Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee, known in Turkish as Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi, is one of Çanakkale's most unusual regional drinks. Despite its name, it contains no coffee beans. Instead, locally sourced small yellow chickpeas are slowly roasted in a wood-fired oven, finely ground, and brewed in a cezve in a method reminiscent of Turkish coffee.
The drink belongs specifically to Işıkeli Village in the Biga district of Çanakkale. Its distinctive preparation, long-standing relationship with village life, local ingredients, and traditional serving customs led to its registration as a geographically indicated product in Türkiye.
Perhaps its most surprising characteristic is that it is naturally caffeine-free. Traditionally prepared without sugar and served alongside dried grapes, Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee offers travelers a fascinating glimpse into the rural food traditions of northwestern Anatolia.
Made from small yellow chickpeas traditionally associated with the geographical area around Işıkeli Village.
No coffee beans are used, making the traditional drink naturally free from caffeine.
The chickpeas are slowly roasted in trays in a wood-fired oven before being finely ground.
The drink has an important place in the culinary culture and local economy of Işıkeli Village.
Essential information about one of Biga and Çanakkale's most distinctive traditional drinks.
Işıkeli Village in the Biga district of Çanakkale Province in northwestern Türkiye.
Open Işıkeli on Google MapsSmall yellow chickpeas are roasted, finely ground, and brewed to create the traditional drink.
Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee contains no caffeine because it is produced entirely from chickpeas rather than coffee beans.
Registered by TÜRKPATENT as Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi with registration number 1442.
A humble village drink transformed into one of Biga's officially recognised culinary traditions.
Işıkeli is a village in the Biga district of Çanakkale, an agricultural region of northwestern Türkiye where farming and traditional food production have shaped everyday life for generations.
Within this rural landscape developed an unusual beverage made not from coffee beans but from locally grown chickpeas. The drink became known as Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi — literally, Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee.
Its preparation developed around ingredients and equipment readily available in village life. Small yellow chickpeas were cleaned, slowly roasted in a wood-fired oven, finely ground, and brewed with water and a small quantity of baking soda.
Over time, chickpea coffee became closely associated with the culinary identity and local economy of Işıkeli. The relationship between the drink, the village, the locally produced chickpeas, and the traditional preparation method ultimately resulted in formal geographical-indication protection.
Today, Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is an excellent example of how a seemingly simple agricultural ingredient can develop into a distinctive regional speciality through local knowledge, preparation techniques, and cultural continuity.
Its identity comes from the local chickpea variety, slow roasting, extremely fine grinding, traditional brewing method, and connection with Işıkeli Village.
The traditional raw material is a small chickpea known locally as sarı nohut, or yellow chickpea. It is smaller than many modern hybrid varieties and is not perfectly round.
Cleaned chickpeas are spread over trays and roasted in a wood-fired oven. Controlled roasting develops the deep colour and characteristic toasted aroma required for the finished drink.
After roasting, the chickpeas are ground extremely finely using a hammer-type coffee grinder. This allows the powder to behave more like traditional coffee during brewing.
Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee contains no coffee beans and therefore does not contain caffeine. Its roasted flavour comes entirely from chickpeas and the traditional production process.
A small amount of baking soda is used when the drink is prepared. This is a distinctive part of the registered brewing method and separates Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee from ordinary Turkish coffee.
The drink was traditionally prepared without sugar and accompanied by dried grapes, providing natural sweetness beside the roasted flavour of the chickpeas.
The geographical indication connects authentic Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee directly with Işıkeli Village and the knowledge required to produce it according to the registered method.
Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi is officially recognised as a geographical indication, protecting the relationship between its name, preparation method, and place of origin.
Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi is officially registered by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office as a geographically indicated product associated with Işıkeli Village in Biga, Çanakkale.
The official protected name is Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi.
The geographical-indication registration number is 1442.
The registration was completed on 7 August 2023.
The geographical-indication application number is C2022/000044.
The product is registered as a Mahreç İşareti.
The registered geographical boundary is Işıkeli Village, Biga, Çanakkale.
The registration was made through the Biga Chamber of Agriculture, Biga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Biga Municipality. It documents the characteristics of the chickpeas, roasting temperature, grinding size, preparation method, traditional serving style, and connection of the product with Işıkeli Village.
Geographical-indication protection is important because it helps preserve the recognised production method while giving visitors a clearer understanding of what distinguishes genuine Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee from other roasted-legume beverages.
The character of Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee begins with the chickpeas themselves. The registered product uses small chickpeas traditionally known as yellow chickpeas.
The chickpeas measure approximately 5–7 mm in diameter and are smaller than many hybrid chickpea varieties.
The yellow chickpeas are not perfectly round and traditionally have a form sometimes described as resembling a bird's head.
The chickpeas used for registered Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee are sourced from within the geographical boundary.
The traditional yellow chickpea is valued for its resistance to environmental conditions and pests.
Once harvested and selected, the chickpeas are washed before beginning the slow roasting process that transforms an ordinary pulse into the aromatic base of the drink.
The registered production process follows a careful sequence. Roasting is particularly important because it develops the colour, aroma, and toasted flavour of the finished powder.
Raw chickpeas do not naturally possess the deep toasted aroma associated with Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee. The extended roasting process changes their colour, aroma, flavour, and texture before grinding.
The registered method specifies roasting at approximately 200–250°C.
The roasting can take between approximately two and four hours depending on moisture and seasonal conditions.
Gentle stirring helps expose the chickpeas evenly to heat and reduces the risk of individual pieces burning.
The process develops the toasted, nutty and cereal-like character that defines the finished beverage.
The roasting stage is therefore not merely preparation for grinding. It is the central transformation that allows chickpeas to produce a dark, aromatic drink reminiscent in appearance and preparation of coffee.
After roasting, the chickpeas must be ground much more finely than they would be for ordinary culinary use.
The registered method specifies the use of a hammer-type coffee grinder.
The roasted chickpeas are ground to approximately 200–300 microns.
The result is a powder fine enough to be mixed directly with water in a cezve.
After grinding, the powder is sealed in aluminium-barrier packaging to reduce exposure to air.
The official geographical-indication specification also records measurable characteristics of the finely ground product before brewing.
The absence of caffeine is particularly noteworthy. Although the finished drink is called "coffee" because of its appearance, preparation, and cultural role, its raw material is chickpea rather than the seed of a coffee plant.
Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is brewed in a cezve, the small handled pot also associated with Turkish coffee. The registered recipe uses chickpea-coffee powder, baking soda, hot water, and optional sugar.
Use approximately 10–12 g of finely ground Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee for one portion.
Add approximately 1–2 g of baking soda.
Use approximately 70–75 ml of hot water.
Sugar is optional. The traditional preparation is unsweetened.
Traditional Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is prepared without sugar, particularly when it is accompanied by naturally sweet dried grapes. The registered recipe nevertheless allows sugar to be added according to preference.
No sugar is required for the traditional unsweetened preparation.
Approximately 2.0–2.5 g of white sugar may be used for a lightly sweet cup.
Approximately 3.0–3.5 g of white sugar may be used for medium sweetness.
Approximately 4.5–5.0 g of white sugar may be used for a sweeter preparation.
Serving traditions are part of what makes the drink culturally distinctive. Rather than automatically sweetening the beverage itself, the traditional method pairs an unsweetened cup with dried fruit.
Visitors wanting the most traditional experience should try the drink unsweetened with dried grapes. This allows the roasted flavour of the chickpeas to remain prominent while the grapes provide sweetness separately.
Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee should not be expected to taste exactly like coffee made from roasted coffee beans. Its character comes from the transformation of chickpeas during slow roasting.
The prolonged oven roasting gives the drink a pronounced toasted character.
Roasted chickpeas naturally produce nutty and cereal-like flavour notes.
The beverage has a gentle earthy character associated with roasted pulses.
Its flavour is softer and distinctly different from beverages produced from roasted coffee beans.
For first-time visitors, tasting it without sugar alongside a few dried grapes provides one of the best introductions to its traditional flavour combination.
The two drinks share certain preparation and serving traditions, but their ingredients and flavour profiles are fundamentally different.
No. One of the defining characteristics recorded for Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is that the powdered product does not contain caffeine.
This is because no coffee beans are used in its production. The beverage's coffee-like qualities come instead from the dark colour and toasted aroma created by roasting chickpeas and from the way the finely ground powder is brewed and served.
The raw material is chickpea rather than Arabica or Robusta coffee.
The registered chickpea-coffee powder contains no caffeine.
Despite the difference in ingredients, it occupies a coffee-like role as a small, freshly brewed hot beverage.
Its significance comes from its connection with Işıkeli rather than from attempting to reproduce ordinary coffee exactly.
Işıkeli Village lies within the district of Biga in Çanakkale Province. The geographical indication specifically defines Işıkeli Village as the geographical boundary of the product.
Biga forms part of a fertile agricultural landscape between the Marmara and Aegean regions. Agriculture, animal husbandry, local markets, village food production, and seasonal farming remain important elements of the area's cultural identity.
For culinary travelers, Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee offers an opportunity to look beyond Türkiye's famous archaeological sites and encounter a much smaller form of heritage: a drink preserved through the agricultural and domestic traditions of a single village.
Çanakkale
Biga
Işıkeli
Local agriculture, traditional food production, and village culinary heritage.
Travelers exploring Biga and the wider Çanakkale region may encounter Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee through local producers, regional food shops, village events, markets, and businesses promoting geographically indicated products.
The village itself provides the strongest geographical connection with the traditional product and its production culture.
Local food shops and regional-product sellers in Biga may stock packaged Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi.
Special events and regional food markets can provide opportunities to encounter Çanakkale's geographically indicated products.
Look for the name Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi and geographical-indication information when purchasing the protected product.
Availability can change throughout the year. If tasting the drink is an important part of your journey, confirm availability locally before making a special trip solely for the product.
The traditional preparation is unsweetened, allowing you to experience the roasted chickpea flavour clearly.
Traditional dried grapes provide sweetness between sips and create the most characteristic pairing.
It is not intended to taste exactly like ordinary coffee. Approach it as a distinctive regional drink in its own right.
Preparation methods are part of the experience, particularly the use of baking soda and cezve brewing.
When buying a package, check the producer, product name, and geographical-indication information.
A tasting makes more sense as part of a wider visit exploring Biga's rural culture, villages, and regional foods.
Properly packaged chickpea-coffee powder can make an unusual regional food souvenir from Çanakkale.
Buying directly from recognised regional producers helps support the continuation of small-scale culinary traditions.
Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is part of a much broader culinary landscape. Çanakkale's geography stretches across fertile inland districts, coastal settlements, islands, olive-growing areas, dairy regions, and traditional farming communities.
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Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is a traditional caffeine-free hot drink produced from roasted and finely ground chickpeas in Işıkeli Village in the Biga district of Çanakkale.
Its Turkish name is Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi.
No. It is made from roasted chickpeas rather than coffee beans.
No. The registered Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee powder does not contain caffeine.
It comes from Işıkeli Village in the Biga district of Çanakkale Province in northwestern Türkiye.
Yes. Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi is registered by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office as a geographical indication.
The official registration number is 1442.
Its geographical-indication registration was completed on 7 August 2023.
The registered preparation uses small yellow chickpeas measuring approximately 5–7 mm in diameter.
The cleaned chickpeas are placed on trays and roasted in a wood-fired oven at approximately 200–250°C.
Roasting normally takes approximately two to four hours depending on factors including the season and moisture content of the chickpeas.
After roasting, the chickpeas are ground to approximately 200–300 microns.
For one portion, approximately 10–12 g of chickpea-coffee powder is mixed with 1–2 g of baking soda, optional sugar, and approximately 70–75 ml of hot water before being brewed in a cezve.
Baking soda forms part of the traditional registered preparation of Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee and is mixed with the powder and water before brewing.
Traditionally it is prepared without sugar. Sugar can nevertheless be added according to personal preference.
The traditional accompaniment is dried grapes. Today, Turkish delight or chocolate may also be served with the drink.
It has a roasted, nutty, earthy character produced by slowly roasting chickpeas. It should not be expected to taste exactly like conventional coffee.
No. The drinks share certain preparation and serving characteristics, but Turkish coffee is produced from coffee beans while Işıkeli Chickpea Coffee is produced from roasted chickpeas.
The registered product contains no caffeine, although individual dietary considerations should always be taken into account when choosing any food or drink.
Packaged Işıkeli Nohut Kahvesi may be available from regional producers and shops. The registered product is traditionally packed in airtight 200-gram aluminium-barrier packaging.
For travelers interested in rural food traditions and lesser-known destinations, a visit can provide an unusual complement to the archaeological and historical attractions of the wider Çanakkale region.
The ancient city of Parion is one of the most important archaeological attractions in the wider Biga area. Travelers can also continue toward central Çanakkale, Troy, Gallipoli, Assos, Bozcaada, and the villages around Mount Ida.
The transformation from pale chickpeas to deeply roasted powder, the traditional cezve, small coffee cups, village surroundings, and dried-grape accompaniment provide excellent opportunities for culinary and cultural photography.
Photograph the colour and texture of the chickpeas after roasting to show the ingredient behind the drink.
If production is being demonstrated, capture the moment the roasted chickpeas are transformed into fine powder.
The small cezve and freshly brewed drink create the clearest visual connection with Türkiye's wider coffee culture.
A traditional cup accompanied by dried grapes tells the cultural story of the drink in a single image.
Include Işıkeli's agricultural landscape or village environment to provide geographical context.
With permission, photograph the people preserving the roasting, grinding, packaging, and serving traditions.
Always ask permission before photographing producers, villagers, shopkeepers, or people inside private workplaces and homes.
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