Of all the marvellous plants on planet Earth, only one is an essential part of every flat white and caramel macchiato: coffee (Plant #135 in Metaflora). But this miracle bean’s contribution to society goes beyond giving us enough buzz to get through our 9-to-5s. Some would go so far as to say that without coffee, we’d still live the Dark Ages.

So how did coffee wake up the world? The first java drinkers are believed to have lived in Ethiopia in the 16th century, and later Yemen and Turkey. According to folklore, coffee found its way into central Europe when the Ottomans invaded Vienna in 1683. The invasion was a failure, and in their retreat, the Turks left behind bags of coffee beans. Entrepreneurial Austrians used the loot to start Europe’s first cafés.

Over time, coffee became more than a hot new trend; it started to change the way that people thought. Before coffee, wine and beer were the daytime drinks of choice for Europeans. The switch to coffee happened around the time of the Enlightenment, and historians theorise that replacing a drink that dumbs people down with one that perks them up contributed to the blossoming of new ideas. These Enlightenment-era Starbucks forerunners became intellectual hubs, where new ideas about politics, philosophy, and literature were exchanged and debated. Some of the most profound ideas from this time, including the separation of church and state, equality before the law, and individual liberty, are fundamental to how Western societies are structured today.

For all these reasons, that CGP Gray called coffee the greatest addiction ever. Was he right? Don’t ask me until I’ve had morning Joe ☕

Monday, February 12 to Sunday, February 18.

Vosmaer, Jacob. A Vase with Flowers. 1613, oil paint on panel, 85 cm x 63 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession no. 437920.

Play Forgeous for Feb 18.