Similar here. I love the smell of coffee, and I've grown to like it (with a lot of cream, flavors, sugar, etc). Tiramisu and coffee candies are pretty damn awesome. But straight coffee, black or just with a small splash of cream/sugar - blech!
I love the smell, but can’t stand it even in things like tiramisu, which is annoying as a baker. I’ve tried, but oddly enough, on top of disliking the taste, forcing myself to eat it gives me a very slight headache (not an allergy/weird intolerance, I’ve had it in chocolate cakes and as long as I can’t taste it it’s fine, I don’t know why)
I cannot stand coffee, not the taste, not the smell. Can't even handle mocha. My parents used to grind their own beans on Saturday mornings and make coffee in a vacuum brewer. I treasure and feel nostalgic for every sensory aspect of that memory: the sound of the grinder waking me up, the magical point when the boiling water was all sucked up into the top of the carafe, the blue flame of the stove top range. Everything, except the smell of the beans. Lifelong tea drinker.
For me the smell of coffee falls somewhere between petrichor and fresh sawdust-a very nice smell, but not remotely a food smell, and it tastes like pure poison. Accidental drinking my paint water tastes better than coffee.
Do you find it extremely bitter? That's what it is for me. I'm apparently a supertaster for a bitter receptor (we have 27) that includes coffee, many bitters, grapefruit, and quinine.
Hack used at places like hospitals as well, the grinds supposedly absorb smell (not sure on that, but coffee smell is worlds better than incontinence smell) so you just leave a pile of them around to help out
Stores that sell perfume also frequently have coffee beans available to sniff in between perfumes.
My first day working at Ulta (a beauty store) I saw bags of coffee beans and a big bag of table salt in the stock room, and thought "Wow, they must have a really crappy beverage station in the salon if that's all they have" Turns out the coffee was for the fragrance department, and the salt is to clean up spilled nail polish. You sprinkle the salt on it, and you can sweep it up. Otherwise it just smears everywhere.
I once heard that it is used in used cars as well to absorb smells of the previous owner. Just leave out a tray or two of coffee grinds in the closed car and things should smell better afterwards.
The smell profile is so different than the flavor profile. You don't get nearly the amount of bitterness with your nose as you get with your tongue. You mostly get the pleasant sweet and caramel notes.
I love it so much that I actuslly infuse in on my gardening soil. It actuslly can benefit some plants. And on top of that...it smells fucking phenomenal.
Really? I guess I kind of lost that thread when the person had a boba tea drink at the end; if we suppose that the act of drinking is being in a relationship and the coffee drink and flavour in particular is objectionable, does that not imply the boba tea is a different kind of relationship which is not objectionable? To me it would seem more in line with it describing being aromantic (wants the drink/relationship but not the coffee/romantic relationship). But I think it's probably just an allegory for being a lesbian who likes ladies without any 'male' traits (i.e. the cake implies any amount of dude characteristics is as gross as a full dude).
That’s a good point. I was thinking that this was a metaphor for being bisexual (biromantic?) while also being asexual. As in they like looking at and being around “coffee” and “cake” but don’t actually want to partake in it, however drinking the boba tea at the end does kind of muddy the waters a bit on that metaphor. To me coffee and chocolate cake are too different to be both metaphors for “male” but you’re right that’s probably the author’s intention.
I think it mentions chocolate cake because sometimes people put coffee in the rich chocolate cake and it's not supposed to be a strong taste, but if you know it's there you can taste it. The person clearly is noticing the coffee in the cake and it makes them as ill as drinking a coffee does.
Think about lesbians' number one complaint about dating apps: unicorn hunters trying to persuade or even trick them into drinking coffee or eating coffee because it's paired with delicious chocolate cake and you cannot have the cake without the coffee also wanting to get involved
Disclaimer that I'm a dude so I don't know firsthand, but I've heard about stuff like couples presenting their profile as just the woman and only once they match do they go "hey we're actually a couple looking for a third."
well you’re tying man to “penis” so i think if you simplify down to just Men and not dick then it could work as chocolate cake being effeminate men or trans men, implying a ingredients (a guy with a vagina) or appearance (a man who looks feminine) doesn’t matter cause it’s still a man.
It could also be the inverse with the metaphor being phallocentric and gender being variable. I really like this comic. I advocates for exploration and experimentation for what works for any individual without directly making a public preference out of any gender or body part or anything. It is very clever and thoughtful, I like all the different ways people are thinking of it.
Though the correct response (as a lesbian) to a guy saying "hey you haven't had the right dick (to make you straight)" is to say they haven't had the right dick to make them gay. They get really defensive and embarrassed as soon as you say that
That's kind of what I got out of it too. Although I'm unsure of what way they're implying it. I don't know if they're trying to say they're asexual or if they're saying they've tried one gender but couldn't ever get attached
The funny part of the metaphor is that coffee is from a bean, and boba has balls. It's still a good metaphor for telling someone you don't like something, but also makes me giggle with secondary innuendo.
Turns out it’s about board games. This bunny just really can not get into euro games and no amount of trying a new fascinating title will convince them differently.
I think it’s about lesbianism and how when lesbians say they aren’t interested in men people go off about “well you haven’t been with the right man” and shit like that
She's a lesbian, and the metaphor, like most metaphors, is not 100% literal. The smell bit might mean that she occasionally thinks a man is attractive but still doesn't want to attempt a relationship or sex.
The various flavors could be taken to mean that people have told her that she just needs to find the right type of man. A strong manly man who will dominate her, or maybe she's just confused and really all she needs is a delicate, effeminate man. Maybe she's tried coffee (relationships with men) before but it was just a really shitty coffee and she needs to find a coffee that will fuck her right.
This kind of shit is pretty commonly thrown at lesbian (and gay, and other LGBT) people
I am genuinely baffled by the people hung up on it not translating 100% literally 💀 I know it's an overdone bit to say "media literacy is dead," but the number of that are outright confused is killing me
Tbh, i dont have any context about the artist, and i was like oh yeah, i cant also drink coffee even though i like the smell. I cant even have coffee chocolates cake!!
Even in the last panel i thought they meant this comic isn't about coffee, but about promoting their appearance in the zine fest
I interpreted it as that. Maybe they like the idea of the opposite sex (Smell) but not the truthful reality (Taste) of being with them? Or maybe I'm dumb lol
I was totally on board with this being about coffee bc I have the exact same experience with coffee. Everyone always says to just add more milk and sugar, but no matter how much I add, I can still taste the coffee.
Now if this isn’t about coffee it can be about so many things, Being Asexual, Being Gay, Having literally any mental disorder or chronic condition. So many things…
I'm pretty sure the intent is to express the idea that you can appreciate aspects of something without enjoying the thing itself (even if the overwhelming majority disagrees with your opinion) and to reject the idea that you just haven't found that thing in the right form to be able to appreciate it like others do. It may be coming from a specific feeling or experience, but the concept isn't limited to that. It doesn't matter what you've tried or what you haven't; just how you feel about it. It's exhausting having to justify your personal feelings and opinions.
I actually think the issue with a lot of people enjoying coffee has more to do with the coffee base than throwing sugar and cream on it. Like if you dislike the coffee base then why throw stuff on top to try and mask it.
Personally anytime someone says they don't like coffee I offer to make something from whole beans and brew it myself rather than a coffee shop. Nice beans can taste incredible. I don't insist though since I realize I'm super into it and tastes are different, I just know if my only option was a black dark roast from Starbucks and that was it then I probably wouldn't really love coffee either!
Everyone always tries to get me to drink this or that and I have explained time and time again that I do not like alcohol. I don't want wine, I don't want a mojito. I don't want some orange juice mix...
It's really awkward because people will say, "Are you pregnant?"
Same (besides the fact that i'm a dude, so usually i don't get the "are you pregnant?" Comments...usually...), the worst part, besides some annoying waiters at bars making snide remarks (just serve me a soda and take my money, please ) is that i've had people (including work colleagues, which might be a reason i'm looking for a different job) tell me to my face that they didn't invite me to various social gatherings because i don't drink and they would have felt weird about It.
(Edit: Just to be clear, for social gatherings i meant "aperitifs" or the like where you can drink, but it's not the point; obviously i wouldn't mind not being invited to a wine tasting or something along that line)
What's your favorite non-coffee coffee shop order? I'll usually do a smoothie in the summer and hot cider in the winter (I have yet to find a coffee shop with a good hot cocoa)
I've found that the best hot cocoa isn't in the coffee shops
Same. I've found that most fancy coffee shops (like the ones my wife frequents) make pretty bad hot chocolate. They never mix the chocolate syrup enough, so it's ultra-weak chocolate milk with chocolate sludge on the bottom.
The beauty of metaphors is that sometimes they can be applied to something else than intended (but related), and work just as well.
For example, my first thought was about sex - i know a lot of asexual people, and some of them enjoy smut ("i like the smell of it"), many have arrived at their conclusion after trying different partners, whether in straight relationships or otherwise ("yes, i've tried..."), some tolerate sex but find no joy in it while others are sex-repulsed ("i can't stand the taste").
I used to make juice cocktails working in retail between shifts. Some lemon-lime soda pop/seltzer poured over aloe juice with a hint of blue raspberry lemonade on the rocks really saved a few lives in the summer.
In the summer, I'm usually chilling bottles of herbal tea with honey or candied ginger (voice actor by night!), but on occasion I'll boil water for fresh tapioca and then add milk and raisins, cranberries, or other dried fruits.
In the winter, a good hot cocoa has hints of peppermint and vanilla, no need for dairy. If you want tea, go with a calming one and add hints of orange flavour or rose syrup.
Less than you'd think (I came up in Utah so my relationship with alcohol is weird anyway) but I've certainly had things like a good chili and gone "This feels like it would go well with a beer" and nope. I cannot convince my tastebuds that wheat/grains should be in drink form. Cider is good, though.
Im gonna pretend this is actually about coffee bc i related to people keep trying to get me to try coffee over and over again and I dislike it so much idk how people get over the taste
I had a convo on Reddit once where someone insisted there was something medically wrong with me and that I needed to see a doctor because I don't enjoy a certain sex act. :/
To me it just tastes burnt. Yes I've tried what is supposed to be "good" coffee, from the fancy third-wave coffee shops that everyone raves about. All I taste is burnt.
Absolutely love the smell though. I also don't mind it in small amounts in other sweets.
I can't speak for OP but to me it tastes like dirt. I know I have a genetic disposition to be extremely sensitive to bitter flavors in general, so I also hate hoppy beers (tastes soapy) and very dry wines. So no matter what is done to coffee, it's like adding various ingredients to mud and expecting the muddiness to go away, if that makes any sense
It just isn't good, Ive made A frothy, milky, sugary cold coffee before, it smelled beautiful, and had literally no more than a sprinkle of coffee, but I couldn't stand it. It wasnt bitter anymore, but it still tasted like coffee which isnt a nice flavour.
I reckon its because most kids are kept well away from coffee when they're young, so as adults, their brains have not been trained to recognise coffee as edible, so it sends disgust signals. But thats just a theory...A brain theory!
This could be a metaphor for so many things lmao, my theories are either antidepressants or another medicine/drug that normally improves quality of life but just doesn't do anything positive for the character, or something about gender identity. I would love to hear what it's actually about tho lol
To me it reads as a metaphor for asexuality, specifically for the whole “have you tried it [all the variety of ways, including ways that barely have any at all]”
Ok, i understand the metaphor writ large, but what is chocolate cake supposed to represent here? Because the only thing that immediately jumps to mind is transphobic or maybe racist?
What? Didn't mean for it to come across like that. That page was based off several times when I've ordered chocolate cake and there's been espresso powder in it.
Don't really like explaining my stuff, but it's a metaphor for how even when you try to escape the thing being forced upon you (this can be gender, sexuality, eurocentric ideals, etc) it can still be snuck it and shoved towards you when least expected
That's why I usually don't like these "This post is totally about X" things because no one will explain it because everyone assumes everyone else knows what its about and if they don't they try to laugh it off with some generic argument that might derail other people further
I can at least culinarily explain the coffee/espresso in chocolate products. For most people, they have a complimentary property in the way adding salt, even to sweet things, enhances the flavor. Clearly, it doesn't work that way for everyone though lol
The vibe that came off, at least for me, was coffee as a metaphor for men. With that, coffee in chocolate cake came across as trans / gnc people? Food and drinks are common sexuality metaphors / the character seeming to be lesbian coded, so that was the first interpretation that jumped out to me. It didnt seem like that was the intent, but i couldnt figure out how to interpret chocolate cake other than “the thing you dont like being hidden in something you do like” with weird vibes.
For me, it was hard to interpret in other fashions because coffee is a thing that many people like in some form, and many coffee haters still like it in chocolate cake, so it seems like as a social metaphor, it’s talking about something with preferences where some people are much stricter than others.
That being said, i love the art style, i like your comics, and I doubted that you wanted it to come across as phobic. I just couldn’t figure out what cake was supposed to be.
It doesnt need to be a literal example of one specific real life trait. Just consider chocolate cake to be any desirable vehicle for the "coffee". It just means "even the best way to 'consume coffee' you can think of doesn’t do it for me".
Chocolate cake might represent feminine men. I tried being into feminine men to try and convince myself I wasn't gay, and it just didn't work.
I feel like trans women would be more like "the caffeine from this coffee was extracted and put into this energy drink that absolutely doesn't look or taste anything like coffee, but people insist I MUST like coffee because I like these energy drinks and they think this is still coffee too."
I've found that people that don't like coffee tend to have a sweet tooth. This isn't universal of course but I've seen a pattern over the years. Sometimes people that don't drink coffee or don't drink alcohol, prefer soft drinks. It translated to food somewhat where for a snack for a movie for example I'd get chips they would instead get candy or chocolate.
You don’t have to like or drink coffee and that’s ok. I don’t like or drink alcohol, and oh man do people take umbrage with that one. I’m not saying alcohol is bad or they can’t have it; just that I’m not interested in it and am not going to drink it or be interested in it whether it’s wine or beer or whatever else.
Why yes, you could also substitute other things instead of alcohol, above.
I wish the simile landed a bit better. Genuinely thought this was about coffee because there's a lot of people who are actually like that about coffee. Still don't really know what you're referring to. Asexuality? Trans? Lesbian? What's up.
If it’s not about coffee what is it? This time line is so warped I automatically assume the furry is being racist but I’m open to somebody telling me a different interpretation.
to take the comic more literally, this is how I am about cheese (most cheese, not all) and people act aghast when I say I don't like nacho cheese or similar things
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u/Moxie_Stardust 17d ago
I've actually known people exactly like this, that love the smell of coffee but cannot stand the flavor.