美國語文第四冊 第75期：咖啡（02）
The berry is at first very soft, and has a bad taste;
咖啡豆最初非常柔軟，味道不佳。
but as the cherry ripens the berry grows harder, and the dried-up fruit becomes a shell or pod of a deep brown color.
但隨著“櫻桃”的成熟，咖啡豆會變硬，干癟的果實成了一個深棕色的外殼或豆莢。
The berry is now solid, and its color is a translucent green.
咖啡豆現(xiàn)在是實心的，顏色呈現(xiàn)出半透明的綠色。
Each shell contains two seeds, rounded on one side and flat on the other.
每個外殼里包含兩粒種子，一邊是圓弧形，另一邊是平直的。
The seeds lie with the flat sides together,
兩粒種子的平面挨在一起，
and, in one highly prized variety, the two seeds grow together, forming one: this is known as the pea berry.
在一種珍貴的品種中，兩粒種子長在一起，合二為一，被稱為圓豆。
When the fruit is so ripe that it can be shaken from the tree, the husks are separated from the berries,
當果實成熟可以從樹上搖下來的時候，豆莢從咖啡豆上分離開。
and are used, in Arabia, by the natives, while the berries are sold.
在阿拉伯，人們將其利用起來，所以會出售豆莢。
The young plants are inserted in holes from twelve to eighteen inches deep, and six or eight feet apart.
小樹被插在12～18英尺深的洞里，每棵之間留出6～8英尺的距離。
If left to themselves, they would grow to the height of eighteen or twenty feet;
如果讓它們自己生長，可以長到18～20英尺高。
but they are usually dwarfed by pruning, so that the fruit may be easily got at by the gatherer.
但人們通常會把它們剪得比較矮，以方便采摘者的工作。
Thus dwarfed, they extend their branches until they cover the whole space about them.
由于樹變矮了，它們會不斷延伸自己的枝干，直到把周圍的空間全部覆蓋上。
They begin to yield fruit the third year.
到第三年，就開始結(jié)果了。
By the sixth or seventh year they are at full bearing, and continue to bear for twenty years or more.
到第六或第七年，它們已經(jīng)碩果累累，并且一直到二十年甚至更長時間都可以結(jié)出果實。
Before the berry can be used, it undergoes a process of roasting.
在使用咖啡豆之前，需要經(jīng)過一個烘焙的過程，
The amount of aromatic oil brought out in roasting has much to do with the market value of coffee,
這個過程中帶出的芳香油的數(shù)量直接關(guān)系著咖啡的市場價值。
and it has been found that the longer the raw coffee is kept, the richer it becomes in this peculiar oil, and so the more valuable.
研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，原始咖啡保存的時間越長，這種特殊的油分會越豐富，價值自然也會更高。
But after the coffee is roasted, and especially after it is ground, it loses its aroma rapidly.
但在咖啡經(jīng)過烘焙后，尤其是經(jīng)過研磨后，芳香會迅速消失。
Arabia produces the celebrated Mocha, or "Mokha," coffee, which is the finest in the world;
阿拉伯出產(chǎn)著名的摩卡，又稱穆哈咖啡，是世界上最優(yōu)質(zhì)的咖啡。
but little or none of the best product is ever taken out of that country.
阿拉伯出產(chǎn)著名的摩卡，又稱穆哈咖啡，是世界上最優(yōu)質(zhì)的咖啡。
The Java coffee from the East Indies is next prized, but the best quality of this kind is also quite difficult to obtain,
東印度群島的爪哇咖啡緊隨其后，但好品質(zhì)的產(chǎn)品同樣很難得到。
and many, therefore, prefer the finest grades of Rio coffee from South America to such Mocha and Java as can be had in our country.
因此，很多人更愿意選擇上等的南美里約咖啡，而不選擇美國國內(nèi)能買到的摩卡或爪哇咖啡。
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