Jizan (Saudi Arabia), Feb 11 (AFP): For Farah al-Malki, growing coffee plants in Saudi Arabia's southwestern region of Jizan is more than just a profession. It is a family tradition passed down from generation to generation.
The 90-year-old patriarch has a long history with coffee, which spread from Ethiopia to Yemen and then to the rest of the Middle East around the 15th century.
"My father inherited it from his grandfathers, and I took over and passed it down to my sons and then on to my grandchildren," Malki told AFP, as he watched his male relatives prune trees.
Jizan is known for its red Khawlani coffee beans, often blended with cardamom and saffron to give a yellowish hue of coffee-locally known as ghawa-and a taste markedly different from the bitter black liquid drunk elsewhere in the Middle East and in the West.
In a tradition that percolates through generations, Malki harvests the beans with his son Ahmed, 42, and his grandson Mansour, 11
In a tradition that percolates through generations, Malki harvests the beans with his son Ahmed, 42, and his grandson Mansour, 11 Fayez Nureldine AFP
It remains an integral part of Saudi culture, so much so that the government has designated 2022 as "The Year of Saudi Coffee".
Served with dates in homes and royal palaces across the kingdom, breaking barriers of societal hierarchy, ghawa is considered a symbol of hospitality and generosity.
Donning the traditional dress of coffee farmers, a dark "chemise" shirt and ankle-length skirt known as a "wizrah", along with a belt holding a dagger, Malki is still tending to the fields despite his age. "The biggest issues we used to have were the lack of water and support," said Malki.
But with the kingdom's desire to diversify its economy away from oil, alongside a social shift to transform the country's ultra-conservative image and open up to visitors and investors, the government last month began a campaign to promote its coffee.
It instructed all restaurants and cafes to use the term "Saudi coffee" instead of Arabic coffee.
Saudi Aramco, the largely state-owned oil company, announced plans to establish a coffee centre in Jizan using "advanced irrigation techniques to improve agricultural capacity".
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