Cowboys Drank This Coffee Brand In The Old West — Now It's Sold In Grocery Stores

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Life as a cowboy in the late 19th century wasn't for the faint of heart. They battled the weather, predators that came for their livestock, sleeping outside, plus early mornings and very long days. A lot has been written about the kinds of hearty foods these men ate to sustain such a grueling way of life, but naturally, they needed plenty of coffee to keep them going all day for weeks and months on end. While Folgers brand may have been around at the height of cowboy culture, it was Arbuckle Coffee that became known as "The coffee that won the west."

Before Arbuckle Coffee came along, chuckwagon cooks (the cowboys who were designated to cook for the crew) had to purchase their coffee beans in bulk and roast the beans themselves in a skillet over a fire, since they didn't have popcorn makers. The beans then needed to be ground and brewed. One major appeal of Arbuckle's was that it was the first company to package its pre-roasted beans in airtight, one-pound packages, which didn't take up as much space as bulk beans. Time-consuming, inconsistent roasting out on the range suddenly became a thing of the past, and cowboys could look forward to cups of flavorful joe every day.

Arbuckle Coffee is still made today. It's headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, where you can find it in stores like Whole Foods, AJ's Fine Foods, Green Valley Pecan Gift Shop, and Johnny Gibson's Downtown Market. If you don't live near the city, you can also order the coffee on Amazon.

John and Charles Arbuckle were brothers from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania who started their coffee bean business in 1859. Their signature blend, named Ariosa, was what became popular amongst cowboys in the West. Knowing that coffee beans up until that point had to be shipped green and roasted on site, the brothers developed an unprecedented way to pre-roast and preserve the beans so that they could withstand longer shipping times; they coated the roasted beans with an egg and sugar mixture that sealed in the aroma and flavors of the coffee beans.

Starting in 1870, Arbuckle's began a clever marketing strategy for its coffee: it began to include a peppermint stick in every one-pound bag of Ariosa beans. Chuckwagon cooks would offer the candies to any cowboy who took the time to grind the coffee beans so that the cooks would be free to tend to other tasks. To this day, Ariosa coffee beans come complete with a peppermint candy stick.

Additionally, the company began printing coupons on the bags of coffee, which buyers could collect and trade in for cowboy-friendly goods like handkerchiefs, razors, and scissors. Wedding rings were also an option. Today, in addition to Ariosa, you can purchase a delicious Mexicali coffee blend that's made with cinnamon, vanilla, and chocolate (similar to Mexican hot chocolate), as well as black and herbal teas. You can even opt for your coffee beans to be pre-ground for several types of coffee makers, unlike the cowboys who still had to grind their own.