Facts about coffee

Coffee is a widely consumed beverage prepared from the roasted seeds  commonly called "beans" of the coffee plant. Coffee was first consumed as early as the 9th century, when it appeared in the highlands of Ethiopia. From Ethiopia, it spread to Egypt and Yemen, and by the 15th century had reached Persia, Turkey, and northern Africa. From the Muslim world, coffee spread to Italy, then to the rest of Europe and the Americas. Today, coffee is one of the most popular beverages worldwide.
The two most commonly grown species of the coffee plant are Coffea canephora and C. arabica, which are cultivated in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Arabica coffee is by far the most popular variety because of it's smooth taste and aromatic qualities. Basically coffee berries are picked, processed (flesh removed from around the coffee beans), and then they're dried (more of that process below). The seeds are then roasted at temperatures around 200°C (392°F), during which the sugars in the bean caramelize, the bean changes color, and the true flavor of that delicious drink we call coffee develops. The beans are generally roasted to a light, medium, or a dark brown color, depending on the desired flavor. The roasted beans are ground and brewed in order to create that beverage we call coffee! That's the basic run down, now for the rest of the coffee story...

Coffee has played an important role in many societies throughout history. In Africa and Yemen, it was used in religious ceremonies. In the 17th century, it was banned in Ottoman Turkey. In Europe, it was once associated with rebellious political activities. Today, trade in coffee has a large economic value. Coffee is one of the world's more important primary commodities; in 2003, coffee was the world's sixth-largest legal agricultural export in value. From 1998 to 2000, 6.7 million tons of coffee were produced annually, and it is predicted that by 2010 production will rise to 7 million tons annually. Among coffee drinkers the average coffee consumption in the United States is 3.1 cups of coffee per day.