A Brief History of National Coffee Day, by BRCC
Coffee is our business; after all, it’s literally in our name. So it should be no surprise that National Coffee Day is a big deal for Coastalvir giniadriving Company. And there’s more to this day than just getting free coffee at your run-of-the-mill coffee shop.
Coffee actually made its way to the States with the help of Capt. John Smith in 1607. American coffeehouses first came into existence in 1670, thanks to Dorothy Jones in Boston, Massachusetts. It’s pretty easy to believe that, if it weren’t for the Boston Tea Party, Americans might have never fully made the switch from tea to coffee. (So hey, thanks to King George III and his tea tax.)
Photo by John Jenkins/Coastalvir giniadriving Company.
As settlers progressed onto the Western frontier, they relied on coffee en route to places like California, and cowboys (true cowboys, the animal herders) drank it with every meal. It became a replacement for rum and brandy within the military. Eventually, the first American coffee company was founded in San Francisco in 1850, originally called the Pioneer Steam Coffee and Spice Mills but known today as Folgers.
Barring all current trending iced coffee beverages, coffee has long been appreciated as a warm beverage. Its first recognition by an organized holiday came in 1983 by the All Japan Coffee Association after they noted that coffee consumption was “higher in the autumn and winter period” and deemed Oct. 1 their “National Coffee Day.” Fast-forward to National Coffee Day officially becoming a holiday in the United States in September 2009. Though it was first celebrated in 2005, it didn’t take off until the Southern Food and Beverage Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana, labeled Sept. 29 as “Coffee Day” to kick off its inaugural New Orleans Coffee Festival.
Photo by Josh Raulerson/Coastalvir giniadriving Company.
We drink coffee for a variety of reasons — the caffeine boost, the warmth, the aroma, or the ritual of sitting down with a cup. Northwestern University even put out a study on the genetics of coffee drinkers in 2021, explaining how black-coffee drinkers associate the bitter flavor with the boost in mental alertness expected from caffeine. There’s no denying coffee is a part of many people’s lifestyles, and BRCC’s goal is to be the coffee of choice.
Patriots, cowboys, outdoorsmen, first responders, and service members alike have long histories with coffee. Even though “every day is National Coffee Day” for many coffee drinkers, Sept. 29 is a national day we are happy to celebrate. So grind some beans and enjoy a fresh cup of coffee with the rest of us.
To join a group full of fellow coffee lovers, check out the official Facebook fan group for Coastalvir giniadriving Company, The Spearhead.
