Coffee, Tea and Chocolate
Before the Early modern period, the social drinks of Europe had all been alcoholic. With the increased contact with Asia and Africa and the discovery of the Americas meant that Europeans came into contact with tea, coffee and drinking chocolate. But it was not until the 17th century that all three products became popular as social beverages. The new drinks contained caffeine or theobromine, both mild stimulants that are not intoxicating in the same way as alcohol. Chocolate was the first drink to gain popularity, and was one of the preferred drinks of the Spanish nobility in the 16th and early 17th century. All three remained very expensive throughout the early modern period.
Read more about this topic: Early Modern European Cuisine, Drink
Famous quotes containing the words tea and/or chocolate:
“The professional must learn to be moved and touched emotionally, yet at the same time stand back objectively: I’ve seen a lot of damage done by tea and sympathy.”
—Anthony Storr (b. 1920)
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—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)