Much can happen over a cup of
coffee – so goes the popular saying. But have you ever considered your everyday
Cup of Joe as a
millionaire’s drink? At least, some people are spending millions on coffee, either collectively or individually, without even realising how much is spent. But if you are not careful, your
daily coffee habit can really dent your bank account.
Of course, the physical coffee market all over the world is sluggish right now due to a huge surplus from
Brazil and recent high yields from South and
Central America. But that is not likely to bring down store prices in 2014. Most of the big companies make long-term purchases throughout the year and the current slump in coffee prices, as much as 30%, won’t benefit
coffee drinkers in the short term.
But don’t lose heart. You are, after all, in the millionaires’ club and here are five interesting facts about coffee (and accessories) that involve big bucks. Have fun while you read and the next time you are in Costa or
Starbucks, just remember this is no longer the black and bitter drink you have always bought for a few bucks but a noble beverage that attracts the rich and the famous.
See who’s drinking & how much you are shelling out Starbucks’ booming business might have led you to believe in America’s growing love affair with coffee, but a recent survey by Euromonitor shows the country is nowhere among the top 15 coffee-drinking nations. So who tops the obsession list now?
The Netherlands, with per capita consumption of 2.414 cups a day that almost equals the combined consumption of the US, the UK, Spain and
France. The US is at No. 16, with a per head consumption of 0.931 cup a day. However, the US still spends a whopping $4 billion on
coffee import. An average coffee drinker spends about $4,500 a year on coffee or $180,000 throughout his/her career. What about savings, we wonder.
World’s most expensive coffee – will it turn you off? If you are an animal lover, you should stay off the smoothest coffee called
Kopi Luwak (Indonesian for
civet coffee) that can cost as much as $30-100 for a cup in
London and
New York. But just like the discovery of original coffee beans, a freak event led to the discovery of the most luxurious coffee. In colonial
Indonesia, workers were forbidden to consume coffee beans collected from the plant. However, wild
Asian palm civets often ate the ripest
coffee cherries and the semi-digested beans were picked up from their excretion, cleaned and roasted by plantation workers. It was soon learnt that these beans get a unique aroma and rich, heavy flavour with hints of caramel and chocolate. Today, Kopi Luwak is mostly mass produced by feeding the caged civets.
Clover, Clover… on the counter Forget the instant, the espresso; it’s the age of brew, at a cost, of course. But you won’t mind shelling out more at Starbucks if you are trying a Clover cup of brew. Clover is a state-of-the-art coffee-maker that uses vacuum-press technology to brew one cup at a time. It also lets one select the brewing time and temperature to coax the best flavour out of the particular bean. Each machine costs around $11,000, but as Starbucks has bought the company six years ago, one can imagine the kind of investment it has made to serve ‘personalised’ coffee. By the end of 2014, the company is planning to double the number of its locations around the world that offer the premium Clover brewing system. As of now, Clover machines are used in 25 US markets and 10 international destinations, including the UK, the
Netherlands, Russia, Poland, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and
Kuwait.
A million-dollar date Actor Matt Damon, the latest recipient of the prestigious Crystal Award at the 2014
World Economic Forum in
Davos, is one Hollywood star who mostly turns down advertisement offers and product endorsement deals. But even he got caught in a date with coffee and recently appeared in a 20 second TV commercial for an espresso coffee machine brand in the UK. His
co-actor was the legendary
George Clooney and the commercial was directed by
Grant Heslov. The outing earned Damon $3 million – not exactly a bad deal. Interestingly, Clooney has been the face of the
Nestlé coffee brand outside the US since 2006.
Still Life with Coffee Pot – even that fetches a million Who says a
coffee pot can't fetch you millions? At least a suitably inspired artwork does. This painting by Scotsman
Samuel John Peploe dates back to 1905 and was auctioned at
Christie’s in 2011 for just under £1 million. The price for the painting, including the buyer’s premium, was £937,250 and it easily broke the earlier record of
The Singing Butler, a work by former
coal miner Jack Vettriano. The real-life coffee pot is still around and belongs to
Elizabeth Peploe, the
artist’s daughter-in-law.
Images: Wikipedia, Gizmodo
