Twenty Interesting Coffee Facts - Curious Coffee Information

Fascinating Coffee Stories and Exhilarating Coffee Knowledge

England's Charles II was persuaded by the country's ale and wine sellers to ban coffee houses because they were hurting sales of beer and wine. This spurred a protest by the coffee lovers, and on January 8, 1675 Charles II retracted his coffee house prohibition.

The East India Coffee trade began in 1690 when the Dutch brought coffee to Java in Indonesia.

The people on Earth consume about 1.4 billion cups of coffee each day.

When Dorothy Jones was granted a license to sell coffee in Boston in 1670 she became the first American coffee trader.

Coffee trees may flower many times throughout the season. While the number of flowerings depends upon the region, rainfall, and other factors, in some areas there are up to eight flowerings in a season.

When a Frenchman writing about his 1716 journey through Arabia talks about coffee in his book Trip Through Happy Arabia it is one of the first documentations of coffee.

About three hours after the first historic moon landing, on July 20, 1969 on the Eagle spacecraft, an astronaut radioed Houston to tell them, “If you'll excuse me a minute, I'm going to have a cup of coffee.”

A good harvest of a mature coffee tree produces about five pounds of green coffee beans that roast down to about one pound of coffee ready for grinding and brewing.

The Bedouins like their cofee with some cardamom and ginger in it. Guests are greeted with the saying “Allah wa sablan,” which means “My home is your home.”

Twenty Interesting Coffee Facts continued:

Kissaten is the Japanese term for a coffee shop. There are more than ten thousand in Japan as well as thousands of coffee vending machines.

Who likes a pinch of slat in their coffee? The Ethiopians, that's who!

The most popular tale of the origins of coffee consumption are taken with a grain of salt but involve a goat herder named Kaldi who noticed his overly-animated goats eating some strange berries and so tried some himself and the rest is history.

More than two thousand ships are involved in shipping most of the world's coffee.

A typical eight-ounce cup of coffee has about 105 milligrams of caffeine, while an espresso shot has about 40 milligrams.

Many green (unroasted) coffee beans are stored for lengthy periods of time, sometimes years. Connoisseurs of coffee know that proper aging may enhance a high quality coffee bean.

In Greece and Turkey it is customary to serve coffee to the elders before anyone else.

Cafe Procope was the name of the first coffee house in Paris. Opening in 1689, Cafe Procope was just across from the Theatre Francais so many artists and actors came to enjoy the coffee.

Scientists have isolated two components of coffee that are thought to be primarily responsible for the bitterness of the beverage. These compounds are hydroxylated phenylindanes and chlorogenic acid lactones. Of course you already knew that!

Specialty Coffee and Espresso Brewing Tips

For tips on brewing the perfect cup of gourmet coffee see the Espresso Coffee Guides section on coffee brewing.

For easy to follow instructions on how to make top quality espresso drinks see Espresso Drink Recipes and the How to make Lattes and Cappuccinos. Also provided are important steps to take for Pulling A Perfect Espresso Shot.

For a detailed history of espresso and coffee see World's Best History of Coffee, and for a complete list of coffee terminology with comprehensive definitions see the Espresso Coffee Guides Coffee and Espresso Glossary.