Day of coffee
Ten bizarre facts about the coveted hot drink
October 1st is Coffee Day.
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October 1st is Coffee Day. For many, the hot drink is an indispensable part of everyday life. These are the bizarre facts.
Elixir of life, stimulant, stimulants: October 1st is coffee day. Germans drink an average of around 150 liters per year. These are the bizarre facts about the popular hot drink.
1. Coffee was “discovered” by goats
Legend has it that a shepherd named Kaldi was made aware of coffee beans by his goats in Ethiopia in the 9th century. He is said to have observed how they ate the cherries from a coffee tree – and tried them himself. He is said to have been so enthusiastic about the stimulating effect of the red cherries that he packed his pockets full and took them to a monastery. The abbot there is said to have thrown the cherries into a fire, and the monks made a drink out of the aromatic roasted beans. Apparently, after drinking, they are said to have been particularly attentive to their evening prayers.
2. Black Ivory Coffee: The most exclusive coffee in the world
For a long time, the Balinese cat coffee “Kopi Luwak” was considered the most expensive coffee in the world. It arises in the digestive tract of an Asian type of cat. In the meantime, people in Thailand have come up with something even crazier: there they let elephants chew coffee cherries and make “Black Ivory Coffee” from the coffee beans that have been discharged. A proud price: around 40 euros per cup.
3. Coffee is the second most important commodity in the world
Only crude oil has more power as a commodity: Coffee beans are grown in around 80 countries on a total area of around eleven million hectares. Around 3.3 billion kilograms of coffee are produced worldwide every year, and around 25 million people work in the cultivation.
4. Coffee as an entrance ticket to the Olympics
Ticket to the Olympics: When the Brazilian team couldn’t afford to send athletes to the Olympics in Los Angeles in 1932, the country negotiated a deal with the Olympic Committee – 55,000 bags of coffee in exchange for participation in the Games.
5. Invention of the webcam thanks to a coffee machine
In 1991 scientists at Cambridge University unconsciously made a major invention. In order to be able to observe the level of their coffee machine in the hallway from the laboratory, they virtually invented the world’s first webcam. In 2001 the now broken coffee machine was auctioned on eBay. Your new owner: the online editorial team of “Spiegel”.
6. Coffee lowers the risk of cancer
A preference for coffee is often condemned as an unhealthy “vice”. But coffee is actually quite healthy: Roasted coffee beans are often found in pain medication, and whoever drinks an average of one cup of coffee a day can reduce the risk of developing cancer by up to 40 percent. The risk of diabetes can also be reduced by taking at least four cups a day. So: no more guilty conscience when enjoying coffee!
7. “How about a coffee?”
Coffee is the most popular first date activity. That resulted in a survey by “statista”. There, 73.3 percent of those surveyed said they went to have coffee on their first date. Around 77 percent said the perfect place for a first date was a coffee shop or café. Alcohol is a lot less popular.
8. Coffee overdose?
While coffee consumption is healthy in moderation, too much can also be fatal. But don’t worry: an adult would have to drink around 30 cups in no time to die from a caffeine overdose.
9. Beethoven’s complicated coffee order
Black, with milk, without sugar, filter coffee, espresso: everyone has their own preference for the perfect cup of coffee. Ludwig van Beethoven was particularly unusual when he ordered coffee. The legendary composer drank the hot drink every morning. Very important: there had to be exactly 60 coffee beans in one cup. Often he counted exactly.
10. The oldest cat in the world drank coffee every day
It might be a coincidence, but the world’s oldest cat, Creme Puff, drank coffee every morning of her life. She was 38. Which speaks against a coincidence: A 34-year-old tomcat named Granda Rex Allen held this record in front of her – the two have the same owner. He too drank coffee every morning.