Posted on 11/16/2010 11:36:37 AM PST by greatdefender
When 24-year-old Alex Stein is looking for a morning pick-me-up, he doesn't reach for a cup of cappuccino as his parents Len and Berdie did daily while he was growing up in Westchester County, New York - he grabs an energy drink. Coffee just doesn't cut it with him. "The taste is just so bitter - I couldn't have more than a couple of sips of it without needing to wash it down with water," he says.
A recent report from Mintel, a market-research firm, predicts that Stein's generation may become coffee-resistant unless marketers find ways to make coffee drinks relevant for kids under the age of 25. Demand for coffee remains robust among people aged 45 and over thanks to older customers, who will likely drive coffee's sales growth over the next five years, the report said. (See "Espresso Italiano," TIME's photographic look at a Rome coffee bar.)
However, the habits of the younger demographic make the industry's longer-term outlook murkier. According to the report, only 27% of people in the 18-to-24 age group consume coffee daily, with many citing taste, health concerns and a penchant for sweet energy drinks as factors keeping them away from coffee. By contrast, 75% of those ages 45 to 54 and 80% of those 55 to 64 have a daily cup of joe. Only 28% of the younger group said they liked the taste of coffee on its own, compared with 53% of 45-to-64-year-olds and 61% of those 65 and older. And members of the younger demographic who do drink coffee tend to visit cafÉs, where they can find sweeter-tasting blends like frappuccinos for their caffeine fix.
Soory. I forgot about the link to article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20101116/us_time/08599203116500
...with a little vodka thrown in to ease the pain...
What a generation of sissies.
The stuff is too expensive. If it is between a small $3 can of Red Bull and free coffee at work, I’m going with the free coffee everytime.
Energy drinks are gross and dont work.
Give me a double shot of espresso, and I’m good for 5 hours.
Do you get free lunch too?
No, just free coffee...
I give up, the insanity continues, now the need to make coffee “relevant for kids under 25”! Phooey, they shouldn’t even be drinking coffee, they’re kids, at least until they are 26 per our new POTUS medical plans. I’m ready to leave!
HEY! Nobody tried to make coffee relevant to ME when I was under the age of 25! I've been discriminated against! Who do I sue? /sarc
I did not become a coffee drinker until I was 35.
I was hooked on super big gulps.
When I noticed my waistline approaching the 40’s, I decided I wanted the caffeine but not the sugar....now it’s straight black coffee with a waistline at 35.
Well, our coffee is not free. We pay $1.00 per week, so I’ll spring for that.
I’m a little older than the youth demographic they indicate, but certainly can confirm their findings for the most part. Few of my colleagues and friends drink coffee, and when they do, it’s normally one of the cappuccino-style drinks from Starbucks.
That said, what changed me over from primarily energy drinks to primarily coffee (I still drink both) was the cost to me — I can get coffee at work at no additional out of pocket cost to me, or I can pay for Red Bull or similar drinks. Nevertheless, these energy drinks have one advantage over coffee (not espresso mind you, but coffee) — if you need to consume it quickly, it’s a lot easier to down a chilled energy drink than it is to down a hot cup of coffee!
Oh, well, as they get older, their taste buds will atrophy and that coffee will taste just fine with a splash of cream and a teaspoon of sweetener. If not, they can increase the cream and sugar. Or not.
Seems to me there are plenty of sweetened cold coffee drinks out there driving the profits of the coffee retailers. If not, the companies can develop their own version of cold caffeinated drinks.
My personal experience has been just the opposite. I drank black coffee until I was in my 30s, when it irritated by stomach. So, I began adding cream and sugar. I cut calories elsewhere and I’m active, so it hasn’t led to severe weight gain.
Those energy drink concoctions contain who knows what and the younger generation’s penchant for using them as mixes for liquor make a nasty combination. I will stick with a well made cup of fine coffee in a French press or a nice expresso.
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