The Coffee Spies Of The 1600s

Odds and Sods

Coffee. Java. Joe. Whatever you call it, that ubiquitous brew that jump-starts your morning was once at the center of international intrigue. It was spy versus spy with all the big European powers attempting to get their hands on coffee beans.

At the time, the Arabs had coffee cultivation tied up and the Europeans wanted a piece of the action. It was up to their spies to try and get the high-powered plant into their hands and into the ground in their various colonies.