Body Coffee (Javabalm): Coffee Mint SPF15

Sometimes I worry that we (as a society, not we here at Chaptastic) are too obsessed with coffee. As if a Starbucks every eight steps isn't disconcerting enough, we just can't help making everything coffee flavored. Gum. Liquor. Condoms. The makers of today's reviewed stick, Body Coffee, joins in the proud coffee-obsessed tradition with its line of products.

Price: $3.95 online.

Appearance: Black-capped standard tube with a an edgy geometric and moody-colored label. Balm is a strange yellow-green.

Glide: Easy, smooth. Good coverage.

Flavor/Smell: Yelch. First of all, coffee and mint? Way to take two ridiculously strong, hold-their-own flavors and try to combine them. Would you ever order mint-flavored coffee? Well, if you've ever wondered what the matrimony of coffee and mint would smell like, it's this- alternately coffee and mint. There's no good fusion of the two scents, and the wax smell wins out over the failed union of flavors. Here are some other ingredients that further confuse the scent: olive oil, beeswax, hemp seed oil, comfrey, calendula, rosemary extract. The tube ends up smelling like a bad crayon.

The company also makes Vanilla Mint and CoffeeMocha flavors. I feel like this CoffeeMint concoction resulted from having leftovers from the first two.

Lasting Power: Despite the weird smell, it works pretty freakin' well. Has great ingredients (like Vitamin E and the olive and hemp seed oil mentioned above) that soothe, soften and moisturize.

Product Plusses: SPF15, non-petroleum, constant coffee companion. Note that this tube is not caffeinated.

If I had either of the other two flavors of this brand I'd probably use them regularly, but I'm not a big fan of the flavors in the Coffee Mint (clearly). That said, I have to admit that the stick ain't bad generally. It'd be even better if the coffee were backed up by some caffeine.

4.0 out of 5 tubes.