With so many styles and flavors of coffee, the options are virtually limitless. Many people have their preferred brands, but the most popular two are undoubtedly Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts. With tens of thousands of locations throughout the country, these two brands are the Coke and Pepsi of the coffee world.

Some people swear by Starbucks and some people swear by Dunkin Donuts. Let’s look at some of the pros and cons of each in order to determine whose is better.

First, let’s look at Starbucks. The coffee giant has exploded during the last 15 years, and they’ve even expanded to various drinks and foods beyond coffee. You can now get pastries, breakfast, and sandwiches at Starbucks.

Still, coffee is the brand’s strength and people pile up in droves to drink it. The biggest benefit to Starbucks coffee over Dunkin Donuts is the fact that their coffee packs more caffeine in it. If you’re looking for a big kick, this is the way to go.

There may be less caffeine in Dunkin Donuts drinks, but many coffee drinkers have no problem with this. They don’t feel that they need the caffeine kick that comes with a Starbucks coffee. They also appreciate the generous servings at Dunkin Donuts. For the same price, you can generally get a few more ounces to drink.

Dunkin Donuts clearly wins the value war between the two brands, and they also win the flavor battle. The coffee menu at Dunkin Donuts is a bit more varied, and those who like flavored coffee may prefer this.

So, who wins the coffee war between Dunkin and Starbucks? It seems that Dunkin Donuts wins in blind taste tests according to some studies, but it really all comes down to a matter of personal preference in the end.

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According to ancient legend, coffee was first discovered in Ethiopia, where it grew wild. Goat herders made the realization that their goats, after eating the coffee berries, couldn?t keep still and couldn?t sleep during the night. There?s another story about a dissident who was sent into the desert to die of starvation. The man, whose name was Omar, and his disciples happened upon the coffee plant and in despair, they ate it. It was the coffee plant that saved their lives. They made it to a nearby town called Mocha, where local residents saw it as a miracle.

According to researchers, coffee made its first appearance as a beverage in 1000 AD. Sufi monks, in Yemen, in the south of Arabia, supposedly made and drank coffee in their monasteries. Coffee was first brought to Yemen and Egypt through Ethiopia. The Arabians are the ones that get credit for making coffee, roasting it and brewing it, as we know it today. Coffee spread from the Middle East to the North of Africa by the middle of the fifteenth century. It made its way to Europe first through Italy; from there it went to Indonesia and soon enough it arrived in the Americas.

In order to protect their investment, Arabians made their coffee beans infertile by boiling them before shipping them out. According to legend, an Indian man whose name was Baba Budan defied the Arabian measures by sneaking out fertile beans strapped to his stomach. Thus came coffee to Europe through ancient Venice and the beverage boomed.

By the year 1616 the Arab ban on exporting coffee was flouted by the Dutch who began to export and import coffee at their own behest. They grew coffee in the Dutch colonized areas of Java and Ceylon. By 1711, this new Indonesian coffee was being exported into the Netherlands.

Today, coffee is ubiquitous. You really can?t go anywhere without seeing it. The art of brewing the perfect cup is something that is prided by many.

Tea has a long and varied history too. It can be traced back to ancient China. The emperor Shen Nung is credited with discovering tea about 5,000 years ago. As a wise and learned man, the emperor passed an edict that all water should be boiled before it was drank. One day, while the emperor and his court were traveling, they stopped for some water. The servants set up the pot to boil it and some dried leaves from a bush fell into it, making tea. The emperor, always inquisitive, tasted the new concoction and was delighted. This was the birth of tea.

Tea became a staple in China. It became so entrenched in Chinese daily life that Lu Yu wrote a guide book about the beverage codifying cultivation methods and drinking traditions. The book became a classic amongst Chinese society.

The Japanese weren?t introduced to the beverage until the priest Yeisei brought it back to his homeland from China some years later. After that tea was big in Japan.

Tea was introduced to Europe in 1560 via the Portuguese Jesuit Jasper de Cruz. From there it spread like wild fire.

Damian Papworth adores the Krups 4 cup coffee maker. You can read the write up on the One Cup Coffee Makers site.