No Normal Coffee Paste Review

[Ryan Jordan]

Companion forum thread to: No Normal Coffee Paste Review

Ryan Jordan evaluates his first impressions from No Normal’s Coffee Paste for backpacking,

[Brad W]

Interesting product. I can see the appeal. The aftertaste would give me pause. I quite enjoy testing instant coffee while backpacking. I have low expectations so unless it’s just horrid-Folders instant-I am pretty happy with most hot cups of caffeine beverage. The Via Colombian is most appealing for me-good caffiene content and decently smooth. I usually add powdered butter which helps even out the caffeine rush and gives it longer lasting effect.

[Dustin V]

Just the form-factor might be a game-changer since it’s so easy to adjust your dosage and delivery method. Good flavor is a huge bonus. I often bring coffee-flavored gel packets to substitute for the afternoon cup so just using the same tube would simplify things. Did it seem to rinse out of the bottle fairly cleanly?

[Paul S]

I would try it except that I don’t like my coffee sweetened at all.

But their idea is interesting and I hope their company grows and that they offer a variety of coffees (where at least some of them are completely unsweetened).  :-)

[Alf B]

It comes in an Aluminium tube???  Aluminium  is a neurotoxin and when consumed in the diet it is one of the main causes of Alzheimer’s Disease so I would avoid it like the plague!

Coffee Bags are where it’s at as far as great tasting coffee on the trail goes.  As the name suggests, they are exactly the same as tea bags, but filled with ground coffee instead.  Put one in your cup, pour in boiling water, stir well and then leave a short while to brew to taste.  They come in individually sealed sachets, so they have a long shelf life, and they are compostable so you can happily throw them into the bush to decompose, nourishing the local plant life and allowing them to enjoy the taste of coffee too, or you can squeeze all the water out them after use and them put them back into the sachet they came in,  to carry them back with you.  They come in different strength ratings, 5 being the strongest.

[Dustin V]

Forgot to post back here after trying out a tube. The coffee tasted okay. It was smooth and not too bitter. I didn’t find it sweet. It works as basic coffee. I drank it in hot water and ate a few blobs straight. Very versatile.

The only gripe I have with it is that it can be messy. At altitude, the gel comes out before you have the cap off which can get into the threads, which can then get on fingers, sleeves, etc. My tube also sprung a tiny leak where there was a fold. Easy enough to mitigate, just FYI.

[Alf B]

If they put it in plastic squeezy tubes I’d be glad to try one.

[Drew Smith]

@Alf B

Aluminum is indeed toxic. But it is one of the most abundant minerals in the Earth’s crust. Clays are aluminum silicates. We unavoidably ingest it every day in the food we eat and the water we drink. Fortunately, aluminum is poorly absorbed in the gut, so the doses our tissues are exposed to are very low. See here for a summary.

Aluminum has indeed been reported found in Alzheimer’s lesions. However, these reports have been difficult to replicate. And finding a substance in a lesion does not mean that it caused the lesion, ie correlation is not causation. Aluminum cannot be ruled out as a contributing factor in Alzheimer’s but the evidence to rule it in is very very weak. A good summary of the relationship between aluminum and Alzheimers can be found here.

You are more likely to ingest toxins from a plastic tube than an aluminum one. But the doses from a coffee paste are likely to be utterly miniscule either case.

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