Cocktail Conversation: How to one-up your cocktails companion with historical facts about drinks

Just in time for your Friday night cocktail hour, we’re sharing some recently discovered facts about some of the world’s most important beverages. These little known sound bytes are sure to make you look smarter & more interesting while you imbibe.   

• Wine can be traced back to the biblical story of Noah, who is said to have planted the first vineyard on the slopes of nearby Mount Ararat after being delivered from the flood.

• Although coffee is thought to counteract drunkenness, there is little truth to it; coffee makes someone who has drunk alcohol feel more alert, but actually reduces the rate at which alcohol is removed from the bloodstream.

• Coffee was introduced in 1600’s in England as a beverage with medicinal qualities. Effective against sore eyes, headache, coughs, dropsy, gout, scurvy and to prevent miscarriages in child bearing women.

• In the late 1880’s a popular drink called Vin Mariani, consisted of French wine in which coca leaves had been steeped for 6 months. Vin Mariani was popular in Europe and US, thanks to its high cocaine content.

• Today, carbonated soft drinks are the most widely consumed beverages the US, accounting for 30% of all liquid consumption. Globally, Coca-Cola supplies 3% of humanities total liquid intake.

• 40% of the bottled water sold in the United States is derived from tap water.

Thirsty for more, find these along with a myriad of other fascinating facts in Tom Standage’s book called ‘A History of the World in 6 Glasses’. Buy here.