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Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

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101–110 of 394 posts

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#101
post #2

Hi Kalle, I love my daily pour over, so I might not be your target market, but I'd definitely be interested in purchasing a few coffees without a subscription. Have you thought about offering that?

I second this. I've been burnt too many times by burnt instant coffee to subscribe without a sample.

Happy to get you a one-time order - just email me

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#102
post #33
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thats the first thing they teach you at YC, always be having that recurring revenue.

It's also one of the first things to turn off a new consumer thinking about taking a chance on an unknown brand. You're fighting the reputation of generations of scammers who promised "cancel any time" and either weasel-worded the small print or just outright ignored cancellation requests to charge as much as possible to recurring bills.

Automatic recurring billing is a "dark pattern" from back before anyone made up that term. The only reason it makes more money than one-time purchase or an honest subscription (where customers have to explicitly pay to resubscribe every month or year) is that people will forget or get frustrated when it's time to cancel. Do you want to run that sort of business?

"Fun" fact: I bought a used car, only to discover that it apparently has free XM radio. I would not be surprised if someone unsuspecting person's card is being charged for it every month.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#103
post #82

My two cents from a sustainability perspective. My girlfriend and I would never consider something like this due to the high volume of plastic involved. Can you make the containers compostable?

Working on it. We do individual servings because they preserve freshness - that's the only reason we do it. It's hard for us to do compostable since we are still very small compared to your average consumer good, but we are 100% committed to doing it when we are big enough. We even have 2 sustainability advisors involved with the company.

Cool. I'm not the one who originally posted the question but had the same one upon checking out the starting page. Great idea, something I would be interested in signing up for, but too much plastic at this point.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#104
post #74
post #13

This is super interesting! I had always assumed coffee was made via liophilization at scale, any insight on why it's not? On the subject of extraction, how are you measuring yield? What are the main differences in the 40% coffee yield you're leaving on the table?

In normal conditions you can only extract up to ≈30% of the coffee beans mass, ie. no matter how fine you grind and long you brew you'll only get 30%. The rest are insoluble solids: cellulose so basically wood. When the big boys brew the coffee in really high temp and pressure (165-190C, 15 bars) the structure of the bean changes and previously insoluble parts of the hemicellulose become soluble. This means you get a…

Ah ok, with you now! Are you guys mainly a hardware company then? Anything cool going on software-wise for you guys?

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#105

I don't understand the point of this product. You're obviously targeting people who already like coffee, such as myself: I already buy beans, grind them myself, and manage the process using an Aeropress, and I'm hardly some coffee hipster because I use goddamned Eight O'Clock Columbian Peaks. Yet, you are trying to sell me instant coffee, which I automatically am wary of because instant coffee is the shittiest coffee…

Sorry friend but I just visited your https://www.exelion.net website and the level of arrogance in your comment is really unwelcoming and misplaced.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#106
> We start with good beans: currently from a co-op called Biftu Gudina in Ethiopia, roasted by 49th Parallel in Vancouver, BC.

Can someone explain how cities like SF and Vancouver, where nobody can afford to live, can sustain indie coffee shops? I have never understood this.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#108
As someone who would love to buy this for long bicycle trips, I'm a bit turned off by the subscription model.

I know you want to hook me with a steady supply of superior coffee that's quicker to make, but I love the ritual of brewing my own pour-over coffee too much to think I'd give that up.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#110

> We start with good beans: currently from a co-op called Biftu Gudina in Ethiopia, roasted by 49th Parallel in Vancouver, BC. Can someone explain how cities like SF and Vancouver, where nobody can afford to live, can sustain indie coffee shops? I have never understood this.

Good questions! Most people working in these cafes can't afford to live in the city - most baristas in SF seem to live in the East Bay. A lot of people are still able and willing to pay $3-4 for a cup of coffee so instead of going to Starbucks people choose to buy better coffee in smaller shops?
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