Is ‘World’s Strongest Coffee’ Worth the Risk?

There are cups of coffee — and then there are cups of coffee with so much caffeine it really doesn’t seem advisable to drink them. Black Insomnia Coffee, which got its start last year in South Africa and has just become available in the United States, is likely the latter.

Touting itself as the “world’s strongest cup of coffee,” Black Insomnia contains 702 milligrams of caffeine per 12 fl. oz. cup, earning it a “dangerous” caffeine level assessment from the website Caffeine Informer, which aims to inform people about the caffeine’s risks and the amount of it in the foods and drinks they consume.

Even though CNN has cautioned that drinking Black Insomnia “could cause heart palpitations” — along with “jitteriness, nervousness, restlessness and trouble sleeping,” a Johns Hopkins School of Medicine caffeine researcher told the news source — the makers of the ultra-high-octane coffee have embraced its menacing rep.

They’ve taken a drink-at-your-own risk stance, boasting on the brand’s website that it is “for better or worse, the key to keeping you up all night long.” However, they intone, “What happens to you after you drink our coffee is on you!”

The product’s closest competitor for the most-caffeinated crown, a coffee named Death Wish, clocks in at around 660 mg per 12 fl. oz. cup, according to Caffeine Informer. Up to 400 mg of caffeine — about the amount in five shots of espresso, five 8 fl. oz. cans of Red Bull, 11 cans of cola, or two shots of 5-Hour Energy — is generally considered safe to drink each day for an average healthy adult.

“This isn’t everyone’s cup of Joe. Be warned,” the Black Insomnia creators acknowledge on the product site. “We know how great it tastes, and feels… but try not overdo it!”

Photo courtesy of @blackinsomniasa

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