee business only. The eldest grandson of the Ospina family, Mariano
Ospina, who has registered his family name Ospina as the trade mark of his
coffee business, has devoted most of his life to the coffee business, and
especially since 2003, leaving behind all his political ambitions. He did not
want to become a mere coffee planter and supplier as his family did for the last
170 years, instead, he adopted very professional management technology and has
succeeded to brand Ospina Coffee as the most prestigious and ultra-premium
coffee in the world. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“Why
do I insist in the ultra-premium quality coffee? Well, it should be very natural
to me. Ospina Coffee is just a gift from God to me. I never started a coffee
plantation, nor did I found a Coffee Federation. All that I now have has been given
to me. My responsibility is just to honor and protect the name and legacy of
Ospina, and to be a good steward. By doing my best and excelling at my work
with this gift, I will be honoring God.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Now
I could understand why the name of Ospina is not a burden or tragedy to him, as
he has found his grate and joyful calling and rich affection which he had not
realized when he lived in his grandfather’s farm, with his Senator grandmother
and his President grandfather.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I
never had tasted Ospina Coffee until I ended the interview with Mr. Ospina. Mr.
Sun Kim, the President of Ospina Coffee Asia, offered me to send some Ospina
Coffees to my desk as he noticed my desire for it. Thus, one box of Ospina
Estate and Bambuco coffee were delivered. I then brew an Ospina Coffee pot by
French Press, just as Mr. Ospina recommended. In 96 C hot water, I poured the
coarse grinds of Ospina Estate Coffee for 3 minutes. I could smell the rich
coffee flavor and aroma. Then I came to remember his words, “Coffee is like wine.
No, maybe more delicate. Coffee has a flowery aroma and the taste of three different
notes, more than wine.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">As
I slowly drink my coffee and smell the very rich aroma, a vivid sparkling and
delicious taste fills my mouth. I can enjoy the full body cup with notes of
blackberry and chestnut. Without a doubt, Ospina Coffee’s highlight is the smooth
and sweet aftertaste. No bitterness. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is very fresh and fruity, clean and refreshing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I
feel some sort of ecstasy, like I drinking a best wine. I do not feel drunk
physically, but I can feel such similar pleasant mood in my heart. I guess it
might be God’s plan to have granted such a rich flavor to Ospina Coffee, with such
a rich history, mingled with tragedy and glory for the last 5 generations.</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I
am very lucky and happy to have met Mr. Ospina and tasted his rich Ospina
Coffee, remembering his beautiful story, unlike that of Starbucks or instant coffee.
I would like to thank him for this wonderful experience when I meet with him
again.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">(For
ordering Ospina Coffee, Tel. 82-070-3789-5396, www.ospinacoffee.co.kr)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> <a href="http://www.noblesse.com/v3/Features.do?dispatch=view&categoryId1=1486&out=25755&id=25721" target="_blank" title="http://www.noblesse.com/v3/Features.do?dispatch=view&categoryId1=1486&out=25755&id=25721">http://www.noblesse.com/v3/Features.do?dispatch=view&categoryId1=1486&out=25755&id=25721</a> </o:p></span></div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-75957789325522735012011-11-01T18:59:00.000-07:002011-11-01T19:07:26.438-07:00History of Coffee - England 1690<div>Coffee’s success in Europe’s rapidly growing cities resulted from the growing resentment against the effects of wine and beer. In England, Italy, France and Holland the coffee house became an immediate threat to the saloons and bars. A gentleman, without fear of intoxication, could slake his thirst and fulfill his need for social and intellectual interaction. The stimulation of coffee would not carry him beyond the confines of good taste.<br /><br />By 1690, the coffee house was an institution in London and the beverage was sold all over the city. Four pence tax was levied by the Crown on every gallon of coffee sold, and an annual license fee of 12 pence was demanded from each establishment. Green coffee sold for 5 shillings a pound and it was to climb once to a price equal to 48 dollars.<br /><br />Opposition to the coffee house came from the tavern keepers who saw a quick decline to the liquor trade in the burgeoning competition of coffee. But the forces of temperance prospered and by 1715 there were more than 2,000 London coffee houses catering to every class of society. London consumed more coffee than any other city in the world.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br /><br /></div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-39285911420450793032011-11-01T14:21:00.000-07:002011-11-01T18:59:02.619-07:00Pueblos del Café - Salento, Colombia<div><br />Colombia has long been associated with premium coffee, and the<br />province of Quindío typifies this intimate association. There, man and nature<br />revolve around coffee. Its Spanish architecture, its music and its folklore all speak of coffee and coffee growing. Quindian cities, towns and villages cling<br />tenaciously to the mountain hills, red-tiled roofs on white houses and wood trimmings painted in blue, red, green or orange. Balconies peer out from under the heavy overhanging roofs onto coble stone streets.<br /><br />The town of Salento, founded in 1842, is the oldest settlement in Quindío,<br />developed by the Antioquian colonizers. Its architecture is both modest and<br />harmonious. The surrounding area is of an alarming beauty, within the Cocora Valley and the Andes mountains.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has<br />painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art<br />collection at <a href="http://www.colarte.arts.co/">www.colarte.arts.co</a>.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br /></div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-3850101152478667832011-10-31T16:53:00.000-07:002011-10-31T17:15:46.168-07:00History of Coffee - London 1690<div><div><div><div>Coffee’s success in Europe's rapidly growing cities resulted from the growing resentment against the effects of wines and beer. In England, Italy, France and Holland the coffee house became an immediate threat to the saloons and bars. A gentleman, without fear of intoxication, could slake his thirst and fulfill his need for social and intellectual interaction. The stimulation of coffee would not carry him beyond the confines of good taste.</div><div> </div><div><br /></div><div>By 1690, the coffee house was an institution in London and the beverage was sold all over the city. Opposition to the coffee house came from the tavern keepers who saw a quick decline to the liquor trade in the burgeoning competition of coffee. But the forces of temperance prospered and by 1715 there were more than 2,000 London coffee houses catering to every class of society. London consumed more coffee than any other city in the world.</div><div><br /></div><div>Yours truly,</div><div><br /></div><div>Mariano Ospina</div><div> </div></div></div></div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-62416786694753506462011-10-30T16:30:00.000-07:002011-10-30T16:41:12.349-07:00Five Reasons to Drink Coffee<div><div>Apparently, coffee is now good for you. It holds a host of physical (not to mention psychological) benefits which scientists are only now beginning to appreciate:</div><div><br />1. It reduces depression in women. A new study out of Harvard University shows that women who regularly drink coffee (the fully caffeinated kind) have a 20 percent lower risk of depression than nondrinkers. This comes on the heels of previous research showing that the risk of suicide decreases with increased coffee consumption.</div><div><br />2. It lowers the risk of lethal prostate cancer in men. In another study out of Harvard, men who drank six or more cups per day had a 60 percent lower risk of developing the most lethal type of prostate cancer, and a 20 percent lower risk of forming any type of prostate cancer compared to men who did not drink coffee. Given that prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed<br />cancer in men, this is quite extraordinary news!</div><div><br />3. It may protect against head and neck cancers. A study from the University of Utah showed that people who drank more than four cups of coffee aday had a 39 percent decreased risk of cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx combined, compared with those who didn't drink coffee. Regular consumption of coffee has also been linked to a lower risk for brain tumors, reduced rates of colorectal and endometrial cancer, as well as liver cancer and cirrhosis.</div><div><br />4. It may ward off Alzheimer's disease. Several studies looking at how caffeine affects brain development in mice have confirmed that caffeine significantly decreases abnormal levels of the protein linked to Alzheimer's disease. When aged mice bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer's disease were given caffeine (the equivalent of five cups of coffee a day) their memory impairment was reversed, according to a report issued by the Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Centre. Should these results be replicated on humans, it might suggest coffee as an effective treatment for this disease, rather than just a protective strategy.</div><div><br />5. It appears to stave off diabetes. Numerous studies have shown that coffee may be protective against Type 2 Diabetes, although the precise mechanism is not well understood. An analysis in the Archives of Internal Medicine, for example, found that people who drink three to four cups of coffee a day are 25 percent less likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than those who drink fewer than two cups. In the U.S. alone, nearly 24 million children and adults (8 percent of the population ) have diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of the disease and accounts for about 90 to 95 percent of these cases.</div><div> </div><div>Yours truly,</div><div> </div><div>Mariano Ospina</div><div> </div></div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-73044391816753542472011-06-29T11:21:00.000-07:002011-06-29T11:24:53.636-07:00History of Coffee - Venice 1616By the year 1600 coffee had become the favorite drink of the Arab world, all the way from Constantinople to Cairo and from Damascus to Mecca.<br /><br />Coffee was first introduced to Europe through Venice around the year 1616. It was natural that Venetians should first bring coffee to Europe due to their advanced commerce. Their fleets sailed every sea and visited all lands. From their great warehouses and supply yards, exports from the Levant, Africa and the Indies flowed into Europe. <br /><br />Like the Arabians, the Italians first considered coffee a medicine, but not for long. Coffeehouses soon appeared, and by 1690, dozens of shops on the Piazza di San Marco of Venice served the coffee beverage.<br /><br />The coffeehouse or caffé was the gathering place of the upper classes. Though the flourishing of the caffés could not compare with the luxurious coffeehouses of Constantinople or the Levant, throngs of merchants, lawyers, physicians, courtiers and nobles met to sip coffee and exchange tidbits of scandal and gossip. <br /><br />“The most famous of the Venetian caffés was the Caffé Florian, which was opened in 1720 by Floriono Francesconi”, narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee. <br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-4755966251835914062011-06-29T10:53:00.001-07:002012-04-15T15:45:00.034-07:00History of Coffee - Constantinople 1660Coffee had reached Turkey by the year 1660 and 10 years later the “Kaveh Kanes” (coffeehouses) were flourishing all over Constantinople.<br /><br />The preparation of coffee had improved dramatically. By now, the dried and roasted coffee beans were pounded to dust with mortar and steeped in boiling water. When the liquid was half boiled it was strained through silk and decanted into earth pots. Portions were reheated and served flavored with cinnamon sticks or cloves, jasmine flowers or lemon peels and saffron in thin china cups.<br /><br />The coffeehouse business flourished and musicians and dancers were hired to amuse their customers. “The “Kaveh Kanes” hummed with social, political and religious debates, while tambourines and violins made music”, narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano OspinaMariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-54144938737883476472011-06-29T10:25:00.000-07:002011-06-29T10:35:06.726-07:00History of Coffee - Turkey 1600Coffee had reached Turkey by the year 1660. Coffee had become the favorite drink in the Arab world, all the way from Constantinople to Cairo and from Damascus to Mecca. There, the “Kaveh Kanes” (coffeehouses) were highly appreciated and flourishing.<br /><br />The Governor of Mecca, spurred by the monks whose temples were empty, had been persuaded to prohibit the drinking of coffee and closing the coffeehouses.<br /><br />The Governor had charged that coffee caused people to behave in a manner forbidden by religion, and the safest course was to judge it illegal. And so, the first indictment against coffee was drawn. The people of Mecca were forbidden to drink coffee and the coffeehouses were closed and the coffee beans in the warehouses were ordered burned. But a prompt and severe edict from the Caliph of Cairo reversed these orders.<br /><br /> “Coffee was enjoyed throughout the Arab world, and undoubtedly sampled by travelers from Europe long before it was introduced to the Continent”, narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-30854314274254232782011-06-29T09:53:00.000-07:002011-06-29T09:57:26.127-07:00History of Coffee - Mecca 1550By the year 1550, the Governor of Mecca had prohibited the drinking of coffee and closed down all coffeehouses. But the friends of coffee were numerous. They all flaunted their vehement opposition to the Governor’s order and coffee drinking took place in secret until word of the suppression reached Cairo.<br /><br />The Caliph, a fervent coffee lover, disapproved the edict of the Governor of Mecca and ordered the laws against coffee revoked. The coffeehouses, once again, opened their doors to an increased patronage who drank the coveted beverage in luxurious, richly carpeted lounges. Singers, dancers and storytellers again performed while the guests relaxed amidst banks of pillows.<br /><br />“Throughout the cities in the Arab world, in the homes of rich and poor, coffee was consumed at all hours and it became a gesture of hospitality to offer coffee to friends, associates and visitors”, narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-52796862178209446722011-06-13T11:01:00.000-07:002011-06-13T11:05:20.742-07:00History of Coffee – Arabian Peninsula 1500<div>The story of coffee growing and drinking starts in the Horn of Africa, in Ethiopia, where the coffee tree probably originated in the province of Kaffa. Merchants took the beans into Yemen and Arabia, through the great port of its day, Mocha.<br /><br />Coffee was certainly being cultivated in Yemen by the 15th century. Authorities actively encouraged coffee drinking and the first coffeehouses, called "kaveh kanes", were opened in Mecca. They quickly spread throughout the Arab world and became successful places where chess was played, business was conducted and music was enjoyed.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-46839907468548456222011-06-13T10:12:00.000-07:002011-06-13T10:17:27.831-07:00History of Coffee - France 1670<div>By 1669 coffee had reached the Paris of King Louis XIV, brought by Suleiman Aga, the Turkish Ambassador to France.<br /><br />Louis XIV, besieged by a clamoring court, three ex-mistresses, a bankrupt nation and advanced gout, needed stronger beverages than coffee. He paid little attention to the new Ambassador. But Suleiman Aga wasted little time trying to woo the King for he was very successful with the nobility.<br /><br />By 1670, when the Ambassador learned from the nobles that France was not concerned about the forthcoming movement of a Turkish army into southern Europe, his mission was successfully accomplished, and he departed for Constantinople, “leaving the French nobles thirsty for coffee", narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-83807092644866395662011-06-13T10:04:00.000-07:002011-06-13T10:07:12.026-07:00Pueblos del Café - Salazar, ColombiaThe town of Salazar de Las Palmas, founded in 1583, is home to a people known for its courageous Indian and Spanish ancestors.<br /><br />Salazar claims to have been the first coffee-growing town in Colombia, a claim that is not put in doubt. According to historians, the person who almost single-handedly introduced coffee, the product which would become so closely identified with the country, was the Jesuit priest Francisco Romero. <br /><br />His method was direct and simple: upon hearing confession he would tell his flock to plant coffee beans as penance. Thus it was that coffee planting sprang up in all the towns of Colombia's province of North Santander, on the border with Venezuela.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art collection at www.colarte.arts.co.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-17815523280027207072011-06-12T19:13:00.000-07:002011-06-12T19:20:08.556-07:00History of Coffee - Colombia 1835<div>The story of Ospina Coffee began in 1835 when Don Mariano Ospina Rodríguez, one of Colombia’s coffee pioneers, initiated his search for the best lands in which to grow coffee.<br /><br />His vision was to produce a coffee of unrivaled flavor and quality. His destiny was to make history. In due time he established his first plantation in the lush mountains of Antioquia, and in 1857 he was elected President of Colombia.<br /><br />The Ospina tradition of excellence thrives today with the release of our signature Ospina DYNASTY Coffee, Premier Grand Cru, Grand Reserve.<br /><br />Truly yours,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-44564979752198358872011-06-12T18:13:00.000-07:002011-06-12T18:17:52.438-07:00Pueblos del Café - Atánquez, Colombia<div>The town of Atánquez, in northeastern Colombia, sits at the piedmont of the snow-capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, which soars to over 17,000 feet. The Kuankuanos, an Indian group that has survived until the present, live near the area on the Candela River.<br /><br />Isolated from the region's urban centers, they work in small farms, cultivating sorghum, plantain, sugar cane and coffee. Some of the houses along the cobbled streets of Atánquez evidence pre-Colombian Indian features.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art collection at www.colarte.arts.co.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br /></div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-25657346785025260312011-06-12T17:50:00.000-07:002011-06-12T17:55:06.161-07:00History of Coffee – Europe 1669By 1669 coffee had reached the Paris of Louis XIV, brought by Suleiman Aga, the Turkish Ambassador. His elaborate coffee parties brought a new exotic touch to the social life of Paris. <br /><br />Isaac D'Israeli describes them in his Curiosities of Literature: "On bended knee, the slaves of the Ambassador, arrayed in the most gorgeous costumes, served the choicest mocha coffee in tiny cups of eggshell porcelain, hot, strong and fragrant, poured out in saucers of gold and silver, placed on embroidered silk doilies, fringed with gold bullion, to the grand dames, who fluttered their fans with many grimaces, bending their piquant faces -berouged, bepowdered and bepatched- over the new steaming beverage", narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />Yours truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-89650207431621425742011-06-12T17:18:00.000-07:002011-06-12T17:24:06.788-07:00Pueblos del Café - Jardín, Colombia<div>The town of Jardín is nestled in a fertile valley in the northern province of Antioquia. Amid coffee plantations, banana groves and flowering trees, Jardín -the Spanish word for garden- lives up to its name. Nowhere is it more exuberantly true than in its beautiful women and in the gorgeous colorful flowers that adorn the balconies and verandas.<br /><br />The town's main square is decorated with a romantic cooling fountain, which is surrounded by ancient Spanish cobblestone streets. Jardín lives by and for coffee and the region's coffee growers believe their beans to be among Colombia's finest. The inhabitants of Jardín cherish coffee as it is the essence of their economic development and the soul of their beloved paradise on earth.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art collection at www.colarte.arts.co.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-29687211590697582772011-06-02T14:52:00.000-07:002011-06-02T15:00:09.613-07:00The Ospina Presidents – Mariano Ospina PérezDon Mariano Ospina Pérez was one of the founders the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia in 1927. The Second National Congress of Coffee Growers convened in Medellín in 1927. Two sons of Tulio Ospina Vasquez, Rafael Ospina Perez and Mariano Ospina Perez, were among the representatives of the province of Antioquia. As a result of this Congress, the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia was created.<br /><br />He was later elected as General Director of the Colombian Coffee Federation in 1930 and he served in this position until 1934. Under his outstanding aegis, the Coffee Federation successfully consolidated the nation's coffee industry and, Colombia became the largest producer of premium Arabica coffee beans in the world. To that end, he also created the largest financial institution in the country (La Caja Agraria) to help meet the credit needs of coffee growers, and other small farmers and peasants. <br /> <br />Don Mariano Ospina Pérez was elected and sworn in as the 43rd President of Colombia in 1946 and he governed until 1950. His mayor accomplishments were the creation of the Social Security System, the Department of Labor and the Housing Authority, and the agrarian, labor and social reforms.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-57116519215991804262011-06-02T12:35:00.000-07:002011-06-02T12:40:18.006-07:00Pueblos del Café - El Líbano , ColombiaThe town of El Líbano was founded in the second half of the Nineteenth Century by a group of Antioquian coffee pioneers who set out from Manizalez, crossed the snow-covered Andean volcano and settled in a rich valley in the State of Tolima. <br /><br />The Cedar trees inspired these educated settlers to name their village after Lebanon. Their agriculture-based economy was driven by coffee and cacao growing, and their prized Arabica and Mocha beans were exported directly to Europe. <br /><br />By the turn of the Century, El Líbano was enjoying a golden age of prosperity. Chocolate factories were established, books and magazines were published and the town was included in the circuit of every theatre, music and dance company that came to Colombia.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art collection at www.colarte.arts.co.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-1240843923832366562011-06-02T11:08:00.000-07:002011-06-02T11:14:43.726-07:00History of Coffee - The Caribbean 1720<div>The billions of coffee trees which now produce more than half of the world's coffee production on the slopes and hills of Latin America are almost all descendants of one lone tree. With reasonable certainty, we can trace their genealogy back to a vigorous, young coffee plant which the Burgomaster of Amsterdam sent to Louis XIV in Paris in 1714. The monarch sent the coffee tree to the Royal Botanist whom planted it in the royal medical Jardin des Plantes.<br /><br />On the West Indian Island of Martinique, was a captain of infantry named Gabriel Mathiew Desclieux, serving France at this time. He learned about the new coffee plant and its wonderful beverage from Dutch sailors who boasted of how the beans flourished in Java. He sought and received a furlough and set out for Paris, determined not to return until he possessed seedlings to plant in Martinique's fertile earth.<br /><br />In May of 1723, Desclieux took ship to return to Martinique with a coffee tree which he carried in a solid chest topped with glass so the plant could be warmed by the sun. He planted seedlings in his estate and they multiplied with extraordinary rapidity. By 1727, hundreds of pounds of coffee seeds had been distributed and cultivation began all over the Caribbean islands and the Andes Mountains of South America.<br /><br />Within forty-five years coffee farms flourished in Martinique and all over the West Indies. Millions of pounds of beans were sent to the coffee houses in France. Thus, coffee came to the New World guided by a man of purpose and vision.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-1690165196202884952011-06-02T10:37:00.000-07:002011-06-02T10:40:43.942-07:00The Ospina Presidents - Mariano Ospina RodríguezDon Mariano Ospina Rodríguez was one of Colombia's earliest and most profoundly influential coffee pioneers and mavericks, with an outstanding entrepreneurial spirit, scientific knowledge and tenacity. His vision was to produce a coffee of unrivaled flavor and quality. His destiny was to make history. <br /><br />In 1835 he began his quest in 18, seeking the best lands for growing coffee within the lush mountains of the province of Antioquia. In due time he successfully established his first coffee plantation on the rich and volcanic slopes of the town of Fredonia, where he pursued coffee growing with a scientific and macroeconomic approach.<br /><br />A political leader and statesman, Don Mariano was one of the founders of the Conservative Party of Colombia. He became a Senator in 1849 and was elected President of Colombia in 1857.<br /><br />With his vast knowledge and experience in the cultivation of coffee and agronomy, he devoted himself to promoting and teaching the growing of coffee to the farmers and peasants of Colombia. In 1880 he published his first textbook about coffee growing techniques and agro-industrial practices. The nation profited richly from Don Mariano's efforts and passion. His hard labor, vision and commitment substantially contributed to the development of coffee growing into Colombia's main export crop, forever transforming the nation's economy.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-12508011883001331312011-06-02T10:30:00.000-07:002011-06-02T10:33:18.058-07:00Pueblos del Café - Salamina, ColombiaThe town of Salamina, founded in 1826, sits on a Colombian mountain top. Lining its steep streets are some of the most beautiful examples of the Spanish architecture that the Antioquian colonizers devised for their new land. <br /> <br />Salamina is now preserved as a National Monument, filled with trees and outstanding works of bronze and iron. This coffee town is adorned with Moorish-influenced balconies, decorated with delicate wood filigree and Romanesque columns.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art collection at www.colarte.arts.co.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-58133610172110138352011-06-02T10:22:00.000-07:002011-06-02T11:04:16.796-07:00The Ospina Presidents, Pedro Nel Ospina<div>General Pedro Nel Ospina was born in the "Palacio de Gobierno" in 1858 during the time that his father Don Mariano Ospina Rodriguez was President of Colombia. He grew up in Guatemala, where his father pioneered coffee growing in Central America.<br /><br />In 1892 he was elected to Congress and in 1901 he was appointed as Minister of Defense. He was later designated as the Colombian Ambassador to the United States and Belgium. In 1922 he was elected as the 36th President of Colombia.<br /><br />During his administration the cultivation of coffee was greatly promoted and the highway and railroad systems were expanded to their highest level ever, contributing to a robust economic expansion.<br /><br />Yours most truly,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-55581960266689606462011-06-01T13:20:00.000-07:002011-06-01T13:25:18.833-07:00History of Coffee – Europe 1620By the year 1620, coffee had reached Europe from Turkey. Coffee houses had become very popular in Venice and "Caffé Florian" was the most famous of all. Florian became the confidant of Venice's wellborn and prominent citizens. To his clients he was part diplomat, part social arbiter, part gossipmonger and part postmaster.<br /><br />"Travelers departing from Venice left forwarding directions with him while visitors to the city called at the Caffé for a briefing on the drift of political currents and social affairs. He was the matchmaker for the best families, and the traveler seeking female entertainment could be certain that Florian's recommendations insured a fine evening's recreation", narrates Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />With best regards,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-17420235010226030752011-06-01T13:12:00.001-07:002011-06-01T13:16:20.090-07:00Pueblos del Café – Sasaima, Colombia<div>The town of Sasaima existed prior to the arrival of the Spanish Conquerors. The Sasaima Indians, a tribe of the Panache Nation, lived where the town of the same name lies today, where the Andés drops down towards the Magdalena River.<br /><br />By 1840, after the conquest and Spanish colonial times, Sasaima's development had been associated with agriculture. Its prosperity really began when great coffee and cacao plantations were established. Now a day, over 50,000 acres are devoted to these crops.<br /><br />The Colombian Architect and painter Fernando Turk Rubiano has painted a beautiful watercolor of this town. You can see his entire art collection at www.colarte.arts.co.<br /><br />With best regards,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina</div>Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4563905919749311128.post-65116669599630969762011-06-01T12:15:00.000-07:002011-06-01T12:20:09.947-07:00History of Coffee - Europe 1660The success of coffee in Europe's rapidly booming cities resulted from the growing resentment against the effects of wine and beer. In England, France, Italy and Holland the coffee houses became an immediate threat to the saloons and bars. <br /><br />Without the fear of intoxication, a gentleman could slake his thirst and fulfill his need for social and intellectual discussion. The literati, politicians, priests, courtiers and nobles began to patronize one or another of the coffee houses, which soon became the meeting places for their particular groups.<br /><br />"By 1660, the coffee house was an institution in London and the beverage was sold all over the city. Four-pence tax was levied by the crown on every gallon of coffee sold," narrates Colombian Professor Andres Uribe, in his book "Brown Gold", the amazing story of coffee.<br /><br />With best regards,<br /><br />Mariano Ospina<br /><br />Mariano Ospinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15201707867069232961noreply@blogger.com0