The Legend of Coffee and the Dancing Goats

3 CommentsTuesday • April 13, 2010 • by michelle

Do *you* know how coffee was discovered?

Legend has it that in about 800 A.D. an Ethiopian goatherder named Kaldi noticed his goats dancing around a shrub with bright red berries.

Kaldi deduced that these berries were causing this strange (but fun!) behavior in his goats, so he decided to try them for himself.

[Ed: I probably wouldn’t take this route if my girls start acting funny from something they ate. Call me overly cautious or just plain boring, but you know what you can also call me? Alive.]

Kaldi then experienced one of the world’s first caffeine buzzes as the berries contained what we now know as coffee beans. Some local monks got word of the buzz and started popping coffee berries to stay awake during nightly prayers.

[Ed: Rumors that Kaldi and the monks held weekend dance parties have not been confirmed.]

So there you have it. Goats and coffee. Coffee and goats. Espresso berries and goat berries. A match made in heaven!

[Ed: Or, you know, Ethiopia.]

See, I knew I was meant for this goat thing.

Posted in: Goat Fun Facts, Uniquely Goat