Posts Tagged ‘whole bean coffee’

Peet’s Major Dickason’s Blend Whole Bean Coffee – Food Review

02/02/2018

Peets, whole bean coffee, major dickasons, review, priceFebruary 2, 2018

Why can’t we just say West Coast Roast?  Starbucks and Peet’s get the credit, or blame, for this dark roast thing.  I’m going to coin the term now.  This is a West Coast Roast.  It sort of rhymes too!

A nice mild coffee aroma escapes the bag.  The beans are dark brown and oily, both characteristics of a dark roast. The coffee is bitter in the cup once brewed, but still drinkable black.  This is one of the less bitter, bitter coffees I’ve had.  Aside from the bitterness, this is a milder dark roast with a nice flavor, especially after it has cooled some. So if you’re in a Target, or other large box shop, desperate for coffee, like a bitter coffee that can still be drank black, find this on sale, go for it.

Now for the name, I’m disappointed. The name is what attracted me to the bag.  Because of the name, Major Dickason’s, I was expecting a backstory straight out of a Rudyard Kipling work. But alas, Major seems to have been only a frequent flyer at the first Peet’s store who apparently liked a bitter cup of coffee?

Price $7.99 on sale,  $9.49 regular price – 12 ounce bag

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Posted in coffee, food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items | 6 Comments »

Stringbean Ethiopian True Blue Whole Bean Coffee – Food Review

11/29/2017

whole bean coffee, review, price, Ethiopian, True Blue, review, Sting Brean Coffee Company11/29/2017

So far the lighter roasts at Trader Joe have been in general, disappointing.  The beans tend to have some oil on them, which indicates the roast is bordering on the next shade of dark.  But worse than that, the coffees tend to be bitter.  Bitterness is something that’s not supposed to happen with a lighter roast.  So, in a late night supermarket run, and in a moment of weakness towards my checking account balance, I picked up a local roaster’s light-medium roast coffee at an on-sale but still significant price.  The beans were also Ethiopian according to the bag. This was another point of curiosity for me, as I’ve been somewhat disappointed with the African coffee beans at TJ.  So I was able to try another source for African beans.  And don’t forget Ethiopia is the home of the very first coffee beans discovered by man.  Women discovered coffee beans about 362 years earlier, but I’m not going to get into that.

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Trader Joe’s – Five Country Espresso Blend Coffee – Whole Bean – Food Review

09/23/2017

trader joes, coffee, whole bean, five country espresso, review, price, fair trade, organicSeptember 23, 2017

Since espresso is a method of making coffee and not a particular coffee bean, the name is slightly misleading.  However, since most coffees, including this one, can be used in espresso machines, we won’t quibble.  And since I don’t have an espresso machine, this coffee was prepared by my usual French press method.

Typically coffee beans meant for espresso machines are dark roasted.  This coffee fits in the Trader Joe’s medium-dark roast category (labeled dark roast on the can).  It produced a nice cup of coffee in my press.  It was largely indistinguishable from my everyday Tarrazu drinker.   Perhaps it was a little more bitter.  Regardless, it should work nicely in an espresso machine if that’s your preference.

For the extra two dollars per can over the Tarrazu, what are we getting?  This coffee is labeled both organic and fair trade.  That could be one reason to spend the extra two dollars.  As for the word espresso on the can, it’s your decision whether this will produce a better espresso shot than your current coffee.   Price $8.99  (13 ounce can)

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Trader Joe’s – Select Harvest Curated Coffee – Whole Bean – Food Review

06/03/2017

trader joe, review, price, select harvest curated coffee, whole beanJune 3, 2017
There are only three questions to ask of a curated coffee: how long has it been on the shelf, has anyone blown off the dust, and are there still overdue fines? It seems we’ve come a long way from curating book collections to curating bulk produce.

While claimed to be a 50/50 blend of light, Colombian Morales, and medium, Ethiopian Limu, roasted coffee beans, all the beans in the can looked the same.  Judging by the color and the amount of oil on the beans, I’d call them a medium roast.  When the beans were removed from the can, and compared side by side, there was a mix of small and medium size beans.

Aside from the marketing hype, this is a nice coffee.  In the can and ground, the beans had a nice aroma.  Brewed and in the cup, the coffee had a nice taste.  There was a little bitterness, but nothing exceptional.  Overall this is a smooth drinking medium roast coffee.  Price $8.99 (13 ounce can).

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Trader Joe’s – Monsooned Malabar Coffee – Whole Bean – Food Review

04/30/2017

review, coffee, whole bean, trader joe, monsooned malabar, priceApril 30, 2017
This is a new small can which I hope does not indicate another trend of getting less for more.

Once opened, the beans have a nice medium brown color with a satiny finish.  The beans seem a bit oily for a medium roast.  This is a very earthy full-bodied tasting coffee with a bitter taste.  The bitterness is different from that produced by some darker roasts and unfortunately not any better.  Because of this bitterness this is not a coffee I’d pick up again.  If you like dark roast coffee, this may be for you – with a big may?

The can is 10 ounces, but at a price more indicative of a coffee packaged in a 13 ounce can.  That’s about a 30% increase per ounce for a coffee which is not very special.  Now it could be there is a limited supply of this coffee and this is simply a way for Trader Joe to ration it out so more people can try it.

As is often the case, Trader Joe has some creative writers doing product descriptions.  If you come across this coffee, be sure to read the story on the back of the can.  But do that in the store.  And after you do, put the can back on the shelf and drop a can of your regular coffee in your cart.  Price $6.99 (10 ounce can).

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Posted in food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's | 4 Comments »

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