Coffee in the Winter 1945

[Anne G,]

I need information about the subject: could the Germans buy coffee in the Winter 1945. If they did, how much? If they didn't or the portion was small, where there people who were priviledged to do get coffee?

[Mark in Cleveland, Tn.]

I hope you get a lot of answers, as when I watch vids. of the German homefront, I wonder the same. Also wonder about sugar/wheat for bread, etc.

[mikel]

It was a time of severe deprivation for a great many.

There were lots of ersatz goods being used-most not very good.

Where would they be getting imports at this stage of things?
A lot of the misery they had collectively foisted off upon others was coming home to roost.

I would suggest expanding your knowledge sources to actual publications and reearch.
There is a lot of knowledge to be gleaned outside of internet bantering.

[Helmut0815]

In wartime Germany as well as in early postwar era there was of course a massive shortage of coffee as Germany was cut off from it's resources. Real coffee was only available on the black market.
So the people drank Ersatzkaffee widely known as "Muckefuck" (from french "Mocca faux" = false coffee) which was made from roasted chicory roots, malt, barley, rye, acorn and many other things which were available. Of course this Ersatzkaffee did not contain any caffeine.

Some popular brands were Linde’s Kaffee-Ersatz-Mischung, Kathreiner Malzkaffee, Koff and Effka.


Photo taken from http://www.darboven.com

[image removed as only an image saying that hotlinking is disallowed was shown /Marcus]
http://www.return2style.de/1939-49/schw ... /sw193.jpg
Original URL: http://www.return2style.de/1939-49/schw ... arkt1g.htm

regards


Helmut

[PiretBCN]

I find it hilarious that fake coffee now often costs MORE than real coffee in health food shops and even in better equipped supermarkets.
I saw this parody of Rochus Misch stirring his coffee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Gt1r6xFWIc and I realised that real coffee must have been available in the Führerbunker up until the very end. Does anyone know which brand was consumed there? What was the method of preparation?

[Stephanie625]

No. What they drank for coffee was a yuck mixture of roasted grain, which did not have the *spirit* of real coffee.

The Americans had no such problem, owning coffee producing lands. SO if you want coffee, overrun an Ami position. At home.... no dice.

[ChrisMAg2]

... What was the method of preparation?

Standard method of preparation was, what is now called a drip brew. And since there where no coffee makers as we know them now, water was usually heated in a kettle and manually poured over the ground coffee in(to) a cup or can. And they may or may not have used a filter paper.

[ChrisMAg2]

I hope you get a lot of answers, as when I watch vids. of the German homefront, I wonder the same. Also wonder about sugar/wheat for bread, etc.

Sugar was rationed, but available. A big part of the needs could be produced locally, if field production, transportation to the production plants, energy for production and a chain for distribution could be assured. And sugar could and was also substituted, either with honey or other available sweeteners like "Rübensaft". The same goes for things like marmalade, cheese etc.

Bread was also rationed, but available. Bread and potatoes were and still are a staple food. You can also use other grains or flours then wheat to make bread. U could use Rye, Barley, Spelt, Potato, even a mix of two or more of them. All could and were produced in Germany, if field production, transportation to the production plants, energy for production and a chain for distribution could be assured.

It was a more different story with fats (for frying), butter, milk, cold cuts (Wurst/ Aufschnitt), vegetables etc.
But we are now drifting away from the original topic

[Carl Schwamberger]

... What was the method of preparation?

Standard method of preparation was, what is now called a drip brew. And since there where no coffee makers as we know them now, water was usually heated in a kettle and manually poured over the ground coffee in(to) a cup or can. And they may or may not have used a filter paper.

Or you can do the 'expresso' thing with a press. I accquired a little one cup model sturdily made of stainless steel & a high quality rubber gasket on the press. I live for that first high powered shot early morning

No. What they drank for coffee was a yuck mixture of roasted grain, which did not have the *spirit* of real coffee.

The Americans had no such problem, owning coffee producing lands. SO if you want coffee, overrun an Ami position. At home.... no dice.

Which explains why US soldiers who tried captured 'German' coffee were disappointed

[Maxschnauzer]

Here is a ration card for cereal, bread, meats, margarine, and butter (but not ersatzkaffe) valid from January 8, 1945 to February 4, 1945. Whether or not they could actually obtain their allotment at that time was another matter altogether.

http://digital.hagley.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/p268001coll10/id/599/rec/16

[ChrisMAg2]

Here is a ration card for cereal, bread, meats, margarine, and butter (but not ersatzkaffe) valid from January 8, 1945 to February 4, 1945. Whether or not they could actually obtain their allotment at that time was another matter altogether.

ration card 45.jpg

The reason there is no coffee on this card is, because this is a supplementary or additional card. Coffee would be on another card (as indicated e.g. the "Grundkarte E, Jgd, grK or E"). The listed items here are not really rare.

[PiretBCN]

The card posted above looks more generous (at 1st glance) that the one we had in Estonia at the end of the Soviet occupation. Yes, I have the experience of drinking fake coffee because there was no real coffee. Therefore I sometimes buy fake coffee. I get nostalgic. Funnily enough, fake coffee usually costs more than real coffee these days.

About old methods of making coffee, I vaguely remember that about 20 years ago a Finnish coffee brand 'Kulta Katriina' had one type of coffee that was a bit coarse and much lighter than other coffees. It was meant for traditional coffee making - coffee + hot water; no filters, no machines. I have been trying to find a picture online but without luck. I suppose nobody drinks it anymore?

I also wonder about the coffee machine shown at the beginning of this episode of "Obersalzberg": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL9XUhXvgqs Was this the typical model used in the offices of the 3rd Reich?

[phylo_roadking]

Just a couple of minor extra notes...

Also wonder about sugar/wheat for bread, etc.

Sugar was rationed, but available. A big part of the needs could be produced locally, if field production, transportation to the production plants, energy for production and a chain for distribution could be assured.

Just to note that it would of course be beet sugar, as opposed to cane sugar...

It was a more different story with fats...

...fats, of course being vital to the munitions industry...

[GregSingh]

It's not 1945, sorry, but Christmas 1939/40 ad.
Interesting, Ersatz on the right seems to be US made? or pretends to be
Porto Rico company still exists today in NY.

Also Christmas spelling is wrong here???

[Stephanie625]

a bit off topic, but was tea rationed? What sorts of tea did they drink?

And what about cigarettes, rationed? What country did their tobacco come from?