One year when my mother was growing up, she woke up early on April 1 and replaced the sugar in the kitchen with salt. My unsuspecting grandmother and great grandparents then each put a teaspoon into their cups of coffee and took a sip. I’m certain my mother laughed; I’m equally certain her elders did not.
Messing with coffee is generally not funny.
Yet in a spirit of youthful light-heartedness, we present some of the top coffee stories from April 1, 2021. Take all these with a grain of salt:
To celebrate our 56th Anniversary, we’re honoring our founder’s original intentions by correcting a typo in the company’s name. (thread) pic.twitter.com/Y0vuRh1BdY
— Peet’s Coffee (@peetscoffee) April 1, 2021
Not to be outdone, fellow large chain Biggby Coffee went with the always popular “here’s a disgusting gustatory experience” trope:
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Also hopping on the nasty train were fellow coffee behemoth Dunkin and its bedmate in brewing, Harpoon Brewery:
Let us put you onto something 👇 https://t.co/QhrkoL3hp2
— Dunkin’ (@dunkindonuts) April 1, 2021
Even smaller manufacturers took the gross-out path, as high-end home coffee equipment maker Fellow introduced this funky feature, which also works for weed, wheat and paper:
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Other high-end coffee equipment sellers, like scales and accoutrements seller Acaia, took a more cerebral approach, introducing new forms of tech from the not-so-distant future:
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Roaster maker Loring also went the high-tech route, introducing “Yo Loring,” an artificial-intelligence-based roasting assistant that runs on voice control.
“Our Loring Control System combined with voice recognition is a revolution in roasting,” said Loring President Gordon Tredger. “The ability to run your roaster hands free gives Loring owners the ultimate in operational flexibility.”
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Grinder maker Baratza had a little fun dipping an Encore in gold!
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You wouldn’t expect one of the wackiest April Fools jokes to come from a major political figure, but Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan got in on the action, declaring new official emblems for the state: the Official Sandwich of Western Australia (the Continental Roll) and the Official Coffee Order of Western Australia (Long Mac Topped Up):
“People go on about Melbourne coffee, but the fact is that here in WA we’ve perfected the art — and our most special order is proof of that fact,” McGowan’s official Facebook account stated. “It’s an order that will only get you puzzled reactions from a barista anywhere else, but it’s a favourite over here: the long mac topped up.”
What is the the “long mac topped up,” you ask? In short, espresso and milk. It has its own Twitter account, if you must know more.
Happy April!
Nick Brown
Nick Brown is the editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine.
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