Unlike most college students, who have Starbucks as their go-to coffee place, Sewanee students have the joy of getting their morning cup of joe or afternoon pick-me-up from a quirky Victorian yellow building called Stirling’s Coffee House. One of the perks to Stirling’s is that it brings together different members of the community to spend quality time over a cup of coffee. One of its charms is the eccentric names for its many drinks, which weren’t named randomly like they may sound. These drinks have unique stories as to how they came to be that makes Stirling’s all the more special to the Sewanee community!
1. The Kinion
“This Stirling’s coffee drink is named after a middle school humanities teacher, Mrs. Kinion, at Saint Andrews School (SAS). She’d come to Stirling’s literally every day for so many years that we decided to simplify things for her and give Mrs. Kinion her own drink.” – Elise Anderson.
2. Woman in Charge
“The ‘Woman in Charge’ is dedicated to our former boss, Katherine Evans. She is one of the most fabulous women I know and this is the drink that she’d make for herself every morning before work. She has a way of gliding around very gracefully even during the busiest of mornings and made sure the first thing she did was make this Stirling’s coffee drink for herself.” – Catherine Casselman
3. Queen of the Day & Queen of the Night
“The Queen of the Day is for our former daytime assistant manager, Whitney, and the Queen of the Night is for our nighttime assistant manager, Chelsea Tharp. These are the drinks they’d make for themselves, respectively. They’re both really incredible human beings with both being such essential parts in running Stirlings day and night that it just felt right to name these drinks after them.” – Catherine Casselman
4. Chilled Sewanee Afternoon & Cool Sewanee Morning
“The Cool Sewanee Morning is comprised of iced coffee, chocolate mint flavor, and a splash of cream. On the other hand, the Chilled Sewanee Afternoon is a single shot of espresso, Swiss chocolate flavor and boatloads of half and half. For real, this drink is mostly half and half.” – Elise Anderson
If you need convincing to order iced coffee during cold weather, iced coffee has 67% less acid than hot coffee.
“To emphasize what Elise said, there’s so much half and half that we call it the Halfternoon” – Amber Smith
5. Bison Whisperer
“This one is named after my personal hero, Emmitt. Him and his wife, Lizzie, own Lost Cove where they operate a farm filled with bison. Emmitt is another regular customer at Stirling’s Coffee House who likes to order the same drink every time he comes here, which is basically every day. He’s one of mine and Catherine’s favorite customers because of his politeness, kindness, and warmth. So naturally we decided to give him his own drink!” – Elise Anderson
6. Sewanee Angel
This one has to be my favorite drinks because of its special Sewanee story. In a folk story, it’s said that the Domain of the University of the South is a place so beautiful that angels dwell within its gates. These angels protect all inhabitants and visitors on the Domain. Sewanee angels are more than happy to be your guardian angel to protect you when you’re on the Domain as well as off the mountain. In order to grab your own angel on your way out of Sewanee, all you have to do is tap the roof of your car as you drive through the university’s gates. When you return to Sewanee, you tap the roof of your car to release your angel back to the Domain.
So if you’re ever in the mood for an equally delicious and unique treat, head on over to Stirling’s Coffee House.