17 June, 2008

Stok Black Coffee Shot; Warning: High Caffeine

I've been burning the midnight oil a bit, trying to catch up on projects--both the home improvement and money-in-the-bank kind--and I've been imbibing a little more caffeine than usual: coffee during the day and a Big Ass Diet Coke each evening. But even as a hard-core caffeine enthusiast, I find this a little scary:

The Stok Black Coffee Shot, a chemically enhanced non-dairy coffee product. I'm not sure how long it's been around, but I noticed it for the first time at the 7-11 last night. With 40 mg of caffeine per serving, the package boasts it's equivalent to a shot of espresso (although I looked this up; ounce per ounce it actually has twice as much caffeine as espresso). I found the Stok Web site, where they sing the praises of their product: "It’s a sweet coffee shot that puts more caffeine and a packet of sugar in your coffee...limit 2 servings per day. Not for use by children under age 18, pregnant women, or the caffeine-sensitive." The package itself says: "Warning: High Caffeine."

I don't know. Does a product like this seem a wee bit irresponsible? You know people are not going to limit themselves to two. When I used to use creamers, back in college, I'd probably dump four or five in a large coffee.

So what keeps you guys going when you need to? I love my lattes and my Diet Coke, but weaning myself off of them again after this round of work is going to be a bitch.

Behind every successful woman is a substantial amount of coffee.
—Stephanie Piro

24 comments:

modernemama said...

I think it's a marketing gimmick - 40mg is still less caffeine than in regular coffee, an American cup has 80-135 mg for brewed and up to 175 mg for drip. Espresso normally only has 80 mg per shot so I wouldn't worry. On the other hand the sugar could kill you:;

Joanne said...

Yeah...it's probably to compete with the energy drink market. Still, if you add two or three or four of these (they are sweetened and unsweetened versions) to your coffee, you can easily double your caffeine intact. It just seems like overkill. And who knows if it's really "sugar" anyway? :-)

I did taste it after I posted; all I can say is *blech*.

Jean Martha said...

Reminds me of something a friend bought in Amsterdam...it was labeled "Death" and he hesitated...freaked a bit...then realized it was labeled "NEAR Death"...so he figured that was OK and smoked it anyway...

Joanne said...

It's those near death experiences that make us stronger!

Sparkle Plenty said...

I'm going through the same type of work mode. Here's the line-up:
Morning: Coffee, coffee.
Noon: Little coffee.
Afternoon: Little coffee, little chocolate, little chocolate.
Evening: Little chocolate.

I'm actually getting a little sick of coffee and chocolate, and I'm hearing a faint buzzing which might be the fridge or my brain.

Good luck with all your projects!

Joanne said...

I hear you, Sparkle Plenty. I just brewed another pot of coffee and my nose kinda curled at the aroma. Definitely a sign I'm drinking too much. I think I'm going to start mainlining caffeine directly and skip the coffee/chocolate/soda carrier.

John said...

Stok looks pretty bad. Maybe one part chocolate pudding plus one part tar?

I'll probably die of renal failure, but the idea of actually regulating caffine intake is odd to me. I've been drinking at least one pot a day for years. When isn't good enough, I turn to a fist full of chocolate coated espresso beans (with or without coffee). That has to taste better than Stok looks.

Good luck!

Marilyn said...

If you dropped one of those in a Red Bull, you'd have some kind of adrenaline-death boilermaker. Yikes.

Joanne said...

Marilyn, I just pictured one of those Mentos and Diet Coke experiments.

Marilyn said...

Thank you, Joanne. That is just the kind of thing that makes YouTube worthwhile.

Steven Strauss said...

It took me a month and a half to go through three boxes of 24. I never exceeded two a day and it helped immeasurably with my occasional 21 hour days. Two of these in a cup of coffee after being up for twelve hours and I was good for another nine. I didn't get results any stronger with NoDoz.

Got off a gig two hundred miles from home at two in the morning. Everyone else in the band rented a motel room and left half their pay in Faroffistan, but I brought all my pay home.

Laugh all you want; this stuff works great and tastes just fine. There's very little fluid volume in the shot, maybe half as much liquid as in a creamer. But the active ingredient works great.

Joanne said...

Hi Steven! Glad to hear the stuff works for you; me, I shudder whenever I see it at 7-11. :-)

Unknown said...

A large ice coffee from DDs is nearly $3. A box of these from the market is nearly $3 (24/box). I take 6 of these, throw them in a small glass of milk, add a little flavored creamer and fire it down. Akin to a coffee milkshake: but with 240mg caffeine and much cheaper than anything else. Faster than a home brew. These are great.

shoreizfine said...

Well i'm addicted to these little shots, and now i have everyone at work drinking them too. Normally i have a half french vanilla capp half hot chocolate with 4 shots of stok. Yes i know that it is alot, but it is a God send. I may only have 1-2 cokes a day and no other coffee so i'm good. It has came in handy now that i'm on a new medication that makes me drowsy, so this perks me up so i can work :) I love it ;)

Anonymous said...

I just found these for the first time...and i feel great after one in my 20 oz coffee.I work for an ambulance company and needed the boost. I love it!

Unknown said...

I just bought a 264 ct. case at a discount store for $8.00 (only one on the shelf and I had to have that cheap coffee). I took a straight shot about 15 minutes ago and I thought it tasted fine, I don't see what all of the "yuck" is about. It only took me reading these 15 previous posts before I noticed I had caffiene goggles and my heart racing. Wow, this case is gonna last me a while, So long conventional coffee!

Anonymous said...

Ah, so it's winding up in discount stores. Found a stray cup at the Starbucks where I work, and I've never seen it before. Took it home to check online. I see it's on its way out to become only a memory. Drank it. I can see where it gets its "nasty" remark. It has NO coffee body. Weak flavor, like it was brewed from bottom-quality coffee, with all the flavorful oils and flavones filtered out. Interesting concept, but, being so flavorless, it's like dropping half a No-Doz in your coffee.

Unknown said...

I rely on these on a daily basis, two in the morning and two at night. I work two jobs, one during the day and an overnight job and two kids, so I get less then four hours of sleep a day and never have energy. I don't drink coffee so I drink these straight, yes it has a nasty taste but there amazing. They give me so much energy and I'm actually able to function. I'm like a zombie without them. They work really good.

Unknown said...

I rely on these on a daily basis, two in the morning and two at night. I work two jobs, one during the day and an overnight job and two kids, so I get less then four hours of sleep a day and never have energy. I don't drink coffee so I drink these straight, yes it has a nasty taste but there amazing. They give me so much energy and I'm actually able to function. I'm like a zombie without them. They work really good.

Nurse_W said...

I agree! I love them and I have also tried them in hot chocolate. You can't even taste it. My husband is a truck driver and he actually added 3 to his coffee one night and he said when it was time for him to shut down he couldn't sleep because his eyelids kept jumping. Lol.... (He is a bit dramatic) But, I would definitely recommend anyone to try them. I actually brought a box from Sam's Club to have at home.

Anonymous said...

i used them everyday from 7-11
i put 4 shots for every large coffee.
Fuck i didnt know it cost .10 cents each

Anonymous said...

Im a nurse and i like to use them on long shifts.. The extra caff is not excessive with one at the beginning and one in the middle of the shift.. I must point out what i thought should be obvious.. They arent made to drink alone -- they are called STOK not SHOT
LOL

T.Leigh said...

I know this is pretty much a zombie thread at this point, but I wanted to add something that's important (to me). I have severe, chronic migraines (and sometimes intractable migraines that can last over two weeks). I drink water only 95% of the time, with the the remaining 4% being milk (it's often all I can "eat" when the migraines are unbareable), and .99% OJ for my vitamin C intake (since I live in Florida, I am fortunate to be able to get freshly made anytime, and any extra meds are avoided by me at all times).
That being said, since I *never* drink anything caffeinated, and generally get at least 96 ounces of water a day, these little "shots" can actually help break a cycle of really terrible migraine. For most people I'm sure that sounds nuts, as most people who consume caffeine daily from pop, coffee, or non-herbal tea actually get a headache when they don't drink it, when it's used appropriately, like a medication (it IS a stimulant after all)... It can be quite effective. While I'm certainly not an MD, and not pretending to give medical advice here, both my regular neurologist (that I've been seeing over 9 years now), and my consulting neurologist at Mayo (along with my epileptologist at Mayo- and yes- that is a real speciality of neuropsychology) have all said its a wonderful "medication" that can help wonderfully in migraine treatment as an abortive med, so long as it's not something that's regularly used. It's far safer than having to take a steroid dose pack on a frequent basis, and it's safer than triptans too. On the issue of "safety," both Excedrin and BC powder (for example) have 65mg of caffeine in them per dose, and people certainly don't tend to worry about the safety of ibuprofen or aspirin overuse... As far as the Stok goes, I'd be more concerned over the corn syrup instead of cane sugar...
Just my thoughts :)

Swuzy said...

Did not initially appreciate these. They popped up next to some cold brews, and seemed super cheap and compact.

Thought they were same as cold brew but more compact and concentrated. But no. No taste, no coffee flavor, no dark coffee body for my glass of ice coffee, and not withstanding the marketing hype warnings, only half the caffeine of a cup of coffee. Definitely not a substitute for what I wanted, flavorful ice coffee.

After trying to learn more about it, and reading this thread, I can understand and appreciate it better. It is useful for like dropping half a No Doz into any drink you wish to make; into a fruit mixer, a hot chocolate, a rum and cola, a brandy, etc.

Thanks to all who contributed comments.