See coffee myths. Coffee may be a common beverage, but it has a great story to tell. The start for the lowly coffee bean has been a slow process that eventually led it into the state of prominence that it now enjoys. There are some very interesting facts about coffee that you should know about. 

The enduring fascination of man on coffee has stemmed from a rich history that took the coffee bean from its origins in Ethiopia to its eventual spread into worldwide consciousness. The first java plants were highly regarded by the Arabs that they prevent its spread to other countries by boiling the coffee berries first before they market them to prevent any chance of being cultivated outside their territory. 

Coffee, when it was first introduced in Europe, was first known as “Arabian Wine”. In England during the 1600′s, coffee was considered as a medicinal tonic or brew, probably due to its stimulating effects. The belief in its medicinal properties became so seriously accepted that wild medical contraptions were eventually built in order to administer a mixture of coffee and an assortment of heated butter, honey, and oil as accepted treatments for the sick. 

It further grew in popularity so much so that it was commonly sold by street vendors in street carts in typical Arabian style. This was the accepted practice of selling coffee all around Europe until the late 1700′s when the first French cafe was opened. coffee became so popular all over Europe that by 1763, there were over 200 coffee shops in Venice alone. 

The popularity and the allure of coffee continue to grow. Currently, about 52 percent of Americans drink java regularly. The average annual coffee consumption of a typical American adult is about 400 cups, which amounts to 26.7 gallons. The United States is considered as the world’s largest coffee consumer. 

It imports an estimated 16 to 20 million bags yearly. This is equivalent to one-third of all java exported in the world. The typical java drinker in the US drinks an average of 3.4 cups of coffee per day.  

In other parts of the world, java also holds the same appeal. java is the most popular beverage worldwide with a yearly consumption of over 400 billion cups. And because of this java has become a highly valuable commodity in the world, second only to oil. Scandinavia is considered to have the world’s highest per capita annual java consumption, arriving at about 26.4 pounds per person. Japan ranks top three in the world when it comes to coffee consumption.

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See coffee facts. Coffee is actually a term that was once used for a wine that is made from the berries of a coffee tree. In fact, the black wine, as it is often referred to during that time, is used in religious rites by people of Mohammed. Of course, as time passed, coffee became a staple and not just wine for religious ceremonies.

Caffeine, although universally taken, is actually one of the substances prohibited by the International Olympic Committee. In fact, there are athletes that are banned from competing just because of caffeine. 

They can not have more than 12 micrograms of caffeine in their urine. This is reached when you drink about five cups of coffee straight. Here we thought only steroids were being banned in the Olympic battle ground. 

Do you know that the body can actually absorb as much as 300 milligrams of caffeine at one-time. This can be gotten from about 4 cups of coffee. Additional cups do not work because after this limit is reached, they do not provide any more stimulation. In fact, the body has an internal system that neutralizes caffeine every hour.   

In the era of the cowboy, they make theirs by straining ground coffee in a clean sock and then dousing them in cold water. This is then heated over fire. Hmm. coffee in socks! Yukk!

In Paris, the first coffeehouse was opened in 1689. Its name Cafe Procope was taken from the owner Francois Procope. The cafe caters to artsy people in the city. 

Cappuccino is actually the result of several word derivations that are used in different ways. The most original derivation was from an order of friars, the Capuchin. Their name comes from the term used for the hood part of their habit, the cappuccino. Since the color of the cappuccino resembles the habit- java topped with cream or milk- it has since began to carry that name.  

Countries used different ways to grade their java. For instance, in Costa Rica coffees are graded according to the bean. In Kenya, they use the standard A, B, C system which are already in place as grading system for most products in the market.

Different countries drink their coffee in different ways. The Moroccans for instance add peppercorns while those from the Middle East use cardamom and spices. Austrians love putting whipped creams into their coffee cup while the German and the Swiss like it with chocolate. Egyptians drink it black while the Italians put sugar no matter what. The turks even use coffee in their wedding feasts. 

Turkish bridegrooms present coffee to their new wives. The custom even mentions that failing to do so can be a ground for divorce.  There are java houses in Yugoslavia that are known as kafano. They will brew your own java while you wait. They use deyza, an open pot and use tiny cups called the demitasse.

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Most people have at least one cup of it a day, and plenty of people have several. Being the world’s most highly traded commodity, its affects are felt economically and culturally. Since coffee permeates our society so much, it might be fun to take a look at a few cool coffee facts. (more…)

Coffee is a very popular drink around the world today. It is made using the roasted seeds of the coffee plant. These seeds are known as “coffee beans”. It was first discovered in Ethiopia and then its use spread across north Africa where it gets used in religious ceremonies, Arabia where it began being roasted, from there to Venice and then other parts of Italy, and later on it spread from Europe to America. Currently in the USA 1/3 of the tap water used in homes is used for making coffee!

There are many different species of coffee plants and these are now grown across Africa, S. E. Asia and South America. Coffee beans from different countries, and from different species of plant, result in different flavors. It is an important export crop, and the number one agricultural export for twelve countries. However it is the roasting which adds most of the value and this is done mostly in the developed world. Coffee is a major commodity traded on exchanges including London and New York.

The beans are first fermented. This removes some outer layers which are not wanted. If decaffeinated coffee is wanted, the caffeine is removed at this stage. Next it is roasted at more than 200 degrees Centigrade. The coffee beans can either be sold as whole beans to be ground by the user, or ground first. Different grades of grind can be used for different types of coffee or different preparation methods.

Coffee comes in a variety of different types including espresso, Americano which is an espresso diluted by hot water, latte which has milk added, cappuccino which has both steam and milk added, or the macchiato which has foamed milk on top.

The very first coffee making machines were introduced around the mid 19th Century and used a vacuum process. Percolators, which use gravity or pressure to pass the water through the ground coffee, were introduced later. Other types of coffee makers use steam or hot water passing through the coffee grounds.

The French press makes coffee and filters out the ground particles after it has brewed for a few minutes. This machine can also be called a cafetire or a coffee plunger and requires a more coarsely-ground coffee.

Learn more about coffee and coffee machines. Stop by Thomas Goldman’s site where you can find out all about coffee and coffee machines and how to choose the perfect ones for your own use.