Venipedia

Written in the 19th century, it is a small journey through time in the history of coffee, its cultivation and preparation methods, its chemical analysis, related medical studies and the various species of coffee, including the 'way of giving and taking coffee' and the influence of coffee 'on the spirit and stomach of its drinkers'.

With the charm that characterises the language of yesteryear, Alexandre Martin's manual is a smooth and enjoyable book, with notes by the author himself and updated notes edited by Maurizio Vittoria (former editor of the book 'Del sito di Vinegia. La più antica guida di Venezia.'), as well as pictures and illustrations relating to the world of coffee.

The "coffee', which invaded Europe like wildfire from the end of the 17th century onwards, has produced a substantial body of literature, thanks to the notoriety that the 'black drink' has raised exponentially. This led many scholars to analyse the works of earlier authors, also published many years earlier, and to draw on their contents, sometimes slavishly copying their texts.

The book by Alexandre Martin, a very prolific writer on gastronomy, falls within this genre of publications, with a good final outcome, giving us a valuable testimony of the period.