[HN Gopher] Why drinking coffee in Iran has become so complicated
___________________________________________________________________
Why drinking coffee in Iran has become so complicated
Author : imnitwit
Score : 79 points
Date : 2025-04-16 13:25 UTC (3 days ago)
(HTM) web link (adelbordbari.github.io)
(TXT) w3m dump (adelbordbari.github.io)
| duxup wrote:
| >They're selling a lifestyle.
|
| People eat up "lifestyle" brand stuff like crazy. I suspect
| people just want something special in their daily lives. I get
| that.
|
| I assume it's appealing to sellers too because it inspires some
| potential level of loyalty and uniqueness when it comes to their
| products where otherwise it is "just coffee".
|
| Granted I say that while I sip my Kirkland coffee here at my
| desk, amused that what was once a sort of semi generic store
| brand, Kirkland now has it's own apparel with its brand on it and
| Costco fans love it.
|
| I guess we can find something special everywhere.
| bluedino wrote:
| I was on a coffee shop kick for...15 years?
|
| And then I just quit. I'm not sure if was the price, waiting in
| line, or the quality going down since so many places popped up
| or what. But I just have zero interest in buying a coffee. I
| drink generic stuff I make at home. Or I just go without.
|
| Oddly around the same time I quit drinking sodas.
| rdtsc wrote:
| I am kind of the same. I will support local coffee shops
| frequently but I am not good enough to notice the super fine
| flavor profiles or remember them. They all taste "yummy"
| including the stuff I grind and brew at home or from Costco.
| SoftTalker wrote:
| Yep it's all about justifying $6-8 or more for a freaking cup
| of coffee. Even McDonald's got in on it. Used to pay about $1
| for a drip-brewed cup of coffee, now it's "McCafe" and closer
| to $5.
|
| I drink Folgers and that's good enough.
| Festro wrote:
| Article posits this argument:
|
| "They're not really about coffee anymore. They're selling a
| lifestyle."
|
| Then says of the old coffee "Coffee in Iran isn't new--we were
| drinking it long before tea took over. Back in the Safavid era,
| coffeehouses were where people gathered for stories, debates, and
| a hit of something strong." - this is a lifestyle related to
| coffee.
|
| And says about the new coffee "Walk in, and the menu reads like a
| novel: "Ethiopian Yirgacheffe with hints of jasmine and citrus.""
| - this is the literal attributes of coffee, origin and flavour
| profile.
|
| I'm sorry, but coffee is now, more than ever, about the coffee.
| People who enjoy coffee then make it a part of their lifestyle.
|
| I'd love to hear more about the older Iranian coffee culture,
| that sounds wonderfully romantic. It's a pattern across the world
| that we've lost access to third spaces as everything gains a
| capitalised cost. And as media has intensified and technology
| poked into every waking moment we're less likely to gather
| amongst our community in those spaces to just sit and listen
| anymore. I think we've evolved new ways of doing things, like how
| we enjoy our newfound international access to coffee varietals
| but it's good to address what we've lost in doing so.
|
| This article is a bit whiny about the new, and doesn't talk
| enough about the qualities of the old. There's a good point to be
| made, but the article makes it poorly.
| crazygringo wrote:
| Seriously. This article seems to reveal much more about the
| author than about coffee.
|
| I can't speak about Iran, but getting into coffee is no
| different from getting into pie-making, or sourdough, or wine,
| or cocktail-making.
|
| They write:
|
| > _Coffee used to be fuel. Now it's a lifestyle accessory._
|
| I think this is the quote that reveals everything. People don't
| _want_ just "fuel" anymore. They want something that actually
| tastes good.
|
| But for some reason the author thinks it's all about marketing,
| insecurity, and influencers. Can't the author just let people
| enjoy what they like?
|
| Why does it _bother_ the author so much? Why can 't they even
| imagine it might just be because the coffee tastes better, and
| it's a relatively inexpensive and fun hobby if you want to get
| into it? Why do they have to judge people for it instead?
| visarga wrote:
| > "They're not really about coffee anymore. They're selling a
| lifestyle."
|
| I like the emphatic style of GPT-4o lately. I can spot it from
| a mile.
| gwern wrote:
| Bingo. OP is obviously LLM-written and is nothing but
| clickbait. (Did anything but that tweet even happen? Is any
| of it true?) And HN is falling for it hook, line, and sinker
| exactly as calculated.
|
| Look at the author's previous blog posts: low effort, not
| even correctly spelled or written, like
| https://adelbordbari.github.io/album/2025-1-25-the-horror-
| an... (as expected from an Iranian ESL) - and then this one
| is suddenly boom: perfectly spelled, em-dashes all over, and
| where did all these <br> come from? Who writes a Github Pages
| Markdown Jekyll post with a bunch of <br>s in it...? An LLM,
| obviously.
|
| https://adelbordbari.github.io/about/
|
| > I'm studying artificial intelligence at university...I'm
| busy with my storybook that's supposed to be published by
| June 2024 as well.
| pazimzadeh wrote:
| so they used chatGPT to translate their blog post from
| farsi to english. who cares?
|
| translation and transliteration is one of the things
| chatgpt is great at.
| paganel wrote:
| Anyone care to recommend some specialty coffee-shops in Tehran?
| Or in Iran, more generally? That's the one thing I'm searching
| for when going to a new (big-ish) city, I've honestly stopped
| caring about museums, archaeological places or the like, I just
| want to go to the same specialty coffee shops to which I go here
| in Bucharest, to be surrounded by the same people I'm surrounded
| here in Bucharest while reading a book or a magazine.
|
| And to give something in return, for Athens I can heartily
| recommend Taf Coffee [1], and also MOTIV [2] just across the
| small street, and in Vienna I have a soft spot for CoffeePirates
| [3]
|
| [1]
| https://www.google.com/maps/place/Taf+Coffee/@37.9834313,23....
|
| [2]
| https://www.google.com/maps/place/MOTIV/@37.9835867,23.73117...
|
| [3]
| https://www.google.com/maps/place/CoffeePirates/@48.2173765,...
| meesles wrote:
| Why do you prefer to spend time in the same setting with the
| same people when you are in a new place? Why not stay home?
| Arainach wrote:
| OP does not literally mean the same people but the same type
| of people.
|
| Having a familiar group with something in common is a great
| conversation starter and way to make new friends. This is
| similar to how you can visit a new area and stop by a brewery
| (if you like beer), a sports game (if you like sports), etc.
| mr_toad wrote:
| > OP does not literally mean the same people but the same
| type of people.
|
| Same question really - aren't you most likely to find the
| same type of people at home?
| Arainach wrote:
| No.
|
| Liking coffee is only one aspect of a person. Once you're
| talking you can learn more, make connections, and
| potentially have a friend who you keep talking to even
| after you return home.
|
| To give a more HN-specific example: If you work at a
| software company in the US and go to a software company
| in India/Poland/etc. aren't you going to find the same
| people at home? Of course not, their job is only one
| small part of who they are.
| tomjakubowski wrote:
| > If you work at a software company in the US and go to a
| software company in India/Poland/etc. aren't you going to
| find the same people at home? Of course not, their job is
| only one small part of who they are.
|
| Yes, and (back to the original point) despite cultural
| differences, you will have something in common to connect
| with one another! (complaining about software)
| noirbot wrote:
| Sure, but sometimes you also want to travel. I find
| myself doing this a lot when I'm on a trip - you want to
| dive into a new culture or location, do things you
| wouldn't do, but you also need time to recharge and feel
| something a bit more normal.
|
| Coffee shop or brewery or dive bar culture can vary some
| place to place, but there's usually core elements of the
| sort of social contract that are core to it and can
| provide a sense of routine or homely comfort even when
| you're staying at a hotel in another country. Having an
| experience that's 80% the same as the one you'd have back
| home can make it easier for you to recognize and
| appreciate that 20% difference sometimes and learn about
| a new culture.
| paganel wrote:
| I find the world pretty chaotic as it is right now, and
| pretty split up, seeing and directly experimenting an
| international informal community that ignores borders somehow
| makes me more relaxed, gives purpose to a place/city I'm in
| at a certain moment in time.
|
| Later edit: I'm over-reaching/exaggerating to make a point,
| but what I'm doing it's similar in spirit to how back in the
| European Middle Ages many foreign merchants were seeking
| accommodation at places very similar to what they had back
| home, think of the Hanseatic League and of all the Hanseatic
| Houses spread throughout the merchant cities from the Baltic
| or the North Sea. This one was for London: The German Hanse
| in London and the Steelyard [1]
|
| [1] https://www.thehistoryoflondon.co.uk/the-german-hanse-in-
| lon...
| Conscat wrote:
| Not Iranian, but if I want plain tasty black coffee, I can grind,
| brew, and drink it topless at home. My favorite cafes in the bay
| area all have _something_ more to offer me than decent plain
| coffee. I think this is just indicative of how the culture
| surrounding third places has changed.
| lxgr wrote:
| One big advantage of cafes is that they sell coffee and exist
| pretty much everywhere. The same can't be said for my home.
| readthenotes1 wrote:
| Reminds of a conversation I overheard between two middle aged
| guys talking about different expensive watches...
|
| Veblan wrote about "conspicuous consumption" over 100 years ago.
| I see this as the same disease
| canjobear wrote:
| Writing blog posts against people who are precious about their
| coffee is also a lifestyle signal.
| tkzed49 wrote:
| Seems like the same tired take on third wave coffee, without much
| specific to Iran. Some people like the flavor of coffee grown in
| different regions, just like tea or wine. If you want a classic
| espresso roast blend of whatever, I haven't been to a cafe that
| won't sell you that.
| noirbot wrote:
| And the usual retort you get if you point that out is "but this
| new fancy coffee tastes worse", which always strikes me as
| amusing coming from folks who minutes before were claiming it
| all tasted the same and mocking the idea of tasting notes being
| real.
|
| Having a preference for a traditional status quo blend is still
| a preference!
| snyp wrote:
| The author just finds the process of ordering complicated because
| they do not know how to. I think there is opportunity here to
| make selecting the drink of your choice a better experience.
| There might also be space here for coffee discovery or
| exploration for the customer.
| hilsdev wrote:
| If there's an increasing number of options, isn't it by
| definition becoming more complicated?
| noirbot wrote:
| I mean, it's seldom that complicated even. They just went from
| having one choice of espresso to, likely, at most 3. The most
| fancy coffee shops I've ever been to usually don't have more
| than a couple espresso options dialed in at any given time. If
| you don't care, just pick the cheapest or ask for the person's
| favorite.
|
| I'm sure there is some influencer/performative aspect to this
| as well that the author is reacting to, but the complaint
| strikes me mostly as a "I was ok with the status quo, and I
| dislike that other people prefer things other than that".
| Having preferences and choices is not by default some sort of
| pretentious thing!
| lxgr wrote:
| Yes, but why should everybody have to show the same level of
| care for everything they do/consume as aficionados?
|
| Just like it can be extremely fulfilling to build a PC from
| parts, compile your own Linux kernel, get an old car working
| again etc., it can be nice to have somebody else do all of that
| for you and focus on the details of life that you enjoy most.
| Freedom2 wrote:
| They don't? I was in Iran recently for a business trip and I
| simply asked for my usual cappuccino one sugar at almost
| every cafe I went to and it was hassle-free experience.
|
| It's actually good to offer more options to invoke curiosity,
| but the old options are still there.
| NoboruWataya wrote:
| > why should everybody have to show the same level of care
| for everything they do/consume as aficionados
|
| Nobody has to do this in any city I have been to. Even in the
| most hipstery independent coffee shops, you can still ask for
| a black/white coffee and they will make you one. And if you
| simply can't stomach the independent coffee shop there is
| most likely a Starbucks or Pret next door.
|
| Granted I have not been to Iran, and am loathe to make
| assumptions about countries I have not experienced, but I
| simply do not believe that OP cannot find a "basic" coffee in
| his city.
| petre wrote:
| That's why it works so smooth in Italy, because no one has the
| patience for all the BS, they just want their shot of espresso,
| not being "educated" into "coffe culture". And they also drink
| dark roast, no useless sauer fruity notes crap, you drink
| cascara tonic if you want that.
|
| I agree with this guy. Teheran is probably a nice place if it
| weren't for the ayatollahs, hijab police, sponsoring
| terrorists, embargoes and "friendhip" with Russia. All those
| details are like coffee marketing made into a religion and used
| as state policy.
| shwin wrote:
| I think it's actually a good thing that people are increasingly
| curious and informed about where the things they consume come
| from. Sure, some of it can be a front, but consumers get a choice
| to be more discriminating and demanding about where their
| consumption comes from, and that can (and has!) lead to better
| production practices; feels weird to complain about that.
| noirbot wrote:
| This is also a huge part. A lot of the "look at this insane
| price for coffee" is because exploitative practices for
| centuries has led to people having price expectations for
| coffee that are unreasonable in a fair market. There's
| definitely crazy high end coffees that are $20 a cup for
| various reasons, but $6 pounds of coffee from the grocery store
| are also an anomaly.
| SOLAR_FIELDS wrote:
| Unfortunately most people would not want to pay market rates
| for coffee that is farmed by people paid living wages. Kona
| coffee is a good example of this. It runs about USD
| $25-$30/lb in bean form for actual Kona coffee (not blends)
| noirbot wrote:
| Sure, but that's essentially the thrust of the OP. "Look at
| these decadent vapid influencers drinking their expensive
| (but fairly priced) coffee. Why can't I just get basic
| cheap (exploitative wage based) coffee any more in this
| modern city? Surely they're the ones forsaking value and
| tradition."
|
| A lot of critiques of modern coffee are based in a sort of
| silent "but I got used to the benefits of imperial
| colonialism and exploitation. How dare these new people
| make me consider where my drinks are from and what should
| be paid for them." I'm certainly not claiming that's a
| conscious thing - status quo bias is a big thing here, but
| it's odd how often "paying a living wage" and "caring about
| sustainable farming" is decried as decadence and depravity
| that's destroying the old and more honorable ways of
| living.
| arthurofbabylon wrote:
| > In Italy, ordering an espresso takes five seconds.
|
| Have you had espresso in Italy? By all measures, the worst coffee
| I have had anywhere in the world, on the level of instant coffee
| in 2010 (remember that?).
|
| I personally don't complain when people emphasize the compelling
| story of their offerings - it typically coincides with a high-
| quality brew!
| Centigonal wrote:
| I went to Rome in 2019 and all the coffee I had was pretty
| decent! It was all espresso, and a lot of Lavazza (not third
| wave local roaster stuff), but it was all pretty good.
| shaky-carrousel wrote:
| I'm guessing you didn't travel all across Italy tasting
| espresso to back up such a broad statement. I'd be surprised if
| you ventured much beyond a few tourist traps in Rome.
| lxgr wrote:
| That's in fact exactly what I love about espresso in Italy and
| some other European countries: It's ubiquitous, fast, cheap
| (even cheaper if you drink it standing up!), and as a result a
| commodity and not something pretentious.
|
| I also don't remember ever having had a bad cup of espresso in
| Italy. If it ever happens, I'll just walk a few steps down the
| street and chase it down with a decent or good one.
| thomassmith65 wrote:
| This is like someone accustomed to rubbery, processed
| mozzarella visiting Italy and complaining that Italian
| mozzarella has so little flavor and texture.
|
| If someone doesn't like _Italian_ mozzarella, then they don 't
| like mozzarella: what they like is some mozzarella-inspired
| thing.
|
| The same goes for espresso. In Italy, espresso and coffee have
| been synonymous for over a century.
| arthurofbabylon wrote:
| Espresso has moved beyond the Italian methods, despite its
| origins.
|
| Yes, both a Moka pot and a full pressure larger machine
| handled by someone practiced can produce excellent coffee,
| but you cannot seriously expect espresso in an Italian city
| to compete with what is happening in Tokyo, Bangkok, Taipei,
| Vancouver, San Francisco, etc.
|
| During coffee's third wave the profession of barista emerged,
| and Italy took little part in this elevation of craft. There
| are people who have literally built a career out of what
| others (Italians included) dismiss as fuss.
|
| Yes, Italy devised some of the original techniques, but that
| was about sixty years ago, with -- I would argue -- limited
| development since.
|
| Drink fifty espressos each in Rome, Milan, (or the
| villages!), Tokyo, Bangkok, Vancouver then tell me where you
| think it is best.
|
| (PS -- Nice try, but no one says Italian mozzarella is bad;
| it is incredibly delicious by all accounts.)
| thomassmith65 wrote:
| There's some failure to comprehend the ubiquity of espresso
| in Italy here.
|
| When I was a kid, espresso was practically unavailable
| outside Southern Europe. In Italy, every household had, as
| they still do, a stovetop espresso maker. In Italy, every
| city corner had, as it still does, a bar serving espresso.
|
| Whatever Italians consider good espresso, we - who grew up
| on filter coffee, which Italians do not drink - probably
| ought to defer.
|
| Is there a better espresso somewhere? Perhaps.
|
| Is it conceivable that Italian espresso is terrible? Nope.
|
| The proposition is as absurd as claiming that Japanese
| sushi is subpar, or that Swedish dammsugare are the world's
| worst.
| behnamoh wrote:
| > People are bored, insecure, or just looking for something to
| latch onto. So we pay more for a label that makes us feel seen.
| It's not about taste--it's about signaling. And cafes know that.
| They exploit it. Ruthlessly.
|
| This is a poor take on what's actually a rich cultural shift
| towards variety seeking. What's wrong with that? The author could
| go to a regular cafe and have the regular coffee they want, but
| some people want trying new things.
| lxgr wrote:
| It can be frustrating for people that simply don't care for the
| variety and now have to make choices in a place where they used
| to be fine with an order of "one coffee, please".
|
| Personally (quantity over quality when it comes to coffee), as
| long as I can still do that and get a hot, caffeinated, sugar-
| free (in regions where that's the default) beverage, I don't
| mind.
| behnamoh wrote:
| > ... now have to make choices in a place where they used to
| be fine ...
|
| That seems to be the customer's problem though, not the
| business owner. The cafe owner has no obligation to stick to
| the old way of doing things forever. Companies change all the
| time and if customers aren't happy about it they should move
| on to other options.
| lxgr wrote:
| Sure, just like I (or actually TFA's author; I really don't
| care that much) can scoff at these businesses, and be
| annoyed if more and more places become like that.
| mbac32768 wrote:
| one alcohol, please
| perching_aix wrote:
| One shot of Everclear coming right up!
| markburns wrote:
| > a refreshment, please
|
| > food or drink?
|
| > why do I need to specify. I've been out all day in the
| heat. Bring me a few refreshments.
| kubb wrote:
| There's a strong force in humans, an instinct against anything
| new or unfamiliar. It manifests as conservatism, and it comes
| out even against insignificant shifts.
| meindnoch wrote:
| Funny how even a repressive theocracy can seem so familiar. I
| guess that's globalization for you.
| curtisblaine wrote:
| It's not really hard to have a default coffee type + size and
| serve _that_ when the client asks for a coffee with no
| specifications. I wonder why no fancy coffee place does that. I
| guess it has to do with that hostile strain of sales tactics
| where they screw with your instincts and blind spots to sell you
| things you don 't really want. I'm growing more and more
| intolerant with that kind of tactics, because they're everywhere
| and you need to actively fight with them to avoid your money
| being essentially scammed out of your wallet. I wonder if there's
| something one can do to screw with them back.
| noirbot wrote:
| Most fancy coffee shops _do_ do that though. If you walk in and
| ask for a drip coffee or an espresso, especially if you just
| say "I want a basic espresso", you'll probably get what you
| want. I'm sure there's some places that would be annoying about
| it, but most specialty places deal with plenty of people coming
| in every day not used to ordering in specialty places.
|
| If you really want a basic coffee with the cheapest beans you
| can find, why would you go to a fancy shop? If anything, it's
| more likely to work there than going to a multi-course
| restaurant and trying to order a hamburger. There are other
| businesses that serve a "no choices" need.
| curtisblaine wrote:
| Unfortunately that's not my experience. The places I've been
| just point you to the menu, which normally is quite complex
| and with many choices.
|
| > If you really want a basic coffee with the cheapest beans
| you can find
|
| Doesn't have to be cheap, it has to be plain. Just the coffee
| that, in average, the average disinterested client would
| like. We had a similar concept - now almost disappeared -
| with wine. The wine of the house was an average non-fancy
| wine that you could drink with your dinner without spending
| time deciphering the wine list.
|
| > If you really want a basic coffee with the cheapest beans
| you can find, why would you go to a fancy shop?
|
| Because cities are migrating en masse to fancy shops. Selling
| lifestyle is apparently more profitable & glamorous, so
| everyone wants to be the fancy shop rather than the humble
| bar.
| noirbot wrote:
| But "plain" isn't a thing. There is no "plain" coffee.
| There's what Nestle and other old companies bought from
| near slave labor in various countries over the years and
| blended into what people expect now, but even those beans
| independently often taste better and different if made
| properly with modern technique and even basic equipment.
|
| People are used to the specific flavor that, for instance,
| commercial Bunn coffee makers that haven't been properly
| cleaned for decades tastes like. There's not really any way
| to emulate that outside of intentionally buying bad
| equipment.
|
| I'm still honestly confused that people have a hard time
| with the menu. I literally seek out going to the best and
| most fancy-ass coffee shops in the world when I travel and
| most of them will still serve you a normal Americano or
| Espresso if you order it. Some don't have drip/carafe
| coffee because that requires specific equipment and I could
| see that being complex, I guess, but then that's because
| you went to a especially high end coffee shop.
|
| You can still buy coffee at McDonalds or 7-11 or plenty of
| other basic places! It's not like that was outlawed!
| jabl wrote:
| Brings to mind the classic(?) Denis Leary skit:
| https://youtube.com/watch?v=D66P47NNnfE
| Centigonal wrote:
| One thing the author fails to take note of here is that Iranians
| have historically been extremely precious about their bougie
| little drinks. From tea and coffee houses to summer cordials like
| sekanjabin, basil seed drinks, and sour cherry sharbat to the
| dozens of varieties of doogh to all the little fresh juice places
| in Tehran, getting way too into beverages is an enduring Iranian
| cultural tradition (albeit fancy coffee comes with an unusually
| high price tag).
| morkalork wrote:
| Wow, so harsh! But also so true, not in Iran but in my city an
| Iranian cafe opened across the street from the fine arts museum
| and serves all sorts of drinks like hibiscus sharbat, khakshir.
| Very trendy, very bougie.
| NoboruWataya wrote:
| I've always assumed this is due to them not drinking much
| alcohol as a culture. Alcohol occupies so much of our focus in
| the West - so much has been written about the nuances of
| whiskey, wine, beer, etc. It stands to reason that cultures
| that don't drink alcohol as much would get just as invested in
| the drinks they _do_ consume.
| perching_aix wrote:
| > When did getting a coffee turn into a whole performance?
|
| Literally every time I see or hear anything on the internet about
| coffee, it's some of the most pretentious and performative crap
| I've ever encountered. So I'd imagine a very long while ago.
| StopDisinfo910 wrote:
| To be fair, good coffee is actually really tasty and different
| varieties actually have different tastes. So, it's true than
| there is a world of potential out of cheap pre-grinded over-
| roasted bought to be as cheap as possible coffee.
|
| The issue is that there is another world between that and the
| horribly pretentious and snobbish consumers buying incredibly
| overpriced cups from trendy places.
|
| But normal people who enjoy quality coffee do exist.
| vbo wrote:
| I think there may be more to overcomplicated brews than lifestyle
| or status. It's a desire to get technical in a world where so
| much of life has been automated away from the consumer's view or
| ability to affect it. Coffee is a way to tinker with something in
| the same way previous generations tinkered with their cars or
| radios or whatever. It's an outlet for creativity and technical
| skill building for those that engage in brewing.
|
| Coffee shops will sell rituals, status, prestige, sophistication
| or the appearance thereof. Same as every other business. But
| that's not to say the product can't be superior - it can. It also
| doesn't say that every product that makes use of those marketing
| techniques is superior; but even if it isn't, if the customer
| walks away happy, they must've done something right, right?
|
| Don't we do the same with the technology we're working on? How
| often is it truly better beyond any critique? People were getting
| stuff done even before our products were around with less fuss
| and a different set of problems. We do what we do to end up busy
| with stuff so we can do what we do all over again, don't we? I
| digress.
|
| It does get tiresome when everyone is trying to sell you an
| experience and it becomes disappointing when the selling of
| experiences becomes so commoditized, the thing being sold loses
| its credibility as something special on account of being sold as
| such. Is it a crisis of authenticity?
|
| To each, their own. I used to tinker with espresso based drinks,
| but I'm mostly over it. I've learned to discern (some) better
| coffee beans from others, but I mostly don't drink that - I can't
| justify paying that much for a coffee I brew myself and that I
| may botch out of being in a hurry. It's also a distraction that
| takes time I don't have anymore. But it was fun to explore for a
| while and I now own a very fancy looking espresso machine,
| grinder and all sorts of acccessories.
| mppm wrote:
| 1) Why is this even on HN? Some guy complains about third wave
| coffee on his trashy, possibly AI generated, blog. Very
| interesting.
|
| 2) Since people take this seriously for some reason: Fine coffee
| is neither a hallucination, nor a theater performance, nor a sign
| of ultimate decadence. Or at least no more so than fine tea and
| wine. Different producers, roasts and preparation methods give
| markedly different coffee with a lot of nuance that you can learn
| to discern and enjoy. Or not -- to each his own.
| NaOH wrote:
| _> Please don't complain that a submission is inappropriate. If
| a story is spam or off-topic, flag it._
|
| https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
| mppm wrote:
| This submission is not technically inappropriate and flagging
| it would be an abuse of that feature. It's just very low
| quality and very surprising that it made #1 on HN.
| quantified wrote:
| I'm glad Yrgacheffe is available somewhere. It seems to have
| dried up in the USA. I wouldn't have gotten hooked on coffee
| without it.
| amanaplanacanal wrote:
| Wow. This is like complaining about going into my local pub for a
| beer and discovering they have a dozen taps. Well sure, different
| people like different things, and sometimes I might want a creamy
| stout, and sometimes a West Coast IPA, and sometimes a light
| lager on a hot summer day.
|
| I guess life was better for those behind the iron curtain that
| only had one brand?
| smath wrote:
| I think both extremes can be suboptimal (no choice and too much
| choice). See for example 'the paradox of choice' - research
| done by Barry Schwartz and later by Sheena iyengar
| https://modelthinkers.com/mental-model/paradox-of-choice
| refulgentis wrote:
| I'm not sure this imagined scenario, where coffee shops ask
| where you want your beans from, would apply to this study:
|
| "displayed 24 jams in a busy supermarket for tasting...60% of
| customers stop[ped and tasted], 3% [made] a
| purchase."..."Next, 6 jam jars....[40% stopped, less than
| 60%], but...purchases went up [from 3%] to 30%."
|
| It reeks of the worst sins of early-TED-era social psychology
| experiments: tons of obvious confounders.
|
| For instance, _24_ samples at a table that was 50% busier
| means I 'm thinking I'll come back and wrap up my tryout next
| week or whenever: it's very busy and I can't afford 15
| minutes to sit around trying to maintain tasting notes on
| something I didn't have intent to buy anyway -- if I did, I
| wouldn't be sampling!
|
| It also means less 1:1 salesmanship contact with the purveyor
| of samples, and 4x of much investment needed on their part.
___________________________________________________________________
(page generated 2025-04-19 23:00 UTC)