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Awesome Coffee Club: the brothers' coffee subscription for charity (2022)

project history · status: completed · last event: outcome (2024-09-10) · last mentioned: 2024-10-30

The Awesome Coffee Club, a coffee subscription whose profits go to charity, soft-launched in March 2022 with limited slots, grew past 10,000 members and added light, decaf, single bags, K-cups and bulk bags. In September 2024 it was rebranded as Keats & Co. Coffee, adding tea, to fight tuberculosis.

Parts: Hank: someday there will be Awesome Coffee Club subscribers who have no idea who Hank and John Green are (2022) · Hank: explain how decaf is made once the Awesome Coffee Club offers decaf (2022) · John's Tumblr persona: the Awesome Coffee Club and its 'unpaid intern' (2023) · John: ask Partners In Health whether it can formalize or publicize a certification that the coffee club's profits go to PIH (2023)

Told alongside: John and Hank ask viewers to sign up for the Awesome Socks Club for 2023 (2022) · Awesome Socks Club: monthly sock subscription (2016) · Good Store: the brothers' store and subscription box at good.store giving all profit to charity (2023) · Keats & Co.: the brothers' coffee and tea brand fighting tuberculosis (2024) · Sun Basin Soap: the brothers' charity soap subscription made with Botanie (2023) · John asks viewers to buy Sun Basin Soap, whose profit goes to charity (2023) · Pizzamas 2023 edition · Hank's Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis and chemotherapy (2023)

About: Awesome Coffee Club

date event what video
2022-03-22 launched The description announces the brothers' new thing, the Awesome Coffee Club, with very limited slots now and a proper launch in a few weeks; John's channel comment calls it a monthly coffee subscription whose profits all go to stronger health care systems. Motivation in Hard Times video description
2022-03-29 milestone The description says Awesome Coffee is almost sold out: great coffee with 100% of profits to charity. An H of G video description
2022-07-12 milestone John says the Awesome Coffee Club cannot solve his first problem but seeks to solve the other two; a few months ago they semi-secretly launched the coffee company. Nauseous Puddle Water 00:00:48
2022-07-15 milestone In a comment Hank suggests that anyone who thinks this planet matters and wants to love life while helping others wake up every morning with coffee from AwesomeCoffeeClub.com. (playful) Thoughts From the Universe - Woah creator comment
2022-07-19 milestone In a channel comment answering a viewer who called the video stealth sponsored content, John says the brothers are paid nothing for the coffee club; it is one path to fund the Maternal Center of Excellence. Why Do Things Exist? creator comment
2022-07-22 milestone The coffee club has already donated $100,000 to Partners In Health, Hank thinks. (hedged) What are These Boys Doing?? 00:03:30
2022-08-09 milestone The description invites viewers to join the more than 11,000 members of the Awesome Coffee Club. How to Cook Beans and Resist Dread video description
2022-09-06 milestone In a channel comment John says to distrust all advice except this: the Awesome Coffee Club offers better coffee that is better for the world, since 100% of profits go to charity. Some Advice creator comment
2022-10-18 proposed In a channel comment John says light roasts and decaf are coming to the Awesome Coffee Club next month (November 2022). Terraverse Over Everything: Thoughts from London creator comment
2022-11-15 milestone John announces that starting today the Awesome Coffee Club offers a light roast, Calypso; its coffee is sent to your house and 100% of profits go to charity. 3 Years In: What Happened, Why, and What's Next 00:03:24
2022-11-17 milestone Hank is excited about the coffee club's light roast, launched this week (week of 14 November 2022). A Quick Update for the Sock Fiends 00:00:58
2022-11-18 milestone Hank says the Coffee Club will remain open perpetually. How Much Does Humanity Weigh? 00:03:34
2022-11-22 milestone John says the Awesome Coffee Club now sells single bags for those who don't want a subscription yet. John's 2022 Gift Guide 00:02:54
2023-01-03 milestone In a channel comment, John says he has become the Awesome Coffee Club's unpaid social media intern, so far only on Tumblr, and may start a TikTok. TAKE IT DOWN A NOTCH creator comment
2023-01-17 milestone In a comment reply, John says the Awesome Coffee Club is more his than Hank's, though mostly run by the folks at dftba.com. John Green Answers the Most Searched Hank Green Questions creator comment
2023-01-24 milestone Today the Awesome Coffee Club launches its decaf roast, Paradoxica, named like all its roasts after a Sierra Leonean butterfly; it now covers light, medium dark and decaf. Behind the Scenes of my TUMBLR MEME LORD ERA 00:02:00
2023-02-03 milestone Hank says tens of thousands of people get coffee and tens of thousands get socks from the clubs every month. My Mid-Afternoon Existential Crisis 00:00:43
2023-04-04 milestone John announces that the Awesome Coffee Club now sells backyard-compostable K-cups and five-pound bags for bulk office coffee needs. The Search for Real Feeling 00:00:29
2023-05-02 milestone Among more ways to help, the description asks viewers to join the Awesome Coffee Club or get Sun Basin soap, and to spread the word. GOOD NEWS creator comment
2023-05-23 milestone Colleagues from Missoula to Sierra Leone count on the brothers to continue the Awesome Coffee and Socks clubs and everything else DFTBA makes. Rough Week 00:03:24
2023-05-30 milestone John lists Hank's roles: CEO of Complexly and DFTBA.com, founder of the Awesome Socks and Coffee Clubs and Sun Basin Soap, host of Crash Course, SciShow, Journey to the Microcosmos, Vlogbrothers and an advice podcast. How Does He Do It? 00:00:08
2023-06-13 milestone John's comment says the Awesome Socks Club has reopened and urges viewers to get Awesome Coffee Club coffee, whose profits all fight maternal and child mortality in Sierra Leone. touched by a king creator comment
2023-06-20 milestone John announces the Awesome Coffee Club is accepting new members now, calling it the best coffee in the world. (playful) Reflections from a Terrible CEO 00:03:05
2023-06-27 milestone The description asks viewers to join the Awesome Socks Club or the Awesome Coffee Club, with 100% of profit going to charity. Alone on the Cancer Boat: A Vlogbrothers Reunion video description
2023-08-01 milestone John says working with these suppliers is a gift to the club and its over 10,000 subscribers. Three Mornings 00:05:20
2023-08-04 milestone Hank says the Awesome Coffee Club is also intentional and careful: rather than relying on certifications, they visit the coffee's makers, and the coffee is cared for from the tree in Colombia to their Missoula warehouse. The Biggest Science Story of the Week 00:05:34
2023-08-29 rule change The description says all the clubs are now part of the brothers' new project Good Store, where you can subscribe to a better world. Breaking News: CEO Demoted video description
2023-11-24 milestone Hank says Good.Store also offers the Awesome Coffee Club and Sun Basin Soap, whose holiday boxes he plugs. It Wasn't Supposed to be Thanksgiving Yesterday 00:03:48
2023-11-28 proposed Answering a viewer in a comment, John says they are working on international shipping for the Awesome Coffee Club, hopefully alongside a launch of tea. (hedged) John's (Mostly Book) Holiday Gift Recommendations creator comment
2023-12-01 looked back Looking for other subscriptions, they found ethically sourced coffee and started soaps with Sun Basin Soap, a local private-label maker; more subscriptions such as tea will follow. It's OK if you think less of me after this! 00:03:45
2024-01-16 milestone Most of the money still comes from the Awesome Socks Club, but coffee and soap are growing, and Pizzamas grew last year (2023) too. The Bank of Nerdfighteria 00:01:31
2024-02-16 looked back Hank says the goal of raising $25 million for the Maternal Center of Excellence caused many of their ideas, like the Awesome Socks Club and the Awesome Coffee Club, and many asks of individuals and the community. How Much Does it Cost to be a Nerdfighter 00:00:58
2024-06-18 rule change Good Store's socks and soap stay oriented around maternal mortality, while coffee and now tea relaunch as a new brand, Keats & Co., to fight tuberculosis. The Tea 00:03:53
2024-09-06 milestone The brothers are rebranding the Awesome Coffee Club as Keats & Co., a coffee and tea brand; Hank says the tea is great and reviews are coming in. I feel like I can't talk about this… 00:02:26
2024-09-10 outcome To support the project they officially launch Keats & Co. today: the Awesome Coffee Club rebrands as Keats & Co. Coffee, adds tea, and ships to Europe. The world will change. 00:03:24
2024-10-30 looked back John shows the new Keats & Co. coffee design: formerly the Awesome Coffee Club, renamed because its money supports TB care; its dark roast is lighter than Starbucks's. Sipping the Tea with Hank 00:29:11

What is said about it

46 statements, by date (the events above are the turns of the thread; these are the details).

  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: The description explains the club ships only in the US because freshness and the money raised for charity both decrease the further coffee is shipped; hopefully that will change one day. (hedged) — video description
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — In a comment John says they spent a year and a half sourcing the coffee because it is really hard to do well, and certifications only tell you so much. — creator comment
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John: The club works directly with small farmers' collectives in Colombia's Tolima region and delivers coffee every month or every two weeks. — 00:01:17
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John says the club knows exactly where and by whom its coffee is farmed, which is surprisingly rare, and sourcing partner Sucafina pays farmers directly so money stays in their communities. — 00:01:17
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John: The club's beans are grown by communities actively working to eliminate deforestation. — 00:01:17
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John: The club pays above market rates for its beans and guarantees a minimum payment if prices drop, raising farmer income and securing the best beans. — 00:01:46
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John: First Crack roasts the coffee to a rich medium-dark roast, sold whole bean or ground. — 00:01:46
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John: The coffee costs $22 per bag including shipping, can be cancelled any time, and households drinking more than 22 cups per two weeks can order multiple bags. — 00:02:15
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John: The club does not ship internationally, at least not for now; John apologizes and puts the explanation in the description. — 00:02:15
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — announcement: John says all of the club's profits, not some or most, are donated to fight maternal and child mortality in impoverished communities. — 00:02:15
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — John: Since the spring soft launch the club has received many pictures, emails and tweets about the coffee; John says it really is the best beans, roasted perfectly. — 00:02:44
  • 2022-07-12 · Nauseous Puddle Water — ask: John tells viewers they can get the coffee at AwesomeCoffeeClub.com, linked in the description. — 00:03:14
  • 2022-07-19 · Why Do Things Exist? — announcement: John: In a P.S. John jokes it is probably illegal to market to Orin, who doesn't drink coffee anyway, and points viewers to AwesomeCoffeeClub.com, their new coffee subscription. (playful) — 00:03:40
  • 2022-07-22 · What are These Boys Doing?? — Hank says the brothers are up to something: two different subscriptions to two very different products. (playful) — 00:00:00
  • 2022-07-22 · What are These Boys Doing?? — Hank: The same is true for John and the coffee, Hank says: without Partners In Health's work to excite them, they would not be as ambitious. — 00:01:40
  • 2022-07-22 · What are These Boys Doing?? — Hank: The brothers are lucky to ask what the best and coolest use of this activation energy is: things like delicious, ethically sourced coffee that gives all its profit to charity. — 00:02:56
  • 2022-07-22 · What are These Boys Doing?? — Hank: Every bag delivers two dozen delicious cups of coffee, Hank adds. (playful) — 00:03:35
  • 2022-07-22 · What are These Boys Doing?? — announcement: Hank congratulates John on the coffee club launch and notes viewers can still sign up at awesomecoffeeclub.com. — 00:03:50
  • 2022-11-15 · 3 Years In: What Happened, Why, and What's Next — John: The roasts are named after butterflies of Sierra Leone: the classic medium-dark Octavia and the new light roast Calypso. — 00:03:24
  • 2022-11-17 · A Quick Update for the Sock Fiends — announcement: Hank: The coffee club has no decaf yet; Hank, a decaf drinker, says they will get there, but decaf is surprisingly complicated and they want to do it right. — 00:00:58
  • 2022-11-17 · A Quick Update for the Sock Fiends — Hank says the whole point is working hard to make high-quality things, art on your feet or coffee that tastes good and is good for the world, so no decaf until they can do it right. — 00:01:27
  • 2022-11-18 · How Much Does Humanity Weigh? — announcement: Hank says coffee plantations can drive deforestation but can be done in partnership with a forest; the Awesome Coffee Club's small farmers work to reduce deforestation and practise regenerative agriculture. — 00:03:34
  • 2022-11-22 · John's 2022 Gift Guide — ask: John: For coffee lovers John suggests an Awesome Coffee Club membership: carefully sourced, perfectly roasted beans, with 100% of profits supporting better maternal health in Sierra Leone. — 00:02:54
  • 2023-01-24 · Behind the Scenes of my TUMBLR MEME LORD ERA — In a channel comment John says decaf usually sucks because of how it is made, but the club decaffeinates by the more complex, expensive sugarcane method that makes it not suck. — creator comment
  • 2023-01-24 · Behind the Scenes of my TUMBLR MEME LORD ERA — John: A while back John decided he didn't need a Twitter and turned his Twitter account into the Awesome Coffee Club's. — 00:00:29
  • 2023-01-24 · Behind the Scenes of my TUMBLR MEME LORD ERA — John says the Awesome Coffee Club supplies coffee, now including decaf, to over 10,000 subscribers in the US and Canada and donates 100% of its profits to charity. — 00:02:58
  • 2023-01-24 · Behind the Scenes of my TUMBLR MEME LORD ERA — ask: John urges viewers to join the club, maybe not on Tumblr but definitely at awesomecoffeeclub.com. — 00:02:58
  • 2023-02-03 · My Mid-Afternoon Existential Crisis — announcement: Hank says a glitch in the subscription system that runs the Awesome Socks Club, the coffee club and Pizzamas may have emailed members that they will be skipped this month (February 2023); they won't be, and a fix is coming. — 00:00:21
  • 2023-04-04 · The Search for Real Feeling — ask: John asks viewers to tell their bosses, office procurement services, and friends and family who use K-cups about the Awesome Coffee Club's new products. — 00:00:33
  • 2023-06-20 · Reflections from a Terrible CEO — John: On a recent visit, the DFTBA team taught John how the warehouse works and how to pack Awesome Coffee for subscribers. — 00:03:00
  • 2023-06-27 · Alone on the Cancer Boat: A Vlogbrothers Reunion — John: After a day packing socks at the DFTBA warehouse and learning how the coffee and socks are shipped, John believes more than ever in the company and its people. — 00:00:00
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — ask: The description says the club's coffee is different and better on every level and invites viewers to join at awesomecoffeeclub.com. — video description
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — announcement: John: Asked by a European viewer, John says in a comment that the club is working on shipping to Europe, hopefully soon. (hedged) — creator comment
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — announcement: John: Asked about tea, John says in a comment that they are working on it now, slowly, to get flavor and everything else right. — creator comment
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — In a comment, John says he is the club's temporary CEO and unpaid intern, and did not get Hank's salary with Hank's promotion. (playful) — creator comment
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — announcement: In a comment, John says the club developed its own framework with Sucafina focused on the real health of communities and people it works with. — creator comment
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — announcement: John says DFTBA runs the Awesome Coffee Club, Marta is one of the farmers whose beans he drinks daily, and DFTBA staff recently went to Colombia to learn from her and other farmers. (playful) — 00:00:42
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — John says Marta being paid fairly is good for her and part of why awesome coffee is awesome. (playful) — 00:01:56
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — announcement: John says that because the club became a big coffee company quickly, it also works with larger producers, provided they are working toward a better shared future. — 00:02:05
  • 2023-08-01 · Three Mornings — announcement: John says the push for change came from inside the Green Coffee Company, making it the kind of place the club wants to do business with, and the club's beans now come from there too. — 00:03:55
  • 2023-08-29 · Breaking News: CEO Demoted — John describes DFTBA.com as an e-commerce company connecting fans to creators like the McElroy Brothers or Kurzgesagt, which also makes the Awesome Socks and Coffee Clubs and Sun Basin Soap. — 00:00:00
  • 2023-08-29 · Breaking News: CEO Demoted — John says he wasn't very good at the job and is thrilled to be demoted back to his natural role as unpaid social media intern making memes about the coffee. (playful) — 00:01:57
  • 2023-08-29 · Breaking News: CEO Demoted — ask: John: For the last time as CEO, John asks viewers to buy the soap, coffee and socks, noting that 100% of the profit goes to charity. — 00:03:24
  • 2023-11-28 · John's (Mostly Book) Holiday Gift Recommendations — ask: John: For coffee lovers John recommends the Awesome Coffee gift boxes. — 00:03:21
  • 2024-06-18 · The Tea — John says the share of people who sign up for their coffee and stay signed up is in the high 90s percent. — 00:04:52
  • 2024-09-10 · The world will change. — John: Since the soft launch to Nerdfighteria a few months ago, Keats & Co. and the Awesome Coffee Club have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for TB care, which they see as just the beginning. — 00:03:53