18 Things We Learned About Coffee in 2014

This year was a good year for coffee drinkers. (Really, what year isn’t?) From the trend of adding butter to your coffee to an expensive brew with a surprising ingredient, there was plenty to talk about.

Plus, we explored all kinds of ways to make the coffee you brew at home better, including lattes that don’t require an espresso machine, how to choose the right grinder, and how to fix a bad brew next time. Here are our top java-fueled stories from 2014.

• 5 Reasons Your Coffee Tastes Bad (and How to Fix It Next Time)
• 5 Tips for Better Iced Coffee
• How to Make a Latte at Home Without an Espresso Machine
• What’s the Difference Between a Burr Grinder and a Blade Grinder?
• Did You Know Your Coffee is (Probably) a Fermented Food? Learn How Coffee is Made

• 6 Common Coffee Label Terms You Should Know

• 9 Surprising Things You Can Add to Your Coffee (Beyond Cream & Sugar)
• On Drinking Coffee Vietnamese-Style in Da Lat, Vietnam
• Coffee Around the World: How Swedish People Drink Coffee

• Coffee Around the World: How Turkish People Drink Coffee

• 5 Ways You Can Use Leftover Coffee Grounds at Home
• 10 Words to Help You Order the Coffee You Want to Drink
• 9 Books That Will Teach You About Coffee

• Think Twice Before You Drink from that Plastic Coffee Lid
• Your Coffee Routine (Not Just the Brew) is Good for You
• Why You Should Have Your First Cup of Coffee a Little Later in the Morning

• How Coffee Fueled the Civil War
• If Your Coffee Tastes More Bitter Than Normal, It Might Be the Color of Your Mug

* * *

From December 22 through January 4 we are rounding up our favorite (and your favorite) posts from the past year. Happy Holidays!