As large swathes of the United States shiver through intense negative temperatures, an interesting trend has emerged: the resolute refusal of some iced coffee drinkers to abstain from their frosty beverages.
Despite the polar vortex which has sent temperatures plummeting across the East Coast and the Midwest, caffeine fiends have been spotted braving the elements for their fix.
The phenomenon was highlighted by New York City‘s official Twitter account, which shared an image of a pedestrian braving snowfall while grasping what appears to be an iced latte:
A New Yorker in the snow this afternoon carrying what seems like … iced coffee? #OnlyInNYC #BundleUpNYC pic.twitter.com/mKXILsECny
— City of New York (@nycgov) January 31, 2019
A cursory glance at social media reveals that individual is not the only devout coffee-drinker kicking about in brutal conditions. Observe, just a small number of individuals whose preference for icy Arabica supersedes their desire to avoid sub-zero temperatures:
real feel of -13 but the #icedcoffee aesthetic breaks for nothing. pic.twitter.com/kqZsR3aDqe
— shelly jay 💗💜💙 (@shellyjayshore) January 31, 2019
Iced Coffee > Hot Coffee. Always. @dunkindonuts #americarunsondunkin #andrearunsondunkin pic.twitter.com/E9798OUYwy
— Andrea (@andrea_rommel) January 31, 2019
https://twitter.com/nicolelianesolo/status/1091004007609495552
…and I still got an iced coffee today 🥶💁🏻♂️#polarvortex19 pic.twitter.com/TqWXwsBA75
— Jeremy Rosenberg (@JeremyR1992) January 31, 2019
It’s iced coffee weather in NYC today pic.twitter.com/OaRAWohcDA
— Joe Weisenthal (@TheStalwart) January 31, 2019
Where my midwestern iced coffee drinkers at? #dedicated 🥶 pic.twitter.com/DQCu2G6udg
— Em (@emilyygraceee) January 31, 2019
Some folks are so committed to the cause, they’ve even flexed about their drinks while driving.
https://twitter.com/jason_farrer/status/1090957930537668608
The proliferation of iced coffee fans posting about their precious drinks actually hews pretty close to predicted trends in the coffee industry.
In 2018, coffee industry research group Allegra World Coffee Portal revealed 60% of UK coffee vendors believe iced beverages are becoming more popular year-round. The same report stated young consumers are more likely to see iced coffees as good value compared to older coffee-drinkers, and that Instagrammable drinks may have played a part in that popularity.
https://twitter.com/RyanSwanky/status/1090632529844027393
That’s all well and good, and far be it from us to scold readers over their drinks, but opting for iced coffees in temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees isn’t exactly the safest idea. To date, 11 deaths have been directly linked to the polar vortex, many of them due to hypothermia. Unlike drinking warm drinks in hot weather – which can, in some circumstances, reduce body temperatures – you’re unlikely to raise your body’s temperature by sculling a frigid long black.
Will that stop folks from shuffling through snow for their drinks? Probably not.
Am I the only psychopath who drinks iced coffee year round even on these freezing cold days? pic.twitter.com/7py6OsX8v4
— John Stearns (@JohnStearnsTech) January 30, 2019
