I decided to take our coffee tour to a more unexpected part of the world in this chapter. We will discuss Greenland and Iceland together as they are very close lived. Greenland is Northeast of the United States in the southern pole of the globe. It is the largest island in the world between the Arctic ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean. Yes, its cold and gets quite dark up there! You may get some feels of why they would embrace coffee in this region of the world. Iceland is a smaller island (about the size of Kentucky) that swims to the east of Greenland. If you took a sailboat from Greenland to Iceland it would take roughly 5 days and 4 nights, but by plane its a mere 3-5hrs depending on your entry and exit ports.

Brief History:

Both Islands have adopted coffee into their culture and since its arrival, that is estimated in the early 1700’s, it has become a multiple generation embedded practice. It has been reported that by the mid 1700’s coffee was already a common product for the Vikings on Iceland to the peoples on Greenland. This was not just a colonial practice back in the day, although it was through maritime trade that it arrived on these islands. There is an account of the explorer Nansen (who was the first non native to cross Greenland, crossing the polar ice caps on skis in 1888) who wrote, “In the days of old they took merely a drink of water at this time, but they now take one or, if possible, two, cups of coffee.” He continues in his writings in The First Crossing of Greenland about Inuit hunters, “will go the whole day on the one or two cups of coffee even if they don’t succeed in catching any seal or other food.”

Ceremony and Drinking Methods

Overall, unlike our tours to Turkey and Ethiopia, here in the nordic islands there isn’t a dedicated coffee ceremony, but rather the coffee is embedded into the ceremonies that are taking place. Drinking coffee is also just a common daily practice, similar for many here in the United States, they drink upon first wake and continue throughout the day and often indulge in a cup of coffee before a meal or sweet treats. The common form of coffee is a drip coffee and more common than adding sweeteners (although they will eat sweet cakes alongside a cup of coffee) is the addition of creams and milks. In such a cold climate we can imagine why they would be so inclined to take in more fats!

Greenland Kaffemik ceremonies:

These ceremonies look to be held for any special occasion for these communities. It can be a boys first seal hunt, a child’s first day of school, birthdays, confirmations and the like. The real pleasure of these gatherings is the unity of the people, the gathering and sharing with one another. There will be a spread of food like reindeer, whale, muskox, seal meat, fish soups and other nordic specialties. When the grandiose selection of homemade sweets and cakes comes out then in shines the coffee, there will always be a fresh brewed pot of coffee to accompany the celebration and cerebrums present.

Partaking in a Kaffemik celebration is the ultimate way to experience Greenland culture.

Kasuutta!  Skal!  Cheers!