coffee, Either of two species of tropical evergreen plants of the genus Coffea, in the madder family, or their seeds, called coffee beans; also the beverage made by brewing the roasted and ground coffee beans with water. Arabica coffee (from Coffea arabica) is considered to brew a more flavourful and aromatic beverage than Robusta (the main variety of C. canephora). Arabicas are grown mainly in Latin America, eastern Africa, Asia, and Arabia, while Robustas are mainly produced in western and central Africa, Southeast Asia, and Brazil. The plants bear small white flowers with a jasminelike fragrance. The fruit, 13–19 mm (0.5–0.75 in.) long and red when mature, is called a coffee cherry. Coffee contains large amounts of caffeine, the effects of which have always been an important element in the drink’s popularity. Coffee drinking began in 15th-century Arabia. It reached Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries and became hugely popular. Coffee is now consumed by about one-third of the world’s population.
Discover