GO CUBES: Trying Out Chewable Coffee

Last week, I happened across an item on Product Hunt called GO CUBES. While this wasn’t the first time it was featured, it was the first time the product was available for order… so I decided to give it a whirl.

Let me start by saying: I love my coffee. I’m not in the market to replace it or to remove it from my life. But the claim of the product (consistent, measured caffeine without jitteriness or crash) made me curious.

I see the term nootropics used (in fact the parent company is called Nootrobox, and has a variety of products aimed at memory, focus, and sleep). It seems like devs and engineers would totally gravitate towards this stuff, and in way – I guess I’m gravitating towards it too.

Similar to Soylent, it seems that their products are continually refined/updated – which in an odd way is a selling point for its target audience. Product as software, in a way.

The claims seem interesting but the promo videos I’ve seen have been a bit much. The main video on the Nootrobox home page is almost unwatchable… though I do see how they really are targeting a particular customer.

Some of the additional info on the Product Hunt Page, made by the founders, is actually quite interesting – and worth a scan. Example:

I’ll see how this goes. I’m going to bring in some cubes to share with coworkers, and will report back.

// Edit: I was debating having these instead of my morning coffee. Then, on the ride in to work, I decided I like my morning routine (and my morning coffee) too much. This will have to wait for the afternoon.

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From Lindsey:

The gummy texture is very nice, but not necessarily what i would pair with a coffee flavor. I’d like it very much as a fruit snack.

The flavor was very compartmentalized, into 1) gumminess, 2) chemical/artificial sweetness and tanginess, 3) coffee flavor. Not terrible, but i would not replace my daily morning routine with these.

There is a long-lasting coffee after taste. I believe both cubes i ate were the drip coffee flavor. I would consider taking these as a coffee substitute in a bind, as when camping.

I will let you know how I feel in half an hour. I think the caffeine is already having an effect. I feel more focused, but without jitters, as Felix purported would be the case.

I think I would enjoy these most in the afternoon. would also probably be good for people (like me) that experience sensitivity to the acid in coffee.

These would also be good during a migraine, to get a dose of vessel-constricting caffeine without setting off your stomach.

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From Gary:

I agree with Lindsey’s sentiment about the flavors compartmentalizing.

If I didn’t know they were supposed to be coffee I’m not sure it would have been my first guess.

The compartmentalization was way more noticeable on the stronger flavor of the mocha gummy. The latte one was smoother.

They’ve got a sort of weird sweetness. Coffee uncanny valley.

I can’t tell if they’re having an effect yet. But my caffeine ramp-up is kind of slow.

I’d definitely use them in a pinch, but I agree they’d be better without the faux coffee flavor.

On the flip side if they were fruit flavored it’d be very easy to eat too many.

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Me:

Ate two cubes around 3:15PM. I didn’t notice much at first, and maybe 45+ minutes went by before I sensed much of anything. I had an odd sensation that I felt something within about 5 minutes of eating the cubes… but it was hard to tell.

The weirdest thing for me was trying to determine whether I actually felt something, or whether it was psychosomatic. It was actually really hard to determine.

I know that about an hour later, I was feeling something akin to the euphoria I usually feel after a cup of coffee. It wasn’t overly strong, but a few steps shy of a really strong cup of coffee.

I should note that Gary reported not feeling all that much (though he said he had a cup of tea, prior to eating the cubes). And Lindsey did feel the effects strongly (though she has stronger reactions to caffeine).

Whatever I felt, it was subtle. Less than a solid cup of coffee, but it was there. I don’t know that I could say I felt a strong sense of focus, but I definitely felt more awake – less prone to daydreaming or distraction.

I still have a good number of cubes left. I’ll have to keep trying them to see if I notice any specific, identifiable benefit. I think it’s there, but it’s a step lower than if I were to drink coffee. I will say that I didn’t feel any jitters, and didn’t feel any “crash” – even though I never really feel a “crash” from coffee.

We’ll see how this holds up. I’m pretty sure of one thing though: I really seem to like my Starbucks morning ritual, and don’t see that going away any time soon.

Related:
Caffeine, Versions 1 and 2
Soylent: An Experiment to Replace Food
First Experience with Soylent
A Box of Soylent – It’s People!