The History of Caffeine 2737 B.C. – 2010

2737 B.C.

Tea purportedly discovered by the Chinese emperor Shen Nung. Traditional stories tell that monks drank tea to stay awake during meditation practice.

400 A.D.

Mayans begin drinking chocolate in everyday life. It was a frothy, bitter drink.

800 A.D.

Coffee purportedly discovered by an Ethiopian goatherd.

1528

Cortez brings cakes of processed cocoa with him back to Spain.

1645

English develop the present word for tea (pronounced tay – rhyming with day). Before this, tea was called ch’a (chia or chaw).

1773

Tea is dumped into the Boston Harbor to protest “taxation without representation.” This increased coffee use and tea smuggling in the colonies and tea sales in England (to show loyalty to the crown).

1819

German chemist Friedlieb Ferdinand Runge isolates pure caffeine.

1876

Swiss chocolatier Daniel Peter invents milk chocolate, first sold under the Nestle label.

1903

Commercial decaffeination process starts.

1906

All cocaine removed from coca-cola.

1946

Coffee consumption reaches an all time high, then begins to fall.

1985

Jolt Cola introduced in the U.S. with the slogan "All the sugar and twice the caffeine.”

1995

Starbucks starts to sell the Frappuccino.

2004

5-hour energy released.

1900 B.C.

Mayans start drinking alcoholic cacao drinks.

780 A.D.

Tea starts being used for nonmedicinal purposes.

1400s

Coffee used by Sufi of Yemen to stay awake for their religious rituals.

1600

Pope Clement VIII deems coffee a Christian beverage.

1650s

Coffeehouses spread across Europe. These coffeehouses were used as “penny universities” – places people could get a cup of coffee or tea for a penny and sit and listen to the great literary and political figures of the period.

1790

Commercial roasting of coffee begins in New York.

1847

First chocolate bars appear in Bristol, England.

1886

Coca-cola starts being sold as a nerve tonic. The two key ingredients were cocaine (from the coca leaf) and caffeine (from the kola nut).

1911

Caffeine becomes the focus of one of the earliest documented health scares, when the U.S. government seizes Coca-Cola’s syrup, alleging the caffeine was "injurious to health". The judge ruled in favor of Coca-Cola, but caffeine was added to the FDA's list of "habit-forming" and "deleterious" substances.

1949

First energy drink made in Chicago. It contained B vitamins, caffeine, and sugar, and was marketed as an alternative to soda.

1990s

Coffee intake begins to increase again with interest in espresso and specialty drinks.

1997

1997 Red Bull drinks appear in stores in California.

2010

Caffeinated alcoholic beverages like Four Loko and Joose banned in the U.S.