Bosnian Kafa

One of the things that I continuously enjoyed during our ten-day trip through Bosnia, was the cup of freshly ground coffee we could sit down and sip through as we relaxed practically anywhere along the road. The scenes and backgrounds would change, the company and setting would change, the air around us would also change, but one thing was guaranteed to be the same - an exceptionally delicious finjan of bosnia kafa. The experience of a Bosnian coffee - or kafa as they call it - is a trip through the whole of Bosnia itself.

When you ask for a coffee, you are served a small brass/silver coffee pot that holds just the right amount for one serving or maybe two, an empty ceramic coffee cup embedded in its matching brass holder, a spoon and a tiny platter of colourful turkish delights, all neatly arranged on similarly ornate circular tray. A small container of sugar may be included, but its usually the turkish delights that have traditionally taken the role of sweetening the pallets of a kafa drinker.

Naturally, you take the brass pot that is beautifully hand-crafted and pour the dark, fragrant drink into the ceramic cup. A sip of bitter coffee, accompanied by a small bite into a cube of sweet turkish delight, makes it just right.

The intensity and bitterness of the coffee is overwhelmingly filling to my senses. Bosnian coffee is unique in its taste, just a little strong and bland with none of the added flavors of cardamon or mistik in Arabic coffee. But its blandness has such a powerful savor that seems to carry the essence of this country. Bosnia is layers of history; its authenticity, tradition and culture are as profound as the curdling thickness of its kafa. The blandness of its taste reflects the solemn faces of its people, its bitterness the sadness that envelopes them so heavily. Yet that small bite into a cube of turkish delights, brings a rush of sweetness that mixes in to bring out the vivid beauty of this country's lushus nature. It is a sharp experience no doubt that is carried by the strong hearts of its people. Bosnia is exactly this; a mixture of happy and sad moments so acutely intertwined that they become inseparable.