Kahveh,Qahwah or Caffe.Why the coffee bean is not really a bean.

A coffee bean is not really a bean. It is the pit part of small green or pink cherries that grow on short shrubs of the coffea plant.

This stone fruit sometimes has a single seed instead of the normal two seeds. Some cultivators discard this single seed known as a Pea berry. The funny part is that the Pea berry type of beans might actually have a stronger and more enhanced flavor. Perfect for all coffee lovers!

Coffee was first discovered in the land of Ethiopia by a humble goat herd. After man perfected the art of roasting these beans, it started getting sold and exported all over. Pittsburg first started selling this bean in 1865.Now it is packaged and delivered to various places. It contributes to relevant foreign exchange for many countries. Making it a prominent cash crop in many areas.

The Americans are known to consume up to 400 million cups of coffee per day. A study carried out in 2015 has confirmed this. Coffee statistics label the United states as the greatest all time coffee drinkers. Women drink it for relaxation. Men have it for being more productive at work. Famous bean quotes ask you to drown your troubles in coffee!

At least 65% of people add sugar and crème to their brewed coffee. The remaining 35% of the coffee population still prefers black.

The chemical compounds present in the composition of this bean make it an Alkaloid. This is responsible for the caffeine that is produced in the green coffee bean. After roasting this might change into brown but the level of Caffeine remains the same.

This makes coffee a stimulant that affects the central nervous system. Thus it is widely used as a recreational drug to get a ‘high’. All caffeine intake is legal and unregulated by all Governments. This is a major downside to the coffee bean.

All prominent coffee belts lie between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn on the equator. The name coffee seems to be originally derived from the Turkish ‘kahveh,’ Arabic ‘Qahwah’ or maybe the Italian ‘Caffe’.

Whatever the origin of the name, the most widely grown beans happen to be the Arabica and Robusta beans. The former constitutes 80% of all coffee grown. The latter is accountable for 20% of the worldwide coffee production. Consumers can buy the coffee bean as unprocessed, roasted or in the final powdered form.

Bahia and Bourbon are names of famous beans in Brazil. Sumatra and Java are found in the land of Indonesia.Altura and Pluma are grown in Mexico. Mysore and Malabar are distinct names given to the coffee produced in India. Every major region has given its own name to the humble coffee bean.

Nowadays the green coffee that is extracted from immature beans is also popular. It might be unroasted but is being touted as a nutritional supplement with its own health benefits. 

Green coffee beans are marketed as dieter-drinks. These are lapped up by those who are looking for a shortcut to effective weight loss. It can be grown anywhere, be called anything or be consumed in any form. It still remains a potent popular beverage.

A single coffee bean might be small to look at. But it is effectively used to churn out fancy drinks which have made it a billion-dollar industry. The Mocha, Espresso, Latte and Cappuccino varieties are consumed all over. People strike deals and have intense conversations revolving around their frozen or iced coffee beverages.

“Want some coffee?” are now the new magical three words, that can make many people skip a heartbeat.