As the clocks in classrooms indicate it is lunchtime, a herd of students rushes to the front office to sign out for off-campus lunch. When they come back at the end of lunch, many of them are happily chatting with their friends while their hands are holding onto drinks ranging from a Starbucks frappuccino to a soda from Jack in the Box.
These drinks are always different from one person to the next, and everyone seems to have a different reason for choosing the drink they do as people’s personal preferences and habits may differ.
Typically, hot drinks are associated with winter or colder temperatures, while cold drinks are associated with summer or hotter temperatures. However, there has been a global trend with the increase of cold beverages, regardless of what season or temperature it is.
“No matter the season, I always drink cold drinks all year round, every single season, because I like the flavors,” said student Selina Li (10), “The season and weather don't really affect my drink choices, because either way, I always get the same things.”
Li is not the only student following this global trend, though.
“I predominantly like cold drinks more,” said student Alyssa Liu (10), “Even during the winter, when people usually consume hotter drinks, I like colder drinks.”
However, there are still some people who consider external factors such as the temperature when getting their drinks.
“Usually, if it's winter, and especially if it's very cold, I'm not going to drink something cold,” said student Sean Ma (10).
Many students seem to be somewhat unsure of why they usually prefer cold drinks over hot drinks, but the refreshing feel of cold drinks and the difference in the taste of drinks between the two temperatures seems to be a consistent theme.
“To me, cold drinks are more refreshing. Even when it's cold, it still feels very refreshing,” continued Li, “While warm drinks, when they get lukewarm, it tastes kind of gross.”
Even so, there are still situations where students seem to prefer warmer drinks. These are typically moments where there is a greater demand for focus.
“I drink hot drinks either when I'm studying, or if I were to drink coffee in the morning, it would be more preferable to me to have it warm,” said Li.
For some though, these moments of desire for hot beverages and this increased trend of cold beverages itself have not impacted their drink choices. This can be seen with Ma who prefers cold drinks, but not as a result of these influences.
“My opinion on whether I should drink a drink that is hot or cold has never really been affected by other people,” continued Ma, “It's just whatever I want and whatever I want hasn't really happened to have changed so far.”
However, there are other aspects that are important to consider, even for simpler and daily drinks. People’s choices can be impacted by drink standards in countries and cultures.
“Since I grew up in America, I got used to having ice water. I am pretty quick to assimilate with Chinese culture whenever I go back, because they drink a lot of hot tea,” continued Liu, “There was no ice water, but I was still fine with it, although it's not my preference.”
Overall, people’s drink choices are a result of many factors ranging from personal habit and cultural influence, to situational need and influences from global trends.
“More people are preferring ice drinks, especially in the summer, over warmer drinks,” continued Li, “I see [a lot of people my age] always have an iced coffee in their hand.”