The day revolves around four moments: Frühstück (breakfast of bread, butter, and coffee), Mittagessen (hot midday meal, soup and meat in sauce), Kaffee und Kuchen (afternoon coffee-cake break, a social and intellectual ritual of the 19th century), and Abendbrot (cold supper of bread, cold cuts, and cheese). For Clara, this rhythm was disrupted by tours, but coffee and rye bread remained its pillars.

Central beverage of German intellectual and musical life. In Leipzig's salons as well as concert lodges, coffee sustained long hours of work, composition, and rehearsal. Clara drank it to endure her exhausting days as a virtuoso and mother of eight.