Here’s something you’ve probably known for a while, but couldn’t really admit it: the world is doomed to be without any coffee if the global temperatures continue to grow. In the absence of necessary environment-friendly actions, one of the most popular beverages could become an unreachable privilege for many. And pretty soon.
With no coffee around, what will our morning rituals be like? Will we turn our attention to tea? Well, not really, because tea is also under threat. Only, in this case, scientists can extract sequences of DNA to develop new varieties of tea. Alas, this doesn’t work with coffee.
According to experts, there will not be enough coffee for everyone by 2080. For Finns, who are the world’s biggest coffee drinkers, this would be a living hell. If such prospect terrifies you, be sure that you are not alone. And it’s not just all the coffee lovers: millions of farmers who depend on coffee for a living will no longer be able to support their families. And the nightmare does not end here…
It’s impossible to reproduce coffee’s distinctive aromas. But despite this fact, Finnish coffee company Paulig joined forces with agency Bob the Robot and developed Blend 2080, a substitute for coffee, which, unlike the popular drink, bears no taste. The concept emerged following the company’s desire to raise awareness about the global coffee crisis. With this initiative, the brand wants to stir conversations on sustainability by inviting people to take small actions so that the world without coffee could be out of the question.
The two partners gathered a plethora of experts who relied on their vast experience to craft the world’s first coffee without coffee. The one-of-a-kind product took shape after many hours of unenviable work, during which the specialists tried endless combinations of ingredients. After several attempts, they concluded that the coffee of the future includes malt, dried figs, fermented Pu’er tea, and carob bean powder. Who knew!
It does not come as a surprise that Blend 2080’s taste has nothing to do with real coffee’s exquisite aromas. In fact, the largest coffeehouse in Finland claims that the taste of the new beverage is a “stirring experience,” hoping that they “will never have to create a product like this again.” And, we can’t agree more!
“Blend 2080 remotely resembles coffee in that it is black and wet, but the taste is bland and far from anything like good coffee,” says Paulig’s Senior Manager, Minna Lampinen. “Only by acting sustainably can we ensure that a product like Blend 2080 will never see the light of day again,” Lampinen hopes.
A batch of Blend 2080 was made in early 2018 and the company hopes it to be the last one. However, Paulig still invited those curious enough to taste the coffee substitute at Café Kulma in Helsinki on 15 March and in the Baltics at the Vilnius Coffee festival on 23-25 March. More brave coffee lovers were able to try the coffee at the Helsinki Coffee Festival on 20–22 April and at Tallinn Coffee Festival on 27–28 April.
Also, Blend 2080’s recipe is published on Paulig’s website, so that anyone can give it a try. Just hit the company’s webpage and find out how can you create your own tasteless coffee. If you haven’t had enough, you can explore the beverage’s whole story via the case video created by the Helsinki-based agency.