The Bloom — facts

Coffee is a superlative beverage. But it is also a beverage of superlatives though some of the ways it’s earned that honor are, shall we say, slightly out of the ordinary. Here’s a look at coffee facts you won’t find on trade association web sites: • The worlds largest iced coffee was prepared on July 17, 2014 at Caffé Bene in Yangju, South Korea. A team of what we assume were exhausted baristas filled a cup measuring almost 11 feet tall and 8½ wide with 3,758 gallons of black Americano coffee and ice cubes. Not to be outdone, the world’s...

Our quest for health takes us many places. To our yoga mats and our bicycle seats. To the hiking trail and the fitness center, a bowl of fruit or a lunchtime salad. Yet if we really want to boost our bodies, we should head for the nearest café and order a large latte. Not to say those other things don’t matter. They do. But when it comes to self-care, the latest scientific surprise is deliciously simple: drink coffee. Researchers who’ve picked our favorite drink apart say it’s loaded with all kinds of good things our bodies need to maintain optimal...

Coffee is always finding new ways to amaze us. These surprises might arrive in a bean we’ve never tasted or that moment when we realize all that blossoms into being when we combine the simplicity of beans with the element of water. Yet coffee hides other secrets, too, and these revelations may surprise you even more:  The magic of coffee is believed to have been discovered in 9th century Ethiopia when herders saw their goats experience a burst of activity after eating coffee berries. They took the berries to a local holy man, who turned them into a drink that...