This is how we brew it: A cultural guide to coffee on International Coffee Day

Happy International Coffee Day, a day dedicated to the promotion and celebration of that magic varnish remover that gives you the jolt you so badly need in the morning to get you through the day.

Whether you like it black, au lait, iced, or like several members of the Euronews Culture team, are partial to a café bombón (a shot of coffee with condensed milk at the bottom), coffee takes centre stage on most days. That said, the International Coffee Organization wishes to not only champion Go Juice but to promote fair trade coffee.

This year, it’s all about “embracing collaboration for collective action,” as the organisation highlights the often unseen collaboration that brings us our favourite cup: “On International Coffee Day 2024, join us in celebrating the power of collaboration by drinking a cup of coffee and telling everyone what coffee means to you in our shared journey.”

Euronews Culture is doing just that with our very own journey that anyone can take – a cultural guide to drinking coffee. So, while you’re enjoying your very own Frapper’s Delight, consider the following music, films, series, books, snacks and facts that can potentialise your cup.

An oldie but a goodie. Plus, everything is a good excuse to listen to the soul legend. Released in 1966, this beautifully simple but effective song about a man and a woman chatting over late-night coffee and cancer sticks is tailormade for enjoying your jitter juice – at whatever time of day.

“It’s early in the morning / About a quarter til three / I’m sitting here talking with my baby / Over cigarettes and coffee.”

Essentially an ode to the simple things in life and how we need to remember to enjoy what some foolishly dismiss as trivial, the song is also about that moment