10 Fun Facts about Coffee

Coffee, the good ol’ coffee! Isn’t it one of the most delectable and for what it’s worth rejuvenating reasons that helps us leave behind our cosy comforters on a pleasant morning? While most of us enjoy at least a couple of cups of this heavenly beverage, have we ever thought about, where it came from or how did it get that refreshingly soothing name. Well, here are some astoundingly fun facts about our beloved morning drink and the evening panacea that helps us get through the day.

1.       The word “Cappuccino” originates from the colour of a hood!

Yes, you read it right! Cappuccio in Italian refers to something that covers the head, like a hood. In the 17^th century, European monks wore a particularly red-brown coloured hood, the colour which is quite similar to that of the present day coffee. It were these hooded monks that were often referred to as the monks of Capuchin order and hence the name Cappuccino!

 

2.       Columbia and Brazil are the largest producers of coffee.

To begin with, this fact doesn’t seem that fun but do you know by largest we mean these two nations together produce 40% of the total coffee of the whole wide world! Still no fun? Well, the world consumes approximately 9 million kgs of coffee every year, and don’t even get us stared on the probable number of cups this much coffee can make! We bet now you get the point.

 

3.       The first food to be freeze dried was coffee!

Freeze drying is a process, whereby a food item is dried not under the sun or through a heating process, but by putting it on a temperature as low as - 40°C. It is the most common and commercially viable method to produce instant coffee.

 

4.       The meaning of word ‘espresso’ is not what you thought!

Yes, the term ‘espresso’ has almost nothing to do with the word express. In fact, its’ meaning is totally different from that of the word express or for that matter even expressly. Espresso is an Italian word with the literal meaning - ‘when something is forced out’.

 

5.       Coffee is a fruit! 

Wow! No that’s something nobody told you. Coffee actually grows in the form of beans over a bush. In fact, the fruit is initially green in colour which ripens to red or purple colour. It is the pit inside this fruit that is essentially the coffee bean. Initially dull green in colour, the bean is roasted to take the colour vibrant brown hue, which we recognise as coffee. 

 

6.       Coffee consumption was once declared to be a capital offence!

The ruler of the Ottoman Empire, Sultan Murad IV, saw coffee as an unusual stimulant and was concerned about the growing popularity of coffee-houses in his region, banned coffee and even went on to declare its consumption as a capital offence. Thanks to the impeccable charm that coffee is, the ban was soon lifted.

 

7.       The world’s most expensive coffee comes for up to $600 per pound!

Yes, that’s how expensive is it is. But the fun doesn’t end here. This coffee, known as Kopi Luwak, is in fact the beans excreted by a wild Sumatran cat! Well, one really needs to love their coffee to be able to digest this!

8.       It was the goats that led the discovery Coffee!

Seems like animals do have a thing for coffee. History has it, that Kaldi, a goat herder was the first to discover coffee as he observed that after eating the berries of a certain tree, his goats were unusually stimulated and became so energetic that they wouldn’t even care to sleep. It was his findings that spread like wildfire leading to the journey of the beloved coffee beans across the globe!

 

9.       The word coffee, originated from a word meaning ‘wine’!

The Arabic word for wine, ‘qawwhat al-bun’ was first to be used for the present day coffee. For ease of use, it was shortened to ‘qahwa’, which came to be known as ‘kahve’ in Turkey and ‘koffie’ in Dutch. Finally, the English gave it the name coffee, which stuck.

 

10.   The invention of Irish coffee is a stark example of serendipity!

A few American passengers disembarked on a particularly chilly winter evening at the Shannon Airport. In an attempt to warm them up a little, Joe Sheridan, a head chef in Foynes, whipped up some Irish whiskey in the coffee, and topped it with cream. On being asked by one of the passengers, if he had been served with Brazilian coffee, the chef replied that it was in fact, Irish coffee, which is where this cult drink got its name from!