Cop Sues Starbucks

[Al]

Originally Posted By: glock19
Originally Posted By: danthaman1980

The state health departments need to step in. They effectively regulate the rest of the foodservice industry in order to prevent people from getting food poisoning, they should also regulate the temperature at which customers' coffee can be served in order to prevent people from getting seriously injured.


Seriously? I hope this is a joke. The government shouldn't have to save people from themselves.

LOL..yea..wowzers!!!

Here is a thought..If the coffee is too cold tell them to warm it up or not charge you. If its too hot tell them you are afraid of it. Ultimately people can do what the government can't..force the vendor to satisfy the customer.

 

[bammer5609]

How can the coffee or any hot brewed water based beverage be any hotter then the maximum boiling point of water which is 100 deg. celcius? It cannot be hotter then 100 unless it is made in a machine that simulates a cars radiator, increase the pressure and the boiling point goes up. Now, at what altitude was the coffee made? As the altitude goes up, the temperature at which water boils goes down. Here in Calgary, water boils at about 96deg or so, so the coffee here can be no hotter then 96 deg. Any hotter and what you get is steam.

The best part of stories like this is these people actually win cases like this.

 

[linkbelt]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
I did add ice. It was still nuclear hot.


Could switch to their ice tea.

 

[Merkava_4]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Because of greedy morons like him, we will all be served lukewarm coffee pretty soon.

By the time my coffee gets all loaded up with Vanilla CoffeeMate, all the heat is extinguished.

 

[HTSS_TR]

The last time I had a cup of coffee at Starbucks was more than 4-5 years ago when it was free.

I never paid for any coffee of any type anywhere, just have a home made cappuccino with Lavazza Italian Roast once a day. I have the coffee at the temperature I like with coffee strength I prefer for less than 30 cents a cup, and don't have to drive anywhere for it.

Hot drink is hot, why someone expects hot coffee to be not hot ?

 

[user52165]

Originally Posted By: bammer5609
How can the coffee or any hot brewed water based beverage be any hotter then the maximum boiling point of water which is 100 deg. celcius? It cannot be hotter then 100 unless it is made in a machine that simulates a cars radiator, increase the pressure and the boiling point goes up. Now, at what altitude was the coffee made? As the altitude goes up, the temperature at which water boils goes down. Here in Calgary, water boils at about 96deg or so, so the coffee here can be no hotter then 96 deg. Any hotter and what you get is steam.

The best part of stories like this is these people actually win cases like this.



Kudos - Here is the only poster paying attention in high school physics class.

But - winning a case is the WORST part. We all pay for it.

 

[hpb]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
I had breakfast at McDonald's Sunday morning. I now understand why the lady sued them.

Yes, coffee is hot. McDonald's coffee is something entirely different; it's nuclear hot.

It had to sit MORE THAN AN HOUR before it was to the point I could drink it without burning myself!


That sounds a touch exaggerated...sure you didn't accidentally order a cup of lava?

 

[Olas]

This thread offers up a very convincing case for e reintroduction of eugenics.

People who are so stupid they cannot comprehend that hot coffee can burn them should not have the privelege of being allowed to live, never mind reproduce.

 

[Vikas]

If you are talking about the physics of boiling water and temperature, you show be aware that adding coffee in water raises the temperature at which the solution boils.

I would not have said anything but since you yourself brought physics in this topic, it was my duty to take you down from your high horse.

Next time you are near your house water heater, please note the temperature at which the thermostat is set and them come and report it here.

 

[hatt]

The water is heated before it touches coffee.

 

[Astro14]

Originally Posted By: Vikas
If you are talking about the physics of boiling water and temperature, you show be aware that adding coffee in water raises the temperature at which the solution boils.

I would not have said anything but since you yourself brought physics in this topic, it was my duty to take you down from your high horse.

Next time you are near your house water heater, please note the temperature at which the thermostat is set and them come and report it here.


Since we're talking physics...one of my favorite subjects...

Let's look at how a drip coffee is made: water is dripped through the grounds, filtered, and then collected in a container.

Since the water must be liquid to be dripped, the increase in boiling point from the coffee in the water does not affect the temperature at which coffee is made.

Further, from my experience with a French press (and a few data points using my IR thermometer), water of about 180 F seems to balance the best flavor, so, I suspect the water is heated to about that temperature. Now, the grounds cool it a bit, and depending on the temperature of the container, it's usually cooled a bit more after that.

But from a simple physics perspective, no the coffee created can't be above 212 F (lower here in Denver, where I am at the moment).

What remains open is the temperature at which Starbucks keeps the coffee after it is brewed. You could heat already brewed coffee above the boiling point of water...but those units in which they store drip coffee appear to have a thermostat to regulate the temperature. It's possible that Starbucks had a failed warmer that superheated the coffee.

So, how did our incredibly observant law enforcement professional pick up this cup of coffee in question and not notice that it was hotter than normal? Does he not sip the coffee to ensure that it's both fresh and warm? Does he simply take the superheated coffee, ignore that it's burning his hand and then spill it on himself?

 

[kschachn]

When I first saw this thread, I too didn't know how even boiling water could produce 3rd-degree burns. Back when I was in school 3rd-degree burns were defined as charred or blackened flesh. No way water is going to do that, it's just not hot enough to denature proteins. But apparently the definition changed somewhere along the line, now it is a burn that kills the nerves regardless of the physical appearance. So maybe under that definition it could happen.

Still though lIke Astro14 mentioned, it is unlikely that Starbucks would have a warmer that served boiling coffee but I guess it could happen.

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted By: hatt
The water is heated before it touches coffee.


This, coffee is usually not boiled after the water has been through the grounds. If it is, i don't want to drink it.

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: Astro14

So, how did our incredibly observant law enforcement professional pick up this cup of coffee in question and not notice that it was hotter than normal? Does he not sip the coffee to ensure that it's both fresh and warm? Does he simply take the superheated coffee, ignore that it's burning his hand and then spill it on himself?

Certainly its not impossible for this to happen...so I can't really fault him. Accidents happen and we all have done incredibly stupid stuff. But most of us would admit to our own stupidity.

This guy is to stupid to realize how stupidhe was and obviously still is. He obviously has no pride, soul, or common sense..IMHO.

 

[javacontour]

It's foreseeable by the coffee drinker. Coffee is something one is to avoid if you have Crohn's disease as it stimulates the bowel.

Not something you want if you do in fact suffer from Crohn's disease.

So if Kohn knew he had Crohn's disease, why is he drinking coffee in the first place?

Originally Posted By: Win

.... , but here's the allegation, per ABC News:
Quote:
Kohr claims the burn aggravated his Crohn’s disease and caused him to have surgery that led to the removal of a portion of his large intestine, the lawsuit states. ....


How is that reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer of the coffee system, or the business operating it in a commercial environment? Is it now strict liability for business?

This kind of nonsense is why a high quality commercial coffee maker like above ^^^^^^ linked, made in a first world country, costs five figures. Ya gotta sell a lot of lukewarm coffee to make that back.

 

[javacontour]

Having coffee in the mixture may raise the boiling point.

Remember, we are not talking about pure water.

Now the explanations that to have water pass through the grounds implies it cannot be steam. However, the resulting coffee may have a boiling point higher than the original water.

Originally Posted By: bammer5609
How can the coffee or any hot brewed water based beverage be any hotter then the maximum boiling point of water which is 100 deg. celcius? It cannot be hotter then 100 unless it is made in a machine that simulates a cars radiator, increase the pressure and the boiling point goes up. Now, at what altitude was the coffee made? As the altitude goes up, the temperature at which water boils goes down. Here in Calgary, water boils at about 96deg or so, so the coffee here can be no hotter then 96 deg. Any hotter and what you get is steam.

The best part of stories like this is these people actually win cases like this.

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted By: javacontour
Having coffee in the mixture may raise the boiling point.

Remember, we are not talking about pure water.

Now the explanations that to have water pass through the grounds implies it cannot be steam. However, the resulting coffee may have a boiling point higher than the original water.

Originally Posted By: bammer5609
How can the coffee or any hot brewed water based beverage be any hotter then the maximum boiling point of water which is 100 deg. celcius? It cannot be hotter then 100 unless it is made in a machine that simulates a cars radiator, increase the pressure and the boiling point goes up. Now, at what altitude was the coffee made? As the altitude goes up, the temperature at which water boils goes down. Here in Calgary, water boils at about 96deg or so, so the coffee here can be no hotter then 96 deg. Any hotter and what you get is steam.

The best part of stories like this is these people actually win cases like this.



But who is boiling coffee after its made? The higher boiling point of water with coffee in it, is irrelevant. No place i know boils coffee after its made.

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
He didn't know the coffee would be hot??

And we let this idiot carry a gun...


Like buying a knife and suing for getting cut with it.

I did'nt know it was THAT sharp.

I agree, idiot looking for an opportunity.

 

[javacontour]

Originally Posted By: spasm3
Originally Posted By: javacontour
Having coffee in the mixture may raise the boiling point.

Remember, we are not talking about pure water.

Now the explanations that to have water pass through the grounds implies it cannot be steam. However, the resulting coffee may have a boiling point higher than the original water.


But who is boiling coffee after its made? The higher boiling point of water with coffee in it, is irrelevant. No place i know boils coffee after its made.


One possibility previously suggested was a faulty warmer after the coffee was brewed.

However, it's more likely the coffee was NOT above the boiling point of water. However, there is a set of circumstances that makes it possible, albeit unlikely.

 

[Vikas]

what would happen to your mouth and tongue if you drink the boiling hot coffee?