Ukers, William H. (William Harrison)
"Coffee merchandising" by William H. Ukers is a trade handbook on the coffee business written in the early 20th century. It offers a practical, beginner-focused overview of coffee’s history, botany, chemistry, cultivation, processing, buying and selling, roasting, blending, advertising, and brewing. Aimed at students and salespeople, it compiles essential facts and accepted trade practices to help build a durable, service-minded coffee business.The opening of the book states its purpose—an accessible condensation of the author’s larger reference, presented without dogma—and then lays out a comprehensive table of contents. It begins with a brisk history: Near Eastern legends and persecutions, the spread of the drink to Europe and England’s “penny universities,” the rise of Parisian cafés, early American coffee houses, and the global propagation of the plant. It next explains the botany of Coffea arabica (and related species like Liberica and Robusta), describing the tree’s growth, flowers, fruit structure, and notable varieties, including peaberry. The chemistry section highlights caffein and caffeol as the key drivers of stimulation, flavor, and aroma, challenges common misconceptions about health effects, and cites modern research affirming coffee’s wholesomeness when used in moderation. A survey of where coffee grows follows, mapping the world’s coffee belt and summarizing principal producing regions alongside a commercial chart. It then outlines how coffee is cultivated (s…
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