21 Fun Coffee Facts You Should Know

Whether you’re interested in learning about coffee’s peculiar background, or if you simply want to have some fun coffee facts at the ready, you’ll soon be an expert on both.

7 Surprising Facts About Coffee’s History

1. Coffee originated in Ethiopia in 800 A.D.

Dating as far back to the 9^th century, coffee was said to have been discovered by a goat herder. His goats seemed to get a boost of energy and “dance” after eating coffee berries. A monk tested this theory, making a drink with coffee berries. Thus, unto us, the first cup of coffee was born.

2. Coffee was the first freeze-dried food.

Freeze-drying is a process that freezes foods in a dryer with temperatures at and below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. This started during World War II for food preservation.

3. Coffee was originally farmed as a food.

In Africa, coffee berries were harvested and mixed with animal fats. They were eaten as energy-rich snacks. Imagine today’s superfood snack balls. A little more modern, but you get the idea.

4. People have attempted to ban coffee 5 times throughout history.

• First- 1511 in Mecca. The leaders thought coffee led to radical thinking.
• Second- 16^th century Italy. Clergymen felt that coffee was “evil” and tried to ban it from the country. That was until Pope Clement VII lifted the ban and had coffee baptized in 1600. Yeah, he had coffee baptized.
• Third- 1623 in the Ottoman Empire, or current day Turkey.
• Fourth- 1746 in Sweden. It was illegal to have anything coffee-related.
• Fifth- 1777 in Prussia, which covered most of the land in current-day Germany and Poland, and other smaller portions of Europe.

Those must have been some sad times for coffee-lovers.

5. The largest cup of coffee was brewed in South Korea in July 2014.

How big was it? Oh, just 3,700 gallons. The largest iced coffee was brewed in Las Vegas in 2010 hitting 1,500 gallons— without ice. Another one of these fun coffee facts to have at the ready if you like impressing your friends with random, more obscure facts.

6. George Washington invented instant coffee

Different George Washington than the one you’re probably thinking of. This George Washington was a chemist that invented instant coffee. He named it Red E Coffee. Go figure.

7. Coffee originally meant wine

Initially, coffee was called qahwah, a Yemen term for wine. Then the Turkish called it kahveh. Then the Dutch called it koffie. Then the English called it coffee. So many translations to get to coffee.

8 Surprising Facts About Drinking Coffee

1. New Yorkers drink almost seven times as much coffee as other people living in the U.S.

Not too surprising, as New York is infamous for being quite the busy city. Perhaps a bit more surprising, Finland is the leading country in caffeine consumption.

       2.  Coffee drinkers have a lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease

Yup, you heard that right. Researchers have found that coffee can be beneficial to your health in this way.  Out of the list of fun coffee facts, this one may help validate your coffee addiction.

       3. Adding cream keeps coffee warmer 

Adding cream to your cup will slow down the cooling process. So you’d have to wait longer to drink your coffee, or risk it and burn your mouth. Consider drinking plain black coffee if you don’t want to wait longer for it to cool.

       4. You can overdose on coffee

Don’t worry. The odds of it happening to you are slim to none. However, if you find yourself coming up on your 100^th cup of coffee in a single day, put that cup down. 100 cups mark the lethal dose of caffeine.

           5. Adding milk strips away some of the effects of caffeine

Coffee is absorbed much slower because of the added fat from milk. This decreases the stimulants from the caffeine. So, if you’re the sort of person that needs their caffeine and a lot of it, not adding milk, or opting for a dairy-free alternative could work wonders.

           6. Dark roast has less caffeine than lighter roasts

This may seem contradicting, but the longer roasting process used for dark roasts burns off some of the caffeine.

Check out our dark roast coffee if you’re looking for a little less caffeine.

           7. Decaf coffee still has some trace amounts of caffeine

Very small trace amounts. We’re talking two-to-12 milligrams of caffeine, compared to the average 95 to 200 milligrams of coffee per cup.

If you’re having a decaf kind of day, try our decaffeinated roast.

         8. Americans consume up to 400 million cups of coffee per day

America’s the leading country in coffee consumption, resulting in an astounding 146 billion cups of coffee a year.

6 National and International Coffee Facts

1. After oil, coffee is the second most traded commodity on earth

Worldwide, there are about 25 million farmers involved in coffee production.

2. Two sorts of coffee beans: Arabica and Robusta

Even though it’s less popular, Robusta has twice as much caffeine as Arabica. Arabica accounts for a sweeping 70% of beans used for coffee production. This can be helpful in deciding whether you want to have a highly-caffeinated day or a mildly-caffeinated one.

3. A majority of coffee comes from Brazil

Brazil alone produces 40% of the world’s coffee. Second? Columbia. Third? Vietnam. They contribute about half as much as Brazil.

4. Hawaii is the one U.S. state that commercially grows coffee

Coffee grows best along the equator. Hawaii’s climate serves the ideal conditions for farming coffee beans. Kona coffee is the U.S.’s biggest contribution to the coffee world. Just another one of these fun coffee facts.

5. Coffee is a fruit

Yeah, you read that right. Coffee beans are the pits of a berry. Even though those pits are really seeds, they look like beans, which is why they’ve been given their infamous title the “coffee beans”. Take this one of the fun coffee facts with you. If you find yourself in a situation where someone’s nagging at you to eat more fruit, just pick up that cup of coffee.

6. The most expensive coffee in the world is sold at $600 per pound

These beans are extracted from the feces of a Sumatran wild cat, the Luwak. This cat can’t digest coffee beans properly, so they ferment inside of the cat’s stomach until they’re excreted. So, the most expensive coffee in the world comes from the feces of a wild cat. Strange.

Check out Original Roasters for more fun coffee facts and coffee blogs.