6 Coffee Trivia You May Not Know
Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world, being consumed by millions of people regularly. However, in addition to the unmistakable aroma and taste, high caffeine content and various medicinal properties, there are some facts about coffee that most of us are unaware of. The folks at mental_floss have posted a lot of good old coffee curiosities, and you can check out some of them below:
Nothing is lost
Do you know what is done with caffeine obtained through the coffee decaffeination process? According to the website, manufacturers do not discard this substance! It is sold to pharmaceutical companies and the soft drink and beverage industries for incorporation into their products.
Balzac the Caffeolater
Legend has it that Honoré de Balzac - the famous 19th century French novelist founder of Realism in modern literature - drank no less than 50 cups of coffee a day to stir the mind and stimulate creativity. Could he sleep after consuming so much caffeine?
Olympics and coffee bags
In order to participate in the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 1932, Brazilian athletes had to travel on a boat loaded with 45, 000 bags of coffee, which were sold at the freighter's stops along the way. The purpose of sales was to fund the trip, and only athletes who could sell anything could participate in the competitions.
Women United Against Caffeine
In the year 1674, a group of British women launched a petition to ban coffee consumption in the United Kingdom. The claim was that drinking was turning men into "useless bodies." Charles II, the monarch of the time, probably did not take the complaints very seriously, as the drink is still appreciated today by those sides.
Coffee and radicalism
In 1511, coffee was banned in Mecca, a city located in Saudi Arabia considered to be the holiest in the world for Muslims. According to the religious leaders of the time, the drink was able to stimulate radical thinking and social gatherings.
Nerds and Coffee Makers
The first webcam was for a group of researchers from the University of Cambridge, England, to monitor a coffee maker and know the real situation of the coffee without leaving the lab!
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