But first, coffee: The drink that energized the American Revolution

An illustration of the Boston Tea Party, when colonists dumped British East India Company tea into the harbor on Dec. 16, 1773. Some accounts say this marked a pivotal moment when Americans started loving coffee. But one historian says Americans were drinking lots of coffee before then.

Colonial Americans were drinking coffee long before they dumped tea into Boston Harbor or fought a war for independence. The establishments that served it were already brewing revolutionary ideas.

(Image credit: Hulton Archive)