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Superfluous or Essential? The Absurd Beverage Collab You Didn't See Coming

Superfluous or Essential? The Absurd Beverage Collab You Didn't See Coming

A
September 13, 2024

Superfluity

The Absurd Collab Nobody Asked For

Men will turn 40 and choose between two beverage brands to base their whole identity around. Yeti and Liquid death. They appeal to drastically different demographics, the latter being sober content enjoyers who considered themselves to be ‘alternative’ in their younger years, and the former being the 9-5’ing weekend warrior who loves craft beer as much as he does the Detroit Lions.

Despite this dichotomy, the two have managed to come together to create the most bizarre collaboration I’ve seen in a while. A casket cooler. Get it? Liquid Death… So it’s a casket cooler. With the starting bid of $1,500, it will be auctioned off on August 30th, so the winner will have plenty of time to have to delivered before their male-coded Halloween extravaganza. I’ll bring the smoked meats!

Drought

Everything is hard. I have to remind myself daily that my life is a gift and I truly enjoy every moment but sometimes when things are hard, I resort to self demoralizing language and act like the weight of the world is on my actual shoulders. It's not. But it feels like it sometimes... but it's not.

When I think through the challenges that local coffee shops are facing right now, I feel like screaming. Cost of Goods are UP. Labor costs are UP. There is a WAR on Tipping brewing in the zeitgeist. The green monster is facing an existential crisis but people don't seem to care because the lines in their drive-thru’s are as long as they’ve always been.

If you want your local community coffee shop to still exist 10 years from now, it's really up to you. Otherwise, they will go the way of the candy store or malt shop and become part of nostalgic Americana.

Indulgence

Coffee Brewers Ranked

French Press: Great if you like sand in your coffee.

Origami: These baristas have too much time on their hands. Stop inventing new brewers and go clean the cafe baseboards!

Auto Drip: With the right grinder and recipe, an auto drip maker can make an astonishingly decent cup. Especially when you consider how little effort it takes. If Mr. Coffee is good enough to fuel up the majority of hard working Americans every morning, it’s good enough for me.

Hario V60 / Kalita Wave: Some purists might scoff at lumping these brewers into the same tier. But this newsletter isn’t for purists. Sprudge rejected an article I wrote last year so I don’t f*** with them anymore. Manually brewed coffee peaked with the V60 and Wave brewers. Perfect amount of control of your variables. Consistently clean, nuanced cups.

Chemex: 10/10. Great job. 5 Stars. Leave it to a German chemist and inventor to create the best coffee maker over 80 years ago. It’s beautifully uncomplicated. Utilitarian and purposeful. It produces some of the cleanest coffee around. Plus it makes enough to share.

Abundance

The T erra Kaffe Espresso Machine + Coffee Subscription is one of my favorite things in the world right now. They've taken the full stack of decision making off your plate and your mind.

As with any carefully crafted product, there can be occasional issues, but in a time when local coffee shops are dwindling, the ability to support small roasters from home without sacrificing quality is more appealing than ever.

How did we get here? I'm learning to appreciate and to love it but I still miss the coffee grounds being slapped through the knock box and the sound of the grinder interrupting my deep thoughts.