When you meet up with an old friend that you haven’t seen in months or years, you catch up over a cup of coffee. 

When your weekly moms’ group meets to fellowship, vent, and laugh together, you generally do so over a cup (or two) of coffee. 

When you’re strolling through the mall, shopping with your best friend, you’ve got a cup of coffee in one hand. 

And…

When your exhausting work week has paused for the awaited weekend break, you meet up with friends for some much-needed, lighthearted conversation and fun over a pint of beer or a few cocktails. 

When you gather with your family for the holidays, you enjoy each other’s company and catch up over a few rounds (and maybe even have an extra round when they inevitably get on your nerves). 

Or, when you meet your date for dinner, you enjoy one another’s company and conversation over a meal and a glass of wine or alcohol. 

Both coffee and alcohol are classically centered around times of social gathering with friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances. 

Both beverages are classically enjoyed amidst conversation, laughter, and sharing in a variety of social settings. 

Coffee consumption is thought to have had a pivotal role in the rise of business and industry since as early as the 1500’s when coffeehouses became a spot not only for meeting a colleague or friend for a cup of coffee but for the meeting of minds to exchange business ideas. 

Trade partnerships between Europe and Southeast Asia were formed and strengthened when Dutch traders introduced coffee plants to the tropical climates of Indonesia. Some of the most popular coffee varieties today are now grown in tropical climates due to this introduction. 

Breaks in the typical 8 hour work day were said to be originally introduced as a time for coffee. These breaks, initially termed coffee breaks, were written into union contracts shortly after World War 2. 

And...

Some evidence suggests that the development of agriculture, an industry on which we greatly rely today, was based just as much on the cultivation of grain for beer as it was for bread. 

Even dating back as far as biblical times, wine was a staple at wedding feasts. Most of us have heard of the biblical account of Jesus performing a miracle at one such wedding feast where He turned water into wine. 

Drinking alcohol was such an important part of ancient Greek culture that its use and lack of use is how the ancients determined who was a part of their culture, identifying the barbarians as those who did not consume alcohol. 

While coffee and alcohol are unique in the ways that they have separately impacted history and found their way into important cultural practices, you can’t deny that both beverages have had their own roles in shaping various countries and cultures.

You awake before your spouse and children, and you relish in the brief moments of solitude. You breathe in the aromas of your favorite brew, and you are overwhelmingly relaxed as you sip the day’s first cup of coffee in peace. 

Your morning has been crazy, hectic, busy, and you just need a moment to reset. You steal away to the break room and pull out your favorite coffee that you stashed away in a bag from home. You use the office coffee maker to brew a fresh cup, and for just ten minutes, your shoulders relax, your mind turns off, and you sip the bold, perfectly roasted coffee. 

The rain is falling steadily. The autumn leaves join the drops of rain, floating towards the ground with help from sporadic wind gusts. You grab a blanket, curl up in your favorite chair, and relaxingly sip your favorite brew slowly from your favorite oversized mug. 

And...

The day has been long...good, but long. You finish dinner then retire to your study. The glasses clink as you pour your snifter of brandy. You sink into the large leather chair in the corner for a quiet evening of reading and relaxation. 

Most nights nearing bedtime, you reach high into the cabinet above your sink and pull down a small wine glass. You open the bottle of pinot noir and slowly pour in 4-5 ounces. You sip slowly over the next moments as you compile the day’s list of gratefuls, a time of reflection and much anticipated relaxation in your day. 

You are stressed. You are tired, but you just can’t shake the burdens from your shoulders. You make yourself a cocktail and turn on your favorite television series. The burdens aren’t erased, but for these moments, with each sip, the tension leaves your brow. The relaxing calm that you desperately needed has been achieved, and tomorrow you greet the day refreshed. 

While coffee is known for its caffeine content and energy provision, it is equally a component of some of our most relaxing moments of the day. 

Likewise, alcohol (in moderation) evokes the same relaxation, even if in a slightly different way as it is a known depressant to your central nervous system. 

Both evoke feelings of calm as they are often savored in solitude, peace, and quiet, providing a break, a release, and a method of relaxation.

Single origin Arabica coffee beans grown in the mountains of Nicaragua are hand-picked, spring water washed, sun dried, and perfectly roasted.

The superior quality beans bring flavors of the region, and as you sip you detect undertones of chocolate and caramel. The coffee is smooth, and you slowly note a slight fruitiness in the background as well. 

Specialty coffee beans grown in West Java, Indonesia have a strong, bold body. The soil there is primarily volcanic and the resulting crop thus produces a coffee with a creamy, almost velvety smooth mouthfeel. As you sip, you detect its bright floral and spicy notes with a subtly earthy finish. 

A rare coffee grown high in a mountain range in Ethiopia is uniquely dried on raised beds to produce a decadent, nearly mythical coffee. The methods for cultivating the coffee are meticulously carried out so as you sip, you experience unrivaled flavor. Floral, sweet, strawberry, peach, smooth, rich, distinctly lush flavored coffee...all due to location of growth and pristine processing practices passed down through generations of coffee farmers. 

And…

Barley grown on the lush Ireland countryside receives water naturally from the Dungourney river. A blend of “rich pot still whiskey” and the finest grain whiskey is distilled three times for added smoothness. You slowly sip and detect notes of spice, vanilla, and nuttiness with a hint of sweet sherry.

A family recipe is passed down through generations. A blend of 70 unique herbs and spices are remembered throughout the years to produce this liqueur. Aged in ash barrels over time, saffron, Italian juniper, and Ceylon cinnamon are among the wide range of unique flavors you taste as you sip your cocktail made both perfect and distinctive from the liqueur's addition. 

A wine blend brings together the work of four separate vineyards. Families perfect growing, harvesting, and fermentation practices throughout the course of many years. These family practices collide resulting in a unique experience as you savor black and red currants, a hint of blackberry and dried raspberry. The citrus and acidity of blood orange is underscored by baking spices and dried floral. The tannins, the texture...a masterpiece. 

Just one cup of coffee a day can reduce your risk of death from liver cirrhosis by 23%, and it lowers your risk of liver cancer by 15%. 

Drinking 2-3 cups of coffee per day lessens your probability of getting cancer in general by 18%, and the same number of cups per day reduces the risk of gout by 22% in women.

Drinking 3-5 cups of coffee per day reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by 65% and decreases signs of coronary artery calcium. 

And…

Drinking small doses of tequila has been known to improve digestion and improve overall gastrointestinal health by increasing good bacteria in the gut. 

Moderate alcohol consumption (defined as 1 drink per day for women and 2 drinks per day for men) may reduce your risk of developing and dying of heart disease, as well as lower your risk of stroke.

Some wines contain powerful antioxidants that reduce oxidative stress within the body aiding in the body’s fight against cancer and other diseases. 

Many people are surprised to hear that both coffee and alcohol have numerous health benefits. 

We generally hear of the dangers of alcohol, but when enjoyed responsibly in moderation, your health not only doesn’t have to suffer, but it may be enhanced!