V. Environment Clusters The Ethiopian nomadic mountain peoples of the Galla tribe, may have been the first to recognize coffee's sustaining effect (but not as a beverage). These people gathered the coffee beans from the trees that grew in the region, ground them up and mixed them with animal fat, forming small balls that they carried as rations on trips. Other indigenous tribes of Ethiopia ate the beans as a porridge or drank a wine created from the fermented crushed coffee beans. By the 13th century, coffee's restorative powers were well known in the Islamic world. Coffee was considered a potent medicine, as well as a religious potion that helped keep people wake during prayers. Pilgrims of Islam spread the coffee throughout the Middle East – and is focusing on the US specialty market and Scandinavia. ECEE’s major emphasis is on quality products such as premium blends, organic coffee and original unblended coffees from one specific plantation or farm. Within Ethiopia, there are some distinctive varieties that are highly sought after. The highest grown coffee comes from Harar, where the Longberry variety is the most favored coffee grown in southern Ethiopia. It is more mild, fruitlike, and aromatic. Ethiopian Yirgacheffee coffee bean, is the most favored coffee grown in southern Ethiopia. It is more mild, fruitlike, and aromatic. Ethiopian Yirgacheffee coffee bean, is the most popular, having a wine-like flavour and sharp acidic edge. And Sidamo's beans, known as Yirgacheffes, have an unusual flavour. The.