10mo ago

Anyone else have this happen after grabbing a coffee?

I grab a cup coffee from a shop and it's ruined because the barista is wearing cologne or perfume that inevitably has gotten on the cup and it's all I can smell when I take a sip. I guess 2 things, this means 1 they haven't thoroughly washed their hands, and 2 I can't drink the coffee because it smells so bad and I have to throw it out. Not sure why, but I haven't had this happen with any other type of food/drink, just coffee.

30 comments

I've literally never had this happen in my life. I also can't imagine how it would even be possible unless the person working at the shop is physically spraying the cups with cologne.
- I don't wear it myself, but I think a lot of people apply it by putting it on their hands then "dabbing" it on their neck, face...ect.. Then they touch the cups. At first I thought it was just at one shop, then it kept happening at different places. I wonder if has something to do with the cup being warm, maybe it's more likely to have the scent stick to it or something.
  
  Food service requires hand washing!
  
  I learned to dab a small drop right on the underside of your wrist, then dab those wrists on the back of your neck or behind your ear. I never ever used my palms for that, that seems crazy to me. But I'm also pretty sensitive to smells so..
  
  I personally suspect your bloodhound nose is to blame

I don't have that problem because if I can smell their product and it bothers me, I leave whatever place it is.
But, you should be aware that they may have washed their hands just fine. Probably did. A lot of soaps smell way stronger than you'd think. If the smell is on the hands, it's more likely to have come from soap or lotion than a perfume/cologne. At least, that's been my experience.
Cologne in particular, if it isn't a spray, you just use a fingertip and then dab unless you intend to crop dust everywhere you go. That's not typically enough to linger more than maybe an hour on the finger itself. Obviously, some people just douse themselves, but it isn't the majority of adults using a decent scent because of the expense.
But, yeah, I feel you. My grandmother was the same way, and of all the things I could inherit from her genes, I got that same kind of hyper sensitivity to smells
Now, I smoked for a long time and it suppressed it. But then I quit, and holy shit, it came back worse. My wife had to change soap three times before I could sleep in the same room, after I quit smoking.
And don't even try to get me into a mall with a bath & body works. Scented candle sections of stores can clog me up for hours.
Which is a long way of commiserating with you. I've had scents "taint" other things before. Often enough that I don't bother to try and enjoy something after a scent sets off my nose. I won't be able to taste anything but the smell for up to a couple of hours afterwards, if the scent is strong enough.

I can gladly say that I’ve never had this happen. I can’t imagine how awful it must be to drink a coffee and all you smell is some cologne
- Hazelnut cologne?
  
  Coffee cologne?

I've had that happen with what i assume was a hand lotion because there was a particular part of the lid that smelled.
I don't know why other people are treating you with so much disbelief. This absolutely can happen with people not thinking about how their habits impact what customers are consuming. With how many millions of coffee beverages that are served every day, it shouldn't surprise anyone that some small portion are handled improperly with poor hygiene. It also shouldn't be overly surprising if you've had it happen multiple times because you likely visit the shops near you. Such an event isn't random and is the result of someone's bad habits.
- Lotion is particularly weird. Not sure what they put in it, but just smelling it makes my lips numb for a few minutes.

I think it's because the aroma of coffee is so important to its flavor.
My wife prefers flavored coffees and I shy away from them.
I thought I'd gotten them mixed or there was residue in my coffee maker because my coffee kept tasting sweet and I don't add sugar or use sweeteners at all.
Across the room was a candle in a jar, lid off, unlit, hazelnut coffee scented.
ACROSS THE ROOM it was enough to make me think my coffee was actually sweet. So yeah, it's all about the smell.

Are you implying that this isn't the first time? Do you have a particularly strong sense of smell?

Could it be hand lotion that you are smelling?
Those paper cups (and sleeves) have a tendency to dry one's hands out if you work with them all day...

I don’t buy coffee much, but I also have a pretty sensitive sense of smell so I know what you mean when you say it ruins the coffee. Can you bring your own travel mug and pour the coffee into it? Since the barista isn’t touching the coffee itself the smell should go away entirely if you get rid of the cup.

Yes, happens quite often and not just with coffee, but also soda cups.
Typically it's lotion and my wife is allergic to Bath & Body Works lotions and has had full blown asthma attacks from a cup being handed into our car.

if you pour the coffee into a second fresh coup, is it ok then?
- Ya, i have done that before if I have the option, lol. But if i've gone through the drive through, a lot of the time I don't. I actually make all my coffee at home now, so I don't really have to deal with this anymore.
  
  For the drive through you can just ask them to give you two cups, for "insulation" or whatever, the barista doesn't care.

I've never had this happen, but my barista's cologne is coffee so there's also that. I'd mention it and tell them I can taste their cologne. If It happens on two occasions, I wouldn't go back.

I haven't, but then again, all the places I frequent have staff who constantly wash their hands! I see them at the sink a lot while sipping on my coffee.

Haven't had it with coffee, but sometimes when ordering food in the summer it'll come smelling strongly of coppertone because we live near the shore.

Robot baristas
- Mechabaristas!

yes! YES!
I have serious issues with fragrances. Artificial fragrances in particular (i.e. most ones) but even essential oils get to me after a while. When I'm around cologne, air freshener, deodorant, shampoo/conditioner fumes, I can taste it for quite a while. It's completely vile. Extended exposure makes my eyes red, my lips swell a bit, and just a little makes me start oddly salivating. I guess it's some sort of allergy, maybe MCAS, but this sort of thing is very difficult to get diagnosed. Some doctors have acted like I have some sort of uh... misphonia but for smells, but no, I can detect scents quite accurately. One reason I may be sensitive is I'm not completely swamped in 10 different fragrances 24/7 like most people.
The only thing that really works is to wash my nose out with water. Not super sanitary, but it's better than salivating and tasting perfume for an hour. I have found that taking antihistamines reduces my sensitivity... I can still detect the fragrances, but get less of a reaction. That's a clue. Oh, and also I have 3 different autoimmune disorders... I've asked around and the only people I've gotten a "yes, that happens to me too" response from are people with MS.

Do you keep hand cream or lotion in the vehicle?

30 comments