Properties of Perks

Ahhh caffeine. I was hoping that grad school wouldn't change my lack of addiction to coffee, but a few weeks in and a recent gift of a French Press, I may be losing that battle. If anyone's trying to break away from it, after a few days of coffee, try drinking lots of water in place of caffeine. You'll have to get up and go to the bathroom so many times that you're plenty awake! (There's the option of decaf-- and to see if it really is decaf, there are caffeine test strips.) Caffeine actually blocks a molecule in your brain that induces sleep, and a caffeine buzz includes increased heart rate and opening / constricting blood vessels, which is great for someone needing to pay attention in class or when studying long hours. I could get into Arabica vs Robusta coffee, but that's probably another post entirely! Most of us have heard the story of how coffee was discovered, but if you haven't, here goes my interpretation:

Coffee is indigenous to Ethiopia, where the legend originates. Kaldi, a goatherd, observed his goats snacking on the red berries of a bush and then becoming rowdy. He was curious about their behavior, so Kaldi nibbled on the berries as well, and his results were similar to that of the animals. A monk noticed these behaviors and thought that the effects of this bean could be good for his long-praying friends, and he then brewed the world's first cup. Consumption spread from Ethiopia to Northern Africa to Arabia, and on.

And today, it's a worldwide treasure, transforming social centers in Europe first (starting in Venice, and the first coffeehouse opening in Oxford, England). In places like Turkey, it's just as much a staple as is bread or water. As with globalization of anything, those who produce it are often brought to light if they aren't being treated properly. This time, the effort to control such a disconnect is with Fair Trade Coffee. Fair Trade focuses on paying producers a fair price for their crop and hopefully encouraging production methods that are environmentally friendly and sustainable, and fostering relationships between the triangle of those involved: producers, traders and consumers. (October is Fair Trade Month!)

Some tidbits about this delicious drink:

Brazil produces more coffee beans than anywhere else in the world.

Darker roasts generally (surprisingly) have less caffeine than lighter roasts. Why? Because the roasting process burns off their caffeine faster. Lighter roasts allow the bean to retain the aromatic oils that give it its delicious flavor. Oily-appearing coffee actually has a bitter taste.

Café au lait is half coffee, half scalded milk, and light brown in color.

Espresso does not, in fact, have more caffeine than drip coffee. The brew-time for espresso has it in contact with water for a shorter period, allowing less caffeine to be extracted. It does, however, have a stronger flavor.

It's the second most valued commodity, after oil.

Kopi Luwak runs about $200/lb. What's unique about this particular coffee bean is that it's digested by a civet then scooped off the ground before roasting. (Translation: a cat eats the bean, someone follows it around until it poops, scoops that up and gets to cooking so you can pay a small fortune to drink a cup. In fairness, you'd have to pay me a lot to follow a cat around until it pooped something I intended for others to consume, too!)

Caffé latte is hot espresso with steamed milk. And it's my favorite!

Coffee trees exhaust soil fertility, requiring the old to be replaced with new, which often means developing new land, which can be a problem in places like Brazil where the rainforest needs restoration, too!

Café Americano is equal portions of espresso and boiling water.

Cappuccino is espresso with steamed milk/cream and milk froth on top. Its name derived from the hood worn by Capuchin order of friars, cappuccio, in Italy. The Italian drink went on to be named such because it was similar to the color of the habit of the Capuchin friars.

Ground coffee goes stale 100x faster than whole bean coffee.

Macchiatto/Macchiato is an espresso drink with a teaspoon or two of steamed milk on top.