Sept. 29 is National Coffee Day, an observance of one of the most widely consumed drinks in the United States and around the world.
The origin of National Coffee Day is debatable, but its celebration is typically the same — drinking a cup of joe. Many coffee shops in Bryan-College Station will be offering special deals in observance of National Coffee Day, including Lupa’s, Minuti and POV.
Rodrigo Chavez, owner of What’s The Buzz Coffee and program coordinator at the Center for Coffee Research and Education, runs the only specialty coffee roaster in the area.
Chavez said their one-pound coffee bags will be sold at $1-off on Saturday and coffee is always available for customers to sample at their roasting location.
“We encourage during the National Coffee Day to use different methods of brewing,” Chavez said. “Use a Chemex, use a Hijito, use a French press, use something different just to try something different.”
Chavez said their beans must be hand-picked at the time of maturity to ensure that there is no green coffee. A specialized test is completed to look for fungus and insect damage.
“What we do here is not what most people do regarding coffee,” Chavez said. “We’re a specialty coffee roaster; that means our coffee goes through a process of selection and it needs to score 80 points or above.”
Simon Park, general manager at Lupa’s Coffee, said they will offer either a discount on specialty coffee or a free drip coffee on Saturday.
“We get to celebrate what we do here,” Park said. “The fact that we get to celebrate a product that brings people together for whatever reason or that gets people through their day, I think that’s awesome.”
Pending approval from upper management, Minuti in College Station will also offer a special discount, according to general manager Mark Kucker.
“At the very least, I’ll do a discount throughout the day,” Kucker said. “Typically, we do have our app promos where you come in through the Hooked app or the Safe to Serve app, where you [drive] while not using your phone, that you can bring it in if you earn points and get a dollar off your drink.”
Kucker said Minuti uses a coffee roaster in Italy for their beans, to provide a distinctive dark roast. He said there are other options available for those who do not typically enjoy dark coffee.
“I always tell people ‘don’t get caught up in the menu, those are just suggestions,’” Kucker said. “This is a place for creativity; if you think it sounds good and I have it, I’ll make it.”