Saudi Coffee Week was one of this week’s most popular events at Expo 2020 Dubai where visitors were invited to experience Saudi Arabia’s unique coffee culture at the Saudi Pavilion’s Sard Café and Open Square. The five-day celebration, which ran from 25th – 29th January, is part of ‘The Year of Saudi Coffee’ announced earlier this month.
Expo visitors sampled a range of coffee blends from across the Kingdom’s 13 regions, made using the fine Saudi Khawlani coffee beans grown in Jazan, located southwest of the country. Each aromatic brew is paired with a matching variety of date, which are locally sourced in Saudi Arabia.
The Pavilion’s Sard Café even provided guests with the opportunity to ‘Make Your Own Gahwa’ (‘Gahwa’ means coffee in Arabic) at specially organized workshops.
The Saudi Ministry of Culture has designated 2022 as ‘The Year of Saudi Coffee’ to celebrate coffee as an essential part of Saudi culture and an important component of the country’s identity. The initiative is part of the Quality of Life program, a Vision Realization Program contributing to Vision 2030, the Kingdom’s national transformation strategic plan.
Aside from coffee tasting, visitors enjoyed exhibits, workshops showcasing traditional coffee making and brewing techniques, and shopping, all in the Open Square. The events at the Pavilion were designed for the whole family to enjoy, including special activities for children.
The KSA Pavilion also provided visitors with the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the traditions of other countries’ coffee traditions, hosting an event at the Open Square, which included the participation of Ethiopia, Colombia, Honduras, Panama and Australia.
Gastronomes were enthralled by the Gahwa Affogato – Saudi Coffee poured on top of ice-cream – and the Gahwa Half Pint, a new coffee inspired dessert, all made exclusively at Sard Café during Saudi Coffee Week.
Hussain Hanbazazah, Commissioner General of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Pavilion, said:
“Saudi Coffee Week activities at the Saudi Pavilion aimed to inspire and educate visitors about Saudi coffee and traditions, revealing a culture of hospitality and openness. We were delighted to invite other countries with strong coffee traditions to participate in our celebration.
“If Expo visitors did not have the chance to join our unique coffee expose during the Saudi Coffee Week, they will still have the chance to sample the thirteen types of Saudi coffee blends at the pavilion’s café, Sard”.
At Sard Café, visitors have been getting a glimpse since Expo 2020 Dubai opened on October 1 of how Saudi coffee is prepared and served in different ways in each of the 13 regions across the Kingdom. Each of the blends is displayed on a tray with info cards to inform visitors about what makes it unique. Professional Saudi baristas exhibit their talent and tell the story of Jazan coffee harvest. The aromas filling the air, educational info-cards, experiential 13 coffee blend sampling, coffee harvest storytelling and the barista show, make for a fully rounded, unforgettable visitor experience.
The showcased coffee blends visitors can choose from include the light roasted blends of Jazan, Al Baha, Asir and Najran regions in the south-west of the Kingdom (paired with Red Sukkari, Nabtat Ali, Khudari, and Em Kebar dates, respectively) and the medium roasts of the regions of Riyadh, Al Qassim, Makkah, and Al Madinah (paired with Saqie, Sukkari, Ruthana, and Ajwa dates, respectively). Also on offer are the dark roasted coffee blends of Ha’il, Tabuk, Northern Province, Eastern Province and Al Jouf (paired with Majdoul, Wannana, Hashishi, Khalas, and Hilwat Al Jouf dates, respectively). Depending on the region, the coffee blends are flavored with a mix of spices and herbs such as cardamom, cloves, saffron, ajwa, ginger, fennel, and cinnamon.
Saudi Arabia ranks among the world’s largest consumers of coffee. The country is working to further develop its production, manufacturing and marketing of coffee, with the government providing support to enhance coffee farms in the regions of Jazan, Al Baha and Asir. There are plans to expand cultivation and processing in its southwestern Baha region by building a 160-hectare “coffee city” in the village of Mashuqa near Al-Baha.
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