Many people in the world are categorized into whether they prefer to drink tea or coffee. In the U.S., the most popular option is definitely coffee, especially when it comes to choosing hot drinks. Coffee has a long history in the United States and has become a part of American culture. A recent trend has seen people becoming even more interested in coffee, questioning how to make it the right way, where to buy it, and the best places to drink it. Whether you like your coffee black or you’ve recently started to drink cold brew, the history of how coffee became the drink of America is an interesting one.
Before coffee made it to America, it had already been popular in Europe. Coffee shops were where people would go to talk politics, as well as to hang out with up and coming writers, artists, and intellectuals. Coffee was brought to the U.S. around the mid-1600s, and coffee quickly became a popular drink. However, it was the Boston Tea Party that really changed everything and made coffee the American drink that it is today. Rejecting tea as entirely too British, Americans started to drink more coffee instead. In fact, John Adams called tea a “traitor’s drink”.
As coffee became more popular, it started to be cultivated outside of the Arabian peninsula, which is where it originated from. In the second half of the 17th century, the Dutch got hold of some seedlings and started trying to grow coffee plants. While their first attempts in India failed, they later managed to succeed on Java, an island that is now part of Indonesia. Finally, they were able to start expanding their coffee-growing to other islands and countries.
By the 19th century, coffee was a valuable commodity all over the world, and it only continued to grow in popularity. Some people began to make a lot of money from coffee, selling it to everyone from cowboys to gold miners. These include John and Charles Arbuckle, James Folger, and other big coffee brands like Maxwell House and Hills Brothers. Instant coffee came onto the scene after WWII. Then the first Starbucks opened in Seattle during 1971.
Today, coffee is often on par with wine and beer with how it is appreciated. People are interested in how it tastes, its aroma, where the beans are grown, how they’re roasted, and a lot more. Making coffee is an artistic craft and drinking it can be an appreciation of that art. In 2016, more than half of American adults drank coffee every single day. This is balanced between genders, although men and women give different reasons for drinking coffee; Women tend to say it’s relaxing, while men say it helps them focus.
Whatever your reason for loving coffee and whether you’re interested in its history or not, you need the perfect place to enjoy it. If you’re looking for somewhere new to try, why not come and see us at Purc Coffee? Located in the Planet 13 Complex, we think it’s one of the best coffee shops in Las Vegas.
