According to a Ministry of Commerce announcement last Sunday, the commercial name of Arabic coffee will officially be renamed to, Saudi coffee, for use in restaurants, cafes, stores and roasters in the Kingdom.
As part of the Saudi Ministry of Culture initiative, Saudi Arabia will celebrate the “Year of Saudi Coffee” in 2022, to strengthen the nation’s coffee identity and culture, aiming to set apart the flavour and preparation methods, from that of other regional coffee. This initiative is part of a larger “Vision 2030” effort — a roadmap for economic and social reform, to be achieved by 2030 — revisiting the symbols and hallmarks of its culture and national identity.
This name change announcement by Ministry spokesman Abdulrahman Al-Hussein, kicks off this coffee identity initiative. Events will also be scheduled throughout the year with partnered restaurants, hotels, coffee shops and roasters.
For the people, there is a need to differentiate Saudi coffee from others.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate and coffee expert, Lameen Abdul-Malik stated.
Saudi coffee tends to be roasted a little lighter, traditionally, meaning it has a bit more caffeine in it, and that is why it is served in smaller cups. You can see from the colour it is a pale gray. Saudi coffee takes at least 10 minutes to make, where you are boiling the water and coffee grounds.
Lameen Abdul-Malik
This name change might encourage pride in the people’s cultural coffee identity and increase Saudi coffee’s market presence and demand.
Nick Baskett from Bartalks, talked to Lameen about coffee and philosophy in 2020. You can catch that interview on the bartalks youtube interview channel or associated podcast.
