The products that stumble forth from Philip Broughton’s restless, inventive brain are more the result of his own curiosity and sense of fun than they are a deep desire to build a business. His company, Funranium Labs, is more a playground and message board for he and fans of his two products: an intense concentrated coffee brew called Black Blood of the Earth, and a beer stein called Stein of Science that keeps liquids cold for hours. Broughton, who works as a radiation safety specialist at UC Berkeley and an adjunct professor at Las Positas College in Livermore, CA., generated $150,000 last year with his one-man side company at 20% profit margins, taking online orders and shipping out product. About $100,000 of that came from his coffee. No-Nonsense Coffee His flagship product, Black Blood of the Earth, is a concentrated coffee drink made by the cold water extraction of the oils and essence of ground coffee beans, sans acidity. What’s produced is a strong, flavorful brew with less bitterness and between 20 and 40 times the caffeine of regular coffee. Due to its extreme potency, the Black Blood should be consumed in small quantities—a caution I observed when I tried some of Broughton’s Kona blend. The origins of Black Blood of the Earth lie in Broughton being diagnosed a diabetic in 2009. Partial to highly sugared coffee from local cafes near UC Berkley, he decided to figure out how he could have a jolting coffee experience without having to mitigate the bitter taste with sweetener. Taking inspiration from photos of a Vietnamese triple-extraction apparatus, Broughton built his own cold-extractor and began experimenting with his own coffee brews. Broughton has shipped his Black Blood all over the place to those who appreciate a more intense coffee experience, sending bottles of the brew to customers domestically as well as overseas. “I find that a lot of my coffee is going into the hands of IT and research,” Broughton says. “And writers.”
Reported by Forbes.com 15 hours ago.
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