Next to oil, coffee is the most widely traded commodity. The consumption of coffee is about 400 billion cups a year and continues to grow. Like any other popular commodity, coffee has its share of controversies.

Over the years, worldwide controversies have arisen over coffee. It has been called many expletives including "the drink of the devil", an evil brew and a beverage that causes men's impotence. On the other hand, literary masterpieces, national testaments and oratories have been created, medical advances have been made and huge business deals have changed the course of history, all over a cup of coffee. Of course, none of these advances were due to the coffee, but may well be indebted to it.

But a coffee isn't just a coffee. The world loves it, for good reason.

Fine coffee, like wine, takes special preparation. Coffee is the antithesis of wine, but it requires the same amount of dedication, specialized processes and cultivation. Wine relaxes the body and tends to slow the mental processes. Coffee has quite an opposite effect. Coffee is calming, rather than intoxicating. It stimulates the senses, rather than dulling them. Someone once said that "It cheers the spirit without making one mad."

Coffee requires blending and brewing, along with various other preparations that go into creating wine and other excellent beverages. There is also an entire vocabulary associated with coffee. If you wish to be truly familiar with your friend "coffee", here are some of the terms that you must know:

Acidity

Carrots and coffee have nearly the same pH. Acidity in coffee contributes to its special liveliness, color and brightness.

Coffee Arabica

Arabica is one of the primary types of coffee. The other is Robusta. Coffee Arabica contains less caffeine, but it is harder to cultivate as it grows best at altitudes between 3,500 to 7,000 feet. It has a superior full bodied taste compared to Robusta and is consequently more expensive.

Bourbon is a variety of coffees Arabica grown in Africa. Its cultivation was not seriously pursued for some time because, although it has more character and taste, it does not yield as large a crop as the other Arabica varieties. With the current popularity of coffee, however, its cultivation has risen in popularity.

Blends of Coffee

The art of blending coffee is much like an artist mixing colors on the palette. Coffee blenders use beans from various coffee-growing regions, and then mix them to craft a specialized flavor that cannot be achieved with coffee of single origin.

Full Body

Pertains to the "feel" of coffee in the mouth. The body of the coffee could feel light, delicate, thin, syrupy or buttery.

Decaffeinated Coffee

This is the process of minimizing the caffeine content of the coffee beans. Several processes could be utilized to remove the caffeine content. One method uses chemicals; another makes use of different water processes and lastly is the use of carbon dioxide. In all decaffeinating process, the chief concern is to preserve the natural flavor of the coffee bean.

Coffee Grade

Coffee beans are classified by their size and density. Premium coffee is the highest possible grade and it is sold at the highest price.

Processing

This term is used to describe the separation of the flesh from the coffee bean. Drying and washing are the two main methods of processing coffee. In drying the coffee, the beans or "cherries" are spread across the ground to dry out in the sun. Every day, the beans are raked several times to ensure even drying. After two or three weeks, the dried flesh cracks and the beans emerge. This type of dry processing produces an earthy flavor and a syrupy texture to your coffee.

Washed processing is a method of slicing the skin of the coffee beans and letting the beans stand until they begin to ferment, and the skins are easily washed off with water. The beans are then dried. This kind of washed processing retains the natural flavors in the coffee.

Now that you can talk the talk, it's time to walk the walk. Meet your friends for coffee and wow them with your inside knowledge of everyone's favorite bean.