Coffee Rationing for U.S. Civilians in World War II

During World War II, the U.S. government found it necessary to restrict civilian coffee consumption to about half its normal level. Despite record coffee production in Brazil and elsewhere, the war disrupted coffee shipping. The government imposed rationing to make coffee available to all citizens on an equal basis, while giving priority to the needs of the military. Americans did their patriotic duty but were relieved when rationing ended in mid-1943.

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Love, No Matter the Price: ‘Original Sin’ Movie Review

Original Sin is a 2001 thriller (usually described as an “erotic” thriller) starring Antonio Banderas and Angelina Jolie in a tale of love, deception, murder — and coffee. For coffee aficionados, it’s a plus that in this version of the story Luis owns a coffee plantation and a coffee export business. And it’s an especially nice touch that several plot turns, including the climax, are marked by Luis drinking cups of coffee, shot in close-up. Can a cup of coffee change your day? How about your life?

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The World in a Cup: ‘The Various Flavors of Coffee’ Book Review

‘The Various Flavors of Coffee’ by Anthony Capella is a captivating historical novel that follows the life and loves of Robert Wallis, a bohemian would-be poet whose life is dramatically changed by a cup of coffee. One morning at the Café Royal in London in 1896, a coffee merchant overhears Wallis’s remark that his coffee is “rusty” and offers him a job to help develop a standard “vocabulary of coffee.” Accepting the challenge, Wallis embarks on a journey in the coffee trade that will transform his life.

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