Cloudy with a chance of coffee

The previous week’s sudden onset of rain left students scrambling for shelter and warmth. While some remedied this by officially having their first pumpkin spice latte of the season, there were others who made miserable trips back home with an ice-cold drink in hand and no umbrella in the other. 

Why is this the case? It is understandable that when it is cold, you would want to drink something hot and vice versa, yet despite this sound logic, baristas are continually serving up every iced beverage on their menus to the loving arms of the masses year round.

As a certified iced beverage lover, I can think of a wide range of reasons: some prefer the taste while others are too impatient to wait for their drink to cool. Since I habitually sip on my drinks, it is my opinion that a drink retains its flavor best when going from iced to room temperature, as opposed to starting hot and then cooling down. Recently, my drink of choice has been the simple iced Americano. There is something about the cold temperature that really brings out the bitterness of the espresso, resulting in an especially refreshing experience. When I feel like treating myself, I will splurge on a flavored iced matcha. Who cares if people say it tastes like grass? I like it!

In spite of what is to be believed, the consumption of cold beverages does not greatly affect one’s body temperature. Unless consumed in great quantities in a relatively short time span, ( known as a brain freeze), your iced coffee is a perfectly reasonable choice for the change in weather.

A crisp, cool beverage also has the added bonus of being more satisfying to drink than a warm one. Whenever I am standing in line at a cafe, scanning through the menu, I will land a drink that sounds pretty tasty. My immediate thought afterwards, “Does it come iced?” Whether the beverage itself comes caffeinated does not really matter. Innately, I believe that any iced drink will satiate me more than any warm beverage ever could. 

To get into the psychology of the matter, the most commonly reported aspect that makes a food or drink refreshing is its temperature. Anything cool, cold or icy is considered to be the most refreshing; warm, hot or boiling is not. So even science is backing me up on this one. 

Now that the rain is gone, we are all back to our day-to-day lives of clear skies, flip-flops and tank tops. However, not before long, the wet season will be upon us. The next time you need to seek shelter on campus, grab an iced beverage at Summit Café, The Arbor or Coral Tree Cafe. There are many options on campus for you to get your caffeine fix, so make the best of the dip in the weather and enjoy your iced or chilled beverage of choice. I know I will. 

A version of this article appeared on p. 13 of the November 5th, YEAR print edition of the Daily Nexus.