S02 E43 A Brief History of a Modern Obsession

This little bean has been around delighting the tastebuds of humans for thousands of years. What Little Bean you ask? Well, we’ll get to that.Around 4000 thousand years ago the Olmec’s of Central America began to pick from the trees, pods, each pod containing about 40 beans. Cortez said though he was in search of gold, the Aztec emperor gift him with a cup of the drink made from this highly prized bean.And, the drink became popular among the rich and ruling class, the Spanish version was mixed with Honey and sugar to sweeten the naturally bitter taste.A century or so later the cat was out of the bag when the French King Louis the 13th married Anne, the daughter of Spanish King Phillip the 3rd.Then this marvelous drink made its way to Britain, and then the rest of Europe. Still, it was enjoyed only by the Noble Class for its health benefits and decadence. Plantations were established along the equator by many of these colonizing nations to produce this valuable little bean.