1. The drink dates back to 800 CE. According to legend, ninth-century goat herders gave the fruit of the Coffea plant to their goats, who ‘danced’ after eating it. A local monk later used the fruit to make the first cup of coffee.
2. Coffee beans are technically seeds. They’re the pits of cherry-like berries. We call them ‘beans’ because they look like legumes.
3. Brazil grows the most coffee in the world. It currently produces around a third of the world’s coffee.
4. The biggest coffee lovers can be found in Finland. The average Finn drinks 27 pounds of coffee a year. In comparison, the average American drinks 11 pounds.
5. The world’s most expensive coffee can cost more than $600 a pound. It comes from the faeces of an Asian cat-like animal called the palm civet. It eats coffee beans, but isn’t able to digest them. The excreted seeds produce a smooth, less acidic brew called kopi luwak. The means of production has been criticised by animal welfare activists.
6. Several people have tried to ban coffee. Back in 1511, Mecca leaders outlawed coffee because they believed it caused people to think radically.
Sixteenth-century Italian clergymen thought coffee was satanic, so they banned it. But Pope Clement VII loved it so much that he lifted the ban. He even baptised the beverage in 1600.
Coffee and coffee paraphernalia were made illegal in Sweden during the eighteenth century. The government believed it caused rebellious sentiment.
7. You can overdose on coffee. Don’t stress: you’d have to drink around 30 cups in a short period of time to do so!
8. Coffee drinkers tend to live longer. Research has linked moderate coffee consumption (three to four cups a day) with a longer life span. It also reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and Parkinson’s disease.
9. The largest cup of coffee ever was nine feet tall. It earned a Guinness World Record in 2012.
10. Decaf does not mean caffeine-free. An eight-ounce decaf coffee actually contains 2 to 12 milligrams of caffeine. In comparison, a regular cup of coffee has between 95 to 200 milligrams.
Bibliography
- ‘The Disturbing Secret Behind the World’s Most Expensive Coffee’ (National Geographic).
- ‘5 Historical Attempts to Ban Coffee’ (Mental Floss).
- ‘Coffee: Who grows, drinks and pays the most?’ (BBC News).
- ‘The History of Coffee’ (National Coffee Association).
- ‘The Caffeinated History of Coffee’ (PBS).
- ‘Largest cup of coffee’ (Guinness World Records).
- ‘Nutrition and healthy eating’ (The Mayo Clinic).
- International Coffee Organization.
