Coffee Facts and Trivia You Will Enjoy

Coffee is actually a term that was once used for a wine that was made from the berries of a coffee tree. In fact, the black wine, as it was referred to during that time, is used in religious rites as wine by people of Mohammed. Of course, as time passed, coffee became a staple and not just wine for religious ceremonies.

Caffeine, although universally taken, is actually one of the substances that are being prohibited by the International Olympic Committee. In fact, there are athletes that are banned from competing because of caffeine.

They must not have 12 micrograms of caffeine in their urine. This can be reached when you drink about five cups of coffee straight. And here we thought it is only steroids were being banned in the Olympic battle ground.

Did you know that the body can absorb as much as 300 milligrams of caffeine at one time. This can be gotten from about 4 cups of coffee. Additional cups don't work because after this limit is reached, they don't provide any more stimulation. In fact, the body has an internal system that neutralizes caffeine every hour.

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How a coffee played a role in Civil War

By David A. Norris

(Mental Floss) -- Even in the midst of the Civil War, there was still one thing the North and South shared -- a serious addiction to caffeine.
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Confederate troops were less likely to get a cup of coffee.

In that respect, the Union clearly had an advantage. Not only did the North have more than two-thirds of the population and control most of the heavy industry, railroads, and financial reserves in the country, it hoarded supplies of the highly addictive little bean, leaving the Confederacy to wage its own war against java deprivation.

Coffee: It's what's for breakfast, lunch and dinner

Throughout the Civil War, coffee was as prevalent on the battlefields as it is in offices today. In fact, the Union army was fueled by the stuff to the point that, if there was no time to boil water, the Boys in Blue would chew on whole beans as they marched. And at night, Union campsites were dotted with tiny fires, each boiling a pot of coffee like a million miniature Starbucks.

Beyond caffeine cravings, Union troops loved their coffee because it was, literally, the best thing on the menu.

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