Ever heard of this Competitor for Coffee, no NOT TEA !!!

For most people, day starts with a steaming hot tumbler of Coffee !  - cannot imagine those days, when one had to wait for the cow to be milked in front of their houses or days of 1970s when Triplicane (and every other area) would stand in queue at Aavin milk booth for milk, rush home to boil and have coffee!

 

Well the subject matter of the post, transcends to more than a century back !! – on how Coffee status was sought to be displaced but ! !! !!!  -  no, the competitor was not TEA !! 

Coffee is one of the most widely consumed drinks in the world, with two billion cups drunk worldwide every day. [authenticity no known!]  South Indian coffee (a.k.a filter coffee) is a milk coffee (perfect example of South Indians' affinity for dairy products) – a great mixture of decoction and milk added with sugar,  primarily from coffee beans and chicory.  In recent past, on every highway in Tamilnadu, shops calling themselves - original Kumbakonam filter coffee shops have mushroomed. In South Indian culture, the visitor to a House is welcomed and offered coffee in a big tumbler.  It is an energizer ! 

All coffee comes from the coffee tree (genus Coffea). The tree’s cherries are picked and processed to gain access to the tiny seeds they contain, which are called green coffee beans. These green coffee beans are then roasted before being ready for consumption and are called whole coffee beans.  Before being brewed however, whole coffee beans are ground into smaller particles to extract as much flavour as possible.  This is easily  accomplished using a variety of tools including electric coffee grinders, blenders, mortar and pestles, or food processors – there were handwound grinders in early days. After being ground in one of these devices, whole coffee beans are referred to as ‘ground coffee’.

 

Back in 1895 a powder substitute for coffee was advertised and marketed to be a healthier alternative than Coffee.  It was called ‘Postum” -    a drink first made by C. W. Post in 1895. It is a powder substitute for coffee that is mixed with water. The ingredients are wheat bran, wheat, molasses, and corn dextrin. Postum quickly became popular, making Post wealthy. The aggressive advertising, with the slogan "There's a Reason", warned against the alleged dangers of coffee and caffeine, and promoted the benefits of Postum. When imitations appeared, the company introduced a cheaper drink called Monk's Brew that was identical to Postum, but discontinued it after competitors left the market. Instant Postum appeared in 1911.   A 1912 advertisement for Instant Postum is the earliest known use of the word "instant" to refer to a processed food that can be prepared immediately.

 

Caffeine is a natural chemical with stimulant effects. It is found in coffee, tea, cola, cocoa, guarana, yerba mate, and over 60 other products. Caffeine works by stimulating the central nervous system, heart, muscles, and the centers that control blood pressure. Caffeine can raise blood pressure, but might not have this effect in people who use it all the time. Caffeine can also act like a "water pill" that increases urine flow. 

Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class and is the most commonly consumed psychoactive substance globally. It is mainly used for its eugeroic (wakefulness promoting), ergogenic (physical performance-enhancing), or nootropic (cognitive-enhancing) properties.  Caffeine is a bitter, white crystalline purine, a methylxanthine alkaloid, and is chemically related to the adenine and guanine bases of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). It is found in the seeds, fruits, nuts, or leaves of a number of plants native to Africa, East Asia and South America  and helps to protect them against herbivores and from competition by preventing the germination of nearby seeds,  as well as encouraging consumption by select animals such as honey bees. The best-known source of caffeine is the coffee bean, the seed of the Coffea plant. 

People tend to drink beverages containing caffeine to relieve or prevent drowsiness and to improve cognitive performance. To make these drinks, caffeine is extracted by steeping the plant product in water, a process called infusion.   In 2020, almost 10 million tonnes of coffee beans were consumed globally.  

Though it did not entirely succeed, the powdered roasted grain beverage ‘Postum’ was quite popular for  more than a couple of decades.  Its founder CS Post  marketed it to be a health substitute.  Post Cereal Company eventually became General Foods, then merged to Kraft Foods Inc. in 1990. Eliza's Quest Foods now owns the trademark rights and secret recipe of Postum.  

 

"Health First—Happiness Follows, POSTUM instead of coffee, 'There's a Reason.'" This was the slogan that sold C. W. Post’s non-caffeinated cereal beverage.   Flamboyant advertising by the company promoted drinking Postum to avoid “heart disease, rheumatism, blindness, cowardliness and diminished mental capacity.” During World War II, Postum became a popular alternative to coffee, which was rationed. In 1929, Postum Cereal Company became General Foods. Eventually the company was absorbed by Kraft and in 2007, Kraft retired the Postum brand beverage. Eliza’s Food Quest, in 2013 managed to acquire the brand and the secret recipe for Postum, returning it to most grocery shelves.

 

Perhaps such advertisements never reached India and other parts of World ruled by Coffee as the hot beverage continues to be the addictive that millions drink, first in the morning and repeat N no. of times during the day !!

 

I am a Coffee lover  & addict  – what about you ? ! ?

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
3.4.2025