It is Thanksgiving week for those of us in America. A time to give thanks, to get together with family and friends, and to indulge in food and football.

Yet, for all the good I’m sure many of us have that select family member that we really wish would just stop talking. Why does grandma need to keep asking about your ex and why he isn’t here? Why does Uncle Eddie insist on talking politics? Please god, make it stop.

So for those of you needing a response that doesn’t involve your ex here are 7 fun coffee trivia facts.

 

7 Coffee Trivia Facts

1. A single coffee tree produces 1 pound of coffee per year

That’s right boys and girls. On average, the annual output of a single coffee tree is 1 pound of dried, processed coffee beans. If you’re like me that 1Lb bag of coffee on your counter will last all of a week, maybe 2 weeks max! So lets take some time to give thanks to that hardworking coffee tree.

 

2. 125 million people depend on coffee for their livelihood

The coffee industry is huge. The industry employees an estimated 125 million people worldwide, from coffee farmers, processing mill employees, roasters, baristas, coffee importers, and the list goes on. I’d like to point something out about “livelihood”. The vast majority of people who work in the coffee industry do so in remote areas, often in underdeveloped countries. The average income of people responsible for this manual labor is $3 a day!

 

3. Coffee is the second most valuable commodity in the world after oil

Okay, this is completely false. Hear me, this is NOT true. However, this factoid is repeated so many damn times in coffee circles that I had to include it and clear up the confusion. Coffee is the 4th most valuable agricultural commodity in the world. On the overall list coffee falls behind oil, copper, aluminum, wheat, flour, sugar, and soybeans. So don’t repeat this one and feel free to kindly educate anyone who does.

 

4. Coffee was discovered by dancing goats and their poetry-loving, pipe-playing, goat herder

Do we really know when and how coffee was discovered?  Probably not. However, there are a number of legends. The most popular story involves a goatherd named Kaldi from Ethiopia. Kaldi was a bit of dreamer who loved poetry and playing his musical pipe as he wandered around the mountainside along the paths his goats made. At the end of each day Kaldi would play a specific, piercing note that would cause his goats to return from their grazing spots and follow him home. One day they didn’t return. After playing the special note several times, Kaldi walked up the mountainside until he found his goats. They were dancing on their hide legs, bleating excitedly and he noticed they were all eating leaves and red berries from a tree he had never seen. So our friend Kaldi tried the leaves and berries himself. Before long he was dancing with the goats, poetry and song were flowing from his lips like never before, and he felt like he would never be tired again. Thus humankind’s love affair with coffee was born.

 

5. The most expensive coffee in the world will cost you $601 per pound or $55 for an 8 oz cup

There is a family-owned farm in Panama called Hacienda La Esmeralda that has been setting the coffee world on fire the past few years with their Geisha varietal coffee. I have been fortunate enough to get my hands on some of this Geisha coffee, which is delicious with light citrus and jasmine flavors, absolutely no bitterness, and requires no cream or sugar. However, Hacienda La Esmeralda produces several “lots” of their Geisha coffee. One of these lots is called Geisha 601, aptly named for the $601/pound paid at auction. Klatch coffee from California recently purchased some Geisha 601 and hosted a special tasting event, selling it for $55 for an 8 oz cup.

 

6. The lethal dose of coffee is about 100 cups

Yes, enough coffee or specifically caffeine can kill you. Turns out there is a lethal dose of caffeine, which is approximately 150 mg of caffeine per kilogram of body weight. So depending on how much you weigh about 70-100 cups of coffee would do you in. However, it is physically impossible to fit that much fluid in your stomach. So go ahead and have another cup, it won’t kill you. Promise!

 

7. In Ancient Arab culture there was one legal reason for a woman to divorce her husband: If her husband did not provide enough coffee

This takes the saying “happy wife, happy life” to another level.

 

And there you have it, 7 fun coffee trivia facts.

 

To end on a serious note, I genuinely hope you all have a wonderful, happy and healthy Thanksgiving.

I am thankful to all of you, your interest, and your support of Roast and Reason.