We've discussed the best coffee makers. Please tell me about a coffee brand you consider to be the best.
I enjoy starbucks coffee and the mcCafes a lot. However a specific brand or type of coffee I would prefer would be the ones used and sold in starbucks, also their tea brand are great as well. My favorite type of coffee is the frape.
Starbucks and McCafes are too strong for my taste, I do like Dunkin Donuts coffee but their cream upsets my stomach so I don't get their coffee often, I can't drink black coffee. I do like instant coffee made by Tasters Choice, I know that is no longer their name but they will always be Tasters Choice to me.
Having once owned an Internet cafe, I seldom buy coffee at the store, but from the same suppliers that I used when we had the cafe, only in (slightly) smaller amounts. I buy from Coffee Fool, Jeremiah's, and Coffee Bean Direct. I much prefer whole bean coffee, so that I can have it freshly ground, and don't care for overly strong coffee, so I opt for the medium or light roasts. As for buying coffee while traveling, I am not crazy about Starbucks or Tim Hortons, usually opting for Dunkin Donuts, although I don't much like their coffee either.
Unless I go to an expensive "Foreigner Store" I will buy just about any brand I can afford. My preference here is Moccona because it is strong but it really does not matter to me. Often, when I am lazy, I will just buy a 3 in 1 packet (coffee, sugar, cream) and drink that.
I don't care for the usual Starbucks fare they serve to their customers. But you can buy the roasted beans for some of their special coffees and grind them yourself. Two that are really good are the Sumatran and the Ethiopian beans. Unlike their normal coffees, you can actually taste different flavors like blueberry or lemon in the coffee. It's sort of like good wine. It's a little more expensive, but worth it.
I have a subscription through Amazon.com for Coffee Fool's "Foolash Goulash," which is a mix of whatever non-flavored coffees Coffee Fool has left from the previous day's roasting. It's only a few dollars for an 11-ounce bag of whole bean coffee that tastes different every time but, so far, always good. Through Amazon.com's subscription program, I get two of these a month and am thinking of stepping it up because it's good coffee, and cheap.
Pat, I am a BIG fan of Dunkin Donuts coffee. I consider it to be really smooth cup of coffee. Eight O'Clock Coffee comes in as a close second, in my taste category.
Ken, thanks for the Amazon.com idea. I will definitely consider this option to 'mix-it-up' a little with coffee options.
I looked on Amazon, too, and was amazed at all of the different flavored coffees that Coffee Fool also carries. I love flavored coffees ! ! Bobby hates those; so when I have flavored coffee, I only make a small pot for myself. I noticed that some of the Coffee Fool coffee is expensive, but some is pretty cheap; but the ones that are cheap are add-on items, and need to be on a $25 order. I usually get the Prime, which is always direct shipped, so I don't know if I have to order the $25 plus then the add-ons, or if the add-ons can be part of the $25 order. Anyone else know more about this, and how does it work when you have it on the monthly subscription if it goes off of the sale price ?
I never really considered this until I got my Keurig. I just bought whatever they had at the grocery store, like Folgers or Maxwell House, and was always disappointed that it didn't taste like the coffee you got at restaurants. Since I've gotten my Keurig, however, I've been "experimenting" with different brands and styles. I love a really strong, bold coffee, because I add cream and sweetener and I still want to be able to taste the coffee. I've found quite a few that I really like. My current favorite is Black Silk by Folgers. I also really like Black Tiger by Coffee People, Dark Magic and Donut Shop by Green Mountain Coffee, and Jamaica Me Crazy by Wolfgang Puck. These are subject to change at anytime!
Like many others, I grew up thinking of coffee as the stuff that I bought in cans from the grocery store, and my choices being between Maxwell House or Folgers, but since I've begun drinking different types of blends and roasts, I have become somewhat of a coffee snob. As for your question about add-ons, @Yvonne Smith , I am not certain; I've never paid that much attention to it. Usually, when I make an order, it's well over $25 so I haven't had to worry about it. Coffee Fool has some very good coffees, as does Jeremiah's and, as much as I like the Keurig, I prefer good coffee fresh ground.
Good to know, Ken. I have become somewhat spoiled by living in a town with lots of organic, fair trade, coffee to chose from, in the supermarkets as well as coffee shops, to the point where ordinary commercial coffee isn't palatable any more. It's so expensive! I have gotten to the point where I get plenty of caffeine from a good quality strong cup of decaf (yes it has a little), but at the Starbucks that has a drive through in my town they act like they have to re-invent the wheel to make decaf, so I usually make it at home, with a generous splash of unsweetened almond milk in it. . I will make a note to try that Foolash Goulash subscription and see what it's like. Sounds like a good cup for a great price.
You ask an excellent question Susan. As for brands that one can get in a lot of locations around the country, I have found an Italian dark roast at Whole Foods that is absolutely exquisite, but very costly. Trader Joe's has an organic French roast decaf that I like a lot, which is much more affordable. There, I have to grind it between the sample counter and the restrooms, which I don't like because the likelihood of someone going past coughing or sneezing is pretty high. However, i've been shopping there for over five years and the grind remains clean each time, so far as I know. No telling what happened in the top of the grinder before I got there. I got out of the habit of grinding coffee at home when I had pets, because one of my cats didn't like the sound of that kind of motor, and now I don't have animals, but I just buy coffee already-ground, or grind it at the store.
Betty, I do wish I had a Whole Foods near me. When I have visited Whole Foods, their products are so wonderful! Italian Dark Roast does sound very, very nice. I just had my afternoon 1/2 cup of coffee a little while ago, so I am quite satisfied now.