Cascara — Coffee Cherry Tea

Cascara's beverage use dates to ancient Yemen (qishr: coffee husk with ginger and spices) and Ethiopia (bun: roasted coffee husks as a beverage), where coffee cherry husks were valued before the beans were discovered to be the primary product. Cascara remained a niche Yemeni and Bolivian (where it's called sultana) tradition until the specialty coffee movement's interest in zero-waste practices elevated it globally in the 2010s. Starbucks Reserve's cascara latte (2017) was a pivotal mainstream introduction.

Cascara (from the Spanish cáscara: husk or shell) is a tea-like beverage brewed from the dried outer skin and pulp of coffee cherries — the fruit that is typically discarded as waste during coffee's wet-processing stage. Deeply embedded in Yemeni qishr and Ethiopian bun (coffee cherry) traditions, cascara produces a bright, sweet, hibiscus-and-tamarind flavoured infusion with a lighter caffeine content than brewed coffee (typically 111mg per 12oz versus 180mg for drip coffee). It tastes nothing like coffee — closer to hibiscus tea, rosehip, or a sweet-tart fruit punch — making it a gateway beverage for non-coffee drinkers and an extraordinary aperitif or mocktail ingredient. Starbucks Reserve introduced cascara lattes globally in 2017, dramatically expanding its reach. The Environmental movement's embrace of cascara as a zero-waste coffee byproduct has fuelled its rise in sustainability-focused cafés.

FOOD PAIRING: Cascara's hibiscus-tamarind fruitiness pairs with Middle Eastern and North African flavours: rose-water baklava, pomegranate molasses salad, and dried fruit and nut platters. As a cold brew shrub, it pairs with spicy foods (Thai papaya salad, Mexican ceviche) where its bright acidity and sweetness balance heat. From the Provenance 1000, pair with chia pudding with tropical fruit, hibiscus-poached pears, or a cheese plate with honey and dried fruit.