The Auburn area is home to a vibrant community of local coffee shops and roasteries. The city is on its way to becoming the capital of Alabama's coffee culture.
Americans consume more than $30 billion worth of coffee a year, according to CNBC. The industry has exploded over the last 10 years, but the country has been obsessed with coffee for its morning fix since patriots began dumping their tea in favor of the stronger brew, simply to spite the British.
In a single day, Americans consume more than 400 million cups of joe — more than 146 billion cups in a year. The average American drinks more than two cups per day.
Every morning Auburn students and locals pile into the coffee shops scattered around the city, and the morning rush hardly tapers until the doors shut at night.
According to Fraser Perrett, general manager of Prevail Union, his coffee shop grinds more than 80 pounds of coffee per week.
The baristas at Prevail Union then take the locally roasted coffee and transform it into popular drinks, such as their signature Honey Vanilla Raspberry Latte or the Alabama Stinger.
Just a couple of blocks over, the baristas at Coffee Cat brew up their signature drink, the Tweeker, a drink made with cold brew concentrate and brown sugar served over ice. Maddie Wilder, owner of Coffee Cat, said her café orders more than 75 pounds of coffee per week — 50 pounds of which is used for espresso.
In Seattle, one can’t walk more than two blocks — if that far — without passing a coffee shop. The city has more coffee shops per 100,000 people than any other in the nation, according to CNBC.
Auburn's downtown coffee shop density is hardly any lighter. If one stands in the middle of Toomer’s Corner, he or she is less than 1 mile from seven coffee shops. More than half of those are locally owned and operated.
“We’re kind of the last stop when it comes to coffee growth,” Wilder said. “I think we can support it because we don’t compete with each other. We have throw downs with each other. We share customers. There’s no bad blood in the coffee community here.”
According to both Perrett and Wilder, Auburn supports such a large concentration of local shops because of its sense of community.
The classic Overall Company coffee shop, which served those over in Opelika, is now being ran under a different name. The Overall Company is planning on relocating, restructuring and reopening soon.
The Auburn-Opelika area is home to seven locally owned and operated coffee shops, in addition to three Starbucks and two other chain coffee shops. In comparison, the Tuscaloosa-Northport area is home to only two local coffee cafés, despite having nearly twice the population.
“Auburn is such a great city, with a family feel and atmosphere,” Perrett said. “Everybody’s friendly, everyone cares. It’s just a nice town full of nice people, which I think goes a long way in the coffee business community.”
In a competition run by AL.com, Auburn spouted the top three coffee shops in lower Alabama. Three of the nine best coffee shops in Alabama are in Auburn, according to those who voted in the polls.
Mama Mochas finished second behind Satellite Coffee in Birmingham for best coffee shop in the state. Prevail Union was the Critics’ Pick in the competition.
Auburn-Opelika is not only home to local coffee cafés, but to major coffee roasters as well. Prevail just began roasting coffee locally in Opelika, which is now being used in its café in Auburn, its outpost in the previous Overall Company building in Opelika and a “pop up shop” in Montgomery.
Mama Mochas roasts the coffee that is used in its shop as well as the coffee used at Coffee Cat. Mama Mochas ships its roasted coffee all over the country from its online store. Toomer’s Coffee Roasters ship their roasted beans regionally and nationally.
The Seattle culture of coffee shop madness has definitely made its way to the Deep South, with its heart in the Loveliest Village. Caffeinated roots originating in Seattle have sprouted in Auburn’s own backyard — or front yard.
“Coffee is something that’s kind of universal,” Wilder said. “Everyone likes coffee.”
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