Coffee

• A scientific report form the University of California found that the steam rising from a cup of coffee contains the same amounts of antioxidants as three oranges. The antioxidants are heterocyclic compounds which prevents cancer and heart disease.
  
  
• After they are roasted, and when the coffee beans begin to cool, they release about 700 chemical substances that make up the vaporizing aromas.
  
  
• An arabica coffee tree can produce up to 12 pounds of coffee a year, depending on soil and climate.
  


• Beethoven who was a coffee lover, was so particular about his coffee that he always counted 60 beans each cup when he prepared his brew.
  


• Coffee is generally roasted between 400F and 425F. The longer it is roasted, the darker the roast. Roasting time is usually from ten to twenty minutes.
  
  
• Coffee is grown commercially in over forty-five countries throughout the world.
  


• Coffee is the most popular beverage worldwide with over 400 billion cups consumed each year.
  
  
• Coffee trees are evergreen and grow to heights above 15 feet but are normally pruned to around 8 feet in order to facilitate harvesting.
  


• Coffee trees produce highly aromatic, short-lived flowers producing a scent between jasmine and orange. These blossoms produce cranberry-sized coffee cherries. It takes four to five years to yield a commercial harvest.
  


• Coffee, as a world commodity, is second only to oil.
  


• Dark roasted coffees actually have LESS caffeine than medium roasts. The longer a coffee is roasted, the more caffeine burns off during the process.
  


• Flavored coffees are created after the roasting process by applying flavored oils specially created to use on coffee beans.
  


• In the last three centuries, 90% of all people living in the Western world have switched from tea to coffee.
  


• Italians do not drink espresso during meals. It is considered to be a separate event and is given its own time.
  


• Jamaica Blue Mountain is often regarded as the best coffee in the world.
  
  
• Large doses of coffee can be lethal. Ten grams, or 100 cups over 4 hours, can kill the average human.
  


• October 1st is the official Coffee Day in Japan.
  


• Only about 20% of harvested coffee beans are considered to be a premium bean of the highest quality.
  


• The Arabica is the original coffee plant. It still grows wild in Ethiopia. The arabica coffee tree is an evergreen and in the wild will grow to a height between 14 and 20 feet.
  


• The aroma and flavor derived from coffee is a result of the little beads of the oily substance called coffee essence, coffeol, or coffee oil. This is not an actual oil since it dissolves in water.
  


• The average cup of coffee contains more than 1000 different chemical components, none of which is tasted in isolation but only as part of the overall flavor.
  


• The coffee tree produces its first full crop when it is about 5 years old. Thereafter it produces consistently for 15 or 20 years.
  
  
• The most widely accepted legend associated to the discovery of coffee is of the goatherder named Kaldi of Ethiopia. Around the year 800-850 A.D., Kaldi was amazed as he noticed his goats behaving in a frisky manner after eating the leaves and berries of a coffee shrub. And, of course, he had to try them!