Though it might not be the first thing you want to think about while enjoying your first cup of the day, coffee and personal finances often go hand in hand like, well, cream and sugar. With generally higher expectations of quality, Millennials find themselves dead center in this conversation, especially as demand for specialty coffee continues to increase.

Influential Millennial financial advisor and specialty coffee connoisseur, Douglas A. Boneparth, CFP^® of Bone Fide Wealth is one of the leading voices in this conversation, and has worked to debunk the considerable hyperbole that often comes in its wake. “My generation places a large emphasis on quality and attention to detail,” Douglas tells us. “We’d rather spend $3 on an excellent cup of coffee than $1 on some garbage water.”

In recent years, many financial advisors have spoken on the so-called “latte effect” or “ latte factor,” AKA the financial drain of visiting coffee shops. Certainly, that $5 cold brew might set you back when you’re on your second or third cup of the day, but the ultimate impact of your coffee habit might also be a bit overblown.

When considering that daily cup from the local shop, Douglas is more encouraging. “I always tell my clients that if a bagel and a good cup of coffee in the morning is what helps them get out there and crush it, don’t stop what you’re doing,” he says. “I’m not a big believer in the ‘latte effect' since I encourage all my clients to have mastery over their cash flow. They know the impact of their financial decisions. Having said that, those who do not have control over their spending should take the time to understand the impact something like multiple trips to the café can have on their finances.”

To that end, skipping the coffee shop and brewing at home is one of the easiest ways to enjoy quality coffee at a lesser expense, with the additional benefit of variety. “Not only does brewing at home help reduce expenses, but it also allows you try all the wonderful coffees out there,” Douglas suggests. “There are only so many varieties a single shop is going to serve. So, if you’re into reducing your expenses and trying delicious coffee, home-brewing is a great way to do that.”

And when it comes to saving money, trying great new coffees, and brewing at home this summer, there’s no better way to accomplish all three than with a personalized cold brew subscription featuring our signature Trade Cold Brew Bags. “The Cold Brew Bags are a great and easy way to stock up your own supply of iced coffee,” Douglas tells us. “There’s nothing better than having a bunch of mason jars filled with amazing cold brew in your fridge.”

If the savings are not initially obvious when purchasing a 12 oz bag in one go, “I would have them understand the cost difference between brewing that bag of coffee and buying an equivalent amount of coffee from a café,” Douglas recommends. And when trying to calculate just how much you are saving, Douglas advises, “You can save $1.71 per cup by brewing a 12 oz bag at home. This assumes you would be buying a $3 cup of coffee in the store. Multiply this by the number of cups you drink per week, month, and year and you can have an idea of what you can save.”

If you’re not a mathematician or as skilled in finance as Douglas, no worries — he’s gone the extra mile to create an efficient method of quantifying your savings from at-home brewing at Buy The Drip, a financial resource and coffee savings calculator. “Back in March, I read an article that quoted Suze Orman saying buying coffee is like ‘peeing $1 million down the drain.’ It was full of mathematical errors and misrepresentations about Millennials and coffee consumption. So, I decided to right those wrongs by giving people a way to truly understand what they’re spending their money on and, in a larger sense, take control of their financial life,” he tells us.

While coffee is our favorite purpose, Buy the Drip is a concept that can be “Used for anything, not just coffee. By understanding the impact of our financial decisions, we can begin to take control of our financial lives. Doing this will allow for more consistent savings, which in turn allows us to move more effectively towards our financial goals and achieving the great things in life,” Douglas says. And we can think of nothing greater than a refreshing cup of homemade cold brew!

Build your perfect cold brew subscription now!

To learn more, head to Buy the Drip and follow Douglas on Twitter at @dougboneparth for the latest and greatest on personal finance and coffee.