20 Interesting Coffee Facts Fascinating For more things you didn't know about coffee

Coffee. For most people, coffee is the fuel that gets them going in the morning(I know it is for me). Whether it's a cup infused at home or an icy flat white ordered on the go, the typical coffee lover has 3 cups each day. In the US alone, there are 150 million daily drinkers. Of course, consuming coffee is not a new trend. It's been around since the discovery of the "coffee berry" in Ethiopia in the year 850. Although, the way we take our java has rapidly evolved in modern days.

Coffee is my important drink, and it's probably yours as well. The exquisite bitterness and coziness of the black fluid encourage you to another one. So this makes us really interested to find out more intriguing aspects about coffee as a commodity itself, but also as a beverage. Here are 20 facts to make you laugh, surprise you, or just make you want to grab another cup of java.

The very first webcam was created out of love for coffee.

We all have experienced that pure annoyance upon finding out that the work coffee maker is empty again! Well, the computer geeks who pioneered the web cam encountered the same problem. The difference between these guys and us is that these guys built a program to monitor the coffee carafe every 30 seconds. Kudos, Dr. Jardetzky and Dr. Stafford-Fraser!

Coffee beans are not beans ... they're pits

The espresso beans all of us love are hidden within the red, or purple cherriesand sometimes yellow, of the Coffea Arabica shrub. Just like all other cherries, they contain two seeds which we recognize as coffee beans.

Alcoholic drinks were first on the breakfast table before coffee.

In the time before coffee (LOL B.C.), people's choice of drink for any kind of celebration was liquor. Shocking? With poor technology back then, humanity had no way of disinfecting water, and milk was infrequent. Their next choice left was alcohol. Alcohol was a nice way of producing a sustainable beverage that doesn't make anyone sick. It was so common, , that beer was designated as better than drinking water!

Americans pay for coffee more than $1000 yearly, on average

You 'd think that spending an average of $1100 on coffee annually would be enough to make America the world's most caffeinated nation. You would be wrong.

Finland is the World's Coffee Capital

Even though Finland does not have a coffee beans production of its own, its citizens drink a bunch of the black stuff - the most of any nation on the planet.

Cafes were once forbidden in England

In 1675, coffee bars were actually not places for solitary coffee lovers. On the contrary, it was a social hub for strangers to engage in dialogues on business, politics, and other matters. King Charles II of England prohibited the coffee shops out of fear because he considered that these places brew 'conspirators of the crown'.

Decaffeinated coffee is not totally decaffeinated

Did you think that decaf coffee is caffeine-free? You're not alone on this one, however it's not that bad actually. Decaf coffee has approximately 97% less caffeine than non-decaf coffee but has caffeine nevertheless.

Coffee is very efficient around 9:30 and 11:30 in the morning.

Neuroscientists say that a cup of coffee changes our alertness level. Between 8:00 and 9:00 in the morning, our alertness is at its peak, so downing coffee is useless. Alternatively, you can drink it around 9:30 am and 11:30 am when our alertness goes to its bottom.

Java makes us happy.

Many studies confirm that consuming coffee decreases suicidal intentions and anxiety. The studies show that coffee increases dopamine and other chemicals of the human brain.

Black coffee fights cavities.

A 2009 research shows that black coffee has an antibacterial property that kills cavities on your teeth. However, when mixed with our favorite milk and sugar, the anti-cavities effect is significantly reduced or non-existent.

Drinking 50 to 100 cups of coffee a day can kill you.

After wondering for some time if too much coffee is deadly, I've finally arrived at my answer. According to Robert Glatter, 50 to 100 cups of coffee is deadly. Even more so, just one teaspoon of pure caffeine has the same lethality.

Coffee decreases the likelihood of Alzheimer's.

Researchers have proven yet again that coffee is not just delicious, it's beneficial (in right doses). Furthermore, a much more recent study shows that darker roasts have more efficacy than lighter ones. Maybe it's time to get my espresso then.

George Washington discovered instant coffee.

The George Washington of the coffee world was no land conqueror or president. He was an inventor who used up 10 years to find the first instant coffee production system. However, he may be a "president" since he created the first business offering instant coffee.

In the past, only men were permitted in cafes.

As a male-exclusive place, coffee shops became the "in" venue for an entire day. Women were not allowed to go anyplace to drink their java but their homes.

Coffee shops are "schools for the wise"

Ottomans labelled cafes as "kahveh kanes" signifying universities for the wise. Similar to England and France, Turkish coffee houses transformed into a birthplace for ideas from intellectuals.

Americano coffee was born in World War II by American soldiers.

Soldiers had very little food supply but were given quite an amount of coffee beans to allow them to remain vigilant in the midst of the war. Consequently, United States soldiers consumed lots of espressos. However, they disliked the strength of the espresso, so they added water to it. This is how Americano was invented.

Coffee was baptized since it was "Satan's brew."

Pope Clement VIII was saddened due to the duty to condemn coffee. At the time coffee was considered the "bitter invention of Satan." Wowed by the exquisite taste of coffee, the pontiff asserted that it would be a waste to let the nonbelievers hoard it. So, he blessed coffee.

Coffee can break mariages

Coffee was a BIG thing in Turkey, even incorporating it in legislation. Turkish wives were granted the right to divorce their spouses if they failed to supply the required quantity of coffee beans.

Caffeine content decreases with dark roasts

Caffeine gets burned out when the coffee bean is being cooked. So, the darker the roast level, the less caffeine. Ideal for us health-conscious coffee lovers. Nevertheless, when you make a cup, you can extract more caffeine out of a dark roasted bean than from a light roasted bean. Baffled?

Coffee could be used to fuel your automobile

Researchers have had success in turning coffee beans into biodiesel. Most importantly, used the grounds left after brewing coffee work equally well ...

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