The Pleasures and Pains of Coffee

Honoré de Balzac died on August 18th in 1850 at the age of 51. He fueled his intense writing schedule with coffee, which could help explain his poor health. Let's remember that anything can be overdone. He wrote an essay called The Pleasures and Pains of Coffee, which can be read online here. It begins with this:

Coffee is a great power in my life; I have observed its effects on an epic scale. Coffee roasts your insides. Many people claim coffee inspires them, but, as everybody knows, coffee only makes boring people even more boring. Think about it: although more grocery stores in Paris are staying open until midnight, few writers are actually becoming more spiritual.

But as Brillat-Savarin has correctly observed, coffee sets the blood in motion and stimulates the muscles; it accelerates the digestive processes, chases away sleep, and gives us the capacity to engage a little longer in the exercise of our intellects.

and he suggests this method of using the brew:

For a while - for a week or two at most - you can obtain the right amount of stimulation with one, then two cups of coffee brewed from beans that have been crushed with gradually increasing force and infused with hot water.

For another week, by decreasing the amount of water used, by pulverizing the coffee even more finely, and by infusing the grounds with cold water, you can continue to obtain the same cerebral power.

When you have produced the finest grind with the least water possible, you double the dose by drinking two cups at a time; particularly vigorous constitutions can tolerate three cups. In this manner one can continue working for several more days.

Here's Paul Giamatti's interpretation of what this looks like:

Me? I don't recommend it. I suggest you enjoy coffee as you like it for the taste.

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