10 Fun Facts, Myths, and Trivia About Coffee

Ah, coffee! If you love it, you can’t imagine living without it. Maybe it’s because this hot cup of sanity is so popular, but it sure does have its fair share of facts, trivia and myths.

Of course, some are true and some aren’t. While others are just fun facts.

But what’s true and what isn’t? Let’s take a look.

1. Coffee Houses and Shops

Coffee shops have been around for centuries, literally. In fact, they were so popular during the time of King Charles II, he actually banned them in 1675. Why? The king was fearful that his enemies were meeting in coffee houses, plotting against him. Lucky for us, that didn’t work out so well.

2. Mocha = Chocolate?

The word “mocha” is usually associated with chocolate. For coffee aficionados, it’s automatically paired with a chocolate/coffee drink. Really, the word “mocha” is the name of a port in Yemen. Coffee beans from Africa are transported there. So long story short. A mocha coffee refers to the origin of the coffee bean, not chocolate. (Sorry!)

3. How Much?

Who drinks the most coffee in the world? We do. The US consumes 400 million cups every day. ‘Nuff said.

4. Espresso versus Cappuccino versus Latte

An espresso coffee is not a coffee bean. Instead, it’s how the coffee is prepared. To make a cup of espresso, a small amount of hot water is forced through very finely ground beans to produce a concentrated coffee.

Both cappuccinos and lattes are made with espresso as their base. Interestingly, the frothy, peaked white topping you get with a cappuccino is a reference to the Capuchin friars' white hood. It’s said that it resembles their habit.

The difference between a cappuccino and latte is this. A cappuccino has the white topping; the latte does not. Glad we got that settled.

5. Coffee Trees

Although coffee trees live up to 100 years, it takes about 5 years before they start producing coffee beans. Each coffee tree yields about a pound of coffee each year. And, it takes close to 2000 raw beans to make that pound of coffee.

6. A Cup of Joe

So why is coffee called a cup of “joe”? You can thank Admiral Josephus "Joe" Daniels for that. In the early 1900’s, he banned alcohol on all Navy shops. So, sailors turned to the next best thing, coffee. In the admiral’s honor, they named the coffee after him, just a little remembrance of his alcohol restrictions.

7. One Bean or Two?

Raw coffee beans, often called coffee “berries,” are round and smooth. However, they split in half when roasted. So, those coffee beans you measure out each morning? They’re actually half-beans. Who knew?

8. Oil and Coffee

What’s the largest traded commodity in the world? Oil. The second? Coffee.

9. Perky Beverage

Just 6 days before the year rolled over into 1866, James Mason invented the coffee percolator. We are forever grateful.

10. Memory Boost

Does coffee really improve memory? Well, a 2005 study showed exactly that. A follow up study also indicated that those memory boosting effects may be long term.

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