First taste of Starbucks Gold Coast Blend

When you first open the bag of beans, Gold Coast Blend fills the room with the aroma of dark roast coffee.  The beans have a nice sheen to them and are very dark in color.

I brewed this blend as an Americano. The first taste of this blend has a definite bitterness to it. The flavor is almost soapy to the taste. I do not advise drinking it without some kind of sweetener unless you normally drink your coffee without it.  It is very likely that when this coffee is brewed as a drip it will be a lot milder in nature.  It is a typical Starbucks blend in the fact that despite the bitterness, it has a very smooth finish.

I added 1 teaspoon of my usual sweetener to this and the coffee burst into a really wonderful flavor.  As I stated before there is a lot of depth due to the bitterness of it, but this stuff is really great.

A scale of 1 to 10,  I would rate this at a 9.8 on the flavor scale. If you love dark roast coffee, this is an excellent blend for you to choose - you can't go wrong with Starbucks Gold Coast Blend.  Pick yourself up some of these great dark roast coffee beans today.

And, as always, may your next cup be your best!

Indivisible Blend by Starbucks Coffee

“Americans Helping Americans Create Jobs”

I was curious about this blend when I went by the local Starbucks - first the name intrigued me and then the image on the package of people standing side-by-side caught my eye.

The text on the side of the package states this is all about America - about opportunity of liberty and justice - it states that there are lots of people that are without jobs and really want one. On the package it states that five dollars from the sale of each bag of this coffee goes directly to Opportunity Finance Network and the Create Jobs for USA Fund - to get Americans working again.

I cannot deny this is something very very close to my own heart.

The first taste of this coffee has a bit of a good bite to it as far as bitterness. It is just right for that very first cup of morning Joe. The taste of this coffee is pleasant but not overpowering. It is a medium roast coffee that definitely is very, very familiar - almost like a Gevalia blend. It is definitely a quality medium roast no compromises made here.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this at least a 9.2 - it is a high-quality coffee that helps to support American jobs - no way to go wrong here.

I paid around $10 for the coffee and half of it goes towards supporting people getting work - a win-win for you and for those seeking work. God bless the USA.

As always, may your next cup be your best!

Peet's Coffee - Monte Alegre Limited Edition

First taste of Peet's Monte Alegre

I was in my local Safeway yesterday and noticed a new Peet's coffee on the shelf.  It was the limited edition coffee Monte Alegre. 

Although Peet's rates this as a medium roast, these coffee beans definitely have the flavor depth of a dark roast coffee - with no noticeable bitterness.  This coffee requires no sweetener at all, as it doesn't have a bitter flavor to it at all.

I brewed this coffee as  an Americano - there is no noticeable acidity in this blend, and it is suitable for even the pickiest coffee drinker.  When sipping this blend, the flavor hits the back of the tongue almost immediately.  

The flavor of this coffee doesn't linger on the tongue very long - it lasts for only a few seconds.  This coffee would be a great complement to almost any meal.  It's flavor compliments rather than overpowers other flavors, so it's a great coffee for having with breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert in the evening.

As always,  I decided to try the brew with some sweetener for additional tasting. With only 1 teaspoon of sweetener in the cup, the flavor was definitely enhanced.  This would be a great coffee for serving after dinner as a dessert.

As I said earlier this is a great complement to almost anything else, it would be really great paired with fruits or even with something really sweet such as a cake or pie.  Since this is a limited edition coffee it won't be on the shelves very long.  I suggest you get some while it is still available.

On the scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this coffee easily at 9.6 or better.  If you want coffee that won't disappoint you, this is a very good selection.

Thanks for stopping by and as always, may your next cup be your best!

Costa Rica Tarrazu by Safeway Select

Safeway Select Costa Rica Tarrazu

The aroma of this coffee has a lot of depth. It has a slightly acidic smell to it and has an extreme depth of aroma that tells you it's an extremely rich dark roast coffee.

I'm brewed this coffee as an Americano and was pleasantly surprised by the results. With the very first sip of this coffee, you start thinking about items to pair it with such as some nice milk chocolate or some quality dark chocolate.

Despite this being a dark roast it is extremely smooth and subtle to the taste. Although I normally drink coffee with sweetener, this coffee definitely is one that you can easily drink unsweetened because there is no large amount of bitterness to it.

When you roll the coffee across your tongue by slurping it you notice a definite earthiness to this particular blend.

I would rate this coffee on a scale of 1 to 10 at about 9.2 - it is not the greatest coffee on the shelf but definitely one that bears serious investigation if you are a true coffee lover. The folks at Safeway select have done an excellent job of getting the best of out of these beans - I don't think that they can play second to Starbucks, Seattle's Best, Peet's or any other major coffee in this in this particular instance.

The great thing about this coffee is it's as near as your local Safeway store.

I hope you find this review helpful in your search for that perfect cup of coffee and, as always, may your next cup be your best!

Videos For The Week Of October 24, 2011

More Methods For Roasting Your Own Green Coffee Beans

I found three additional methods for roasting your own Dark Roast Coffee. I am finding that a lot of folks out there are very inventive when it comes to making devices to make their own dark roasted blend. I hope you will find these as interesting as I have. I don't recommend two of them for the obvious safety issues they have. Do these at your own risk - I don't want to be responsible for anyone burning down their home.

As Always, may your next cup be your best.

I-Roaster

Another home roasting machine - it is fairly automatic and seems to work well. The Australian machine is designed to run on 220-240 volts. If you can set up the correct electrical power for it, it will run you around $424.95, in Australian Dollars. The information on the web site says that those wanting it for international use should contact them about it.

Using A Bread Maker To Roast Coffee

In this method, the roaster uses a bread making machine to stir the beans and uses a hot air gun to roast the beans. If you don't mind having chaff all over your kitchen, I guess it is a great way to roast your beans. I don't endorse this one for safety reasons!

Coffee Roasting African Style

This contraption uses an old computer case as a power supply, an electric screwdriver to spin the basket full of beans over a burner. It is messy and looks like a really big fire hazard - do this at your own risk!!

Café Solano by Peet's Coffee - Review

Peet's Coffee Café Solano

With the very first taste of this coffee, you can tell it's a medium roast. It has a pleasant mouth feel, and some good depth to the flavor. (I know, I am supposed to stick to dark roast coffee for the blog, but wait this is good stuff - read on!)

I tasted this coffee as an Americano. This blend has no noticeable bitterness and is very pleasant as an unsweetened coffee; the roasters at Peet's Coffee have been very successful in bringing out the best in these particular coffee beans.

As the coffee cools you notice a slight amount of bitterness - this coffee is very smooth.

This is an excellent coffee for sipping all day and would also be excellent with almost any meal.

If you have a guest that prefers the more traditional coffee such as Folgers or other commercial brands I would recommend this for them. This coffee is not overpowering and not excessively strong. It just has a great taste and smoothness that almost anyone can appreciate.

Upon sweetening, this coffee shows it's smooth character even further. This would be a great coffee for after dinner as a desert by itself. A good pairing with this would be a slice of apple pie or even just some freshly sliced apples.

This is a quality coffee that will not disappoint. On a scale of one to ten, I would rate this at 9.3 - the quality of this coffee is obvious from the very first sip.

I hope this will help you in your search for a great cup of coffee. And, as always, may your next cup be your best!

Video For The Week Of October 10, 2011

The Swiss Water Process for Decaffeination

In an earlier blog I discussed decaffeinating of coffee. I would like to go back to this subject with this video. It shows, with simple illustration, how your dark roast coffee is decaffeinated. The green coffee beans are carefully selected, then processed using carbon filters and water. The thing that is unique is that the water is saturated with the extract of green coffee beans, minus the caffeine. This allows the water to remove ONLY the caffeine from the green beans.

I think this is a very informative video and I hope you will enjoy it.



As always, may your next cup be your best!

Videos For The Weeks Of September 19 and 26, 2011

I failed to get my video of the week post out last week, so I decided to give you a complete set of videos on Home Coffee Roasting. With a few simple tools, and some green coffee beans, you too, can roast your own coffee.

Disclaimer - roasting your own coffee can be hazardous, due to the high temperatures involved and the fact that the chaff that is released from the beans is highly flammable - do this at your own risk!

Simple Pan Roasting Coffee

In this video, you discover that all you need is a pan, some green coffee beans, and a colander to make your own dark roasted blend.

Roasting Coffee In a Hot Air Popper

This method uses a modified hot air popper to roast your own dark roast coffee. This is much simpler than using the pan method and disposes of the chaff automatically - into the sink.

Roasting With the Gene Cafe Roaster

For those who can afford it, there is the commercially-built hot air roaster. It comes complete with automated temperature control, a countdown timer to track roast time, and an automated cool-down system. My only complaint on this ready-made system is that it won't cool the beans down quickly - which is key to optimum coffee roasting.



I hope these videos have helped you see that you can roast your own coffee - with a little time and effort.

As always, thanks for stopping by and may your next cup be your best!

Starbucks Anniversary Blend - Review

Starbucks Anniversary Blend

The first taste of this coffee has a lot of depth. This is an extremely smooth dark roast blend with a really great mouth feel. The unsweetened brew is very enjoyable with no noticeable bitterness. Starbucks rates this as an "Extra Bold" coffee, which definitely classifies it as a dark roast coffee.

Coffee drinkers that don't normally drink a coffee without sweetener could probably drink this very easily as it is such a mild blend. As the coffee cools you notice a definite bitterness that hits the tip your tongue. Even though that bitterness becomes a little more noticeable as the coffee cools further, it is still a great coffee for those who normally take sweetener in their Joe.

When this coffee is sweetened, it takes on a very friendly character. It is such a smooth blend that one would consider having it as a desert by itself.

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate this at 9.8 as it is such an excellent blend. The folks at Starbucks did an excellent job of getting the most out of these coffee beans. My complements to them for a really top-notch coffee.

Since this is a limited-edition coffee, I recommend that you go to Starbucks or go online and order some Anniversary Blend - you won't be disappointed.

Thanks for stopping by and as always, may your next cup be your best!

Blended Coffee

Why Is Coffee Blended?

You may have noticed some of your dark roast coffee says that is a particular blend of coffee. Coffee is blended for various reasons. It is often blended to get flavors and characteristics from different coffees, thus creating a cup that has the best characteristics of each of the coffees that have been blended together.

Another reason for blending is to get a flavor that fits a signature coffee type such as Starbucks, Folgers, Seattle's Best, Izzy or any other well-known brand.

Sometimes blends are used to make a coffee if that is fairly low-grade taste better than it actually is by putting in some better grade beams with the lower grade ones, producing a better cup.

One thing that must be decided when making a blend is whether to put all the green coffee beans together and roast them or to roast them separately and then blend them together.

One type of blended roast is in called a melange. In this type of blend you have some beans dark roasted, some medium, and some light roasted to get the best characteristics out of each of the different coffees in the blend. You may be trying for the boldness of the dark roast the smoothness of the medium roast and perhaps even some of the higher flavor tones from a light roasted coffee.

Blended coffees offer us a greater variety of coffee choices and give us many opportunities to experience more of our favorite brew.

One school of thought on blending is that you have signature blends in which you want to produce a consistent flavor to be sold exclusively at a particular chain store or Café - Starbucks and Gloria Jean's are in this category. There are consistency blends which have a very large number of bean sources in them - this makes it possible to substitute another kind of bean in place of one that is not available without the consumers noticing the change. Low cost beans - basically you're adding robusta beans or cheaper arabica beans to produce coffee at a lower price. Then there are single origin blends - they will get coffee from different parts of a certain region and put them into a blend.

In most cases, blending gives you a coffee that brings out favorable characteristics that are not available in an unblended one.

I hope you found this information useful and thank you for stopping by.

Feel free to comment, and as always, may your next cup be your best!

Videos For The Week Of September 12, 2011

Roasting Stages and Using a Homemade Coffee Roaster Videos

Sometimes you just can't make up your mind. That was my problem when I was trying to choose a video for this week, so I chose two distinctly different videos. The first one shows some of the color changes that coffee goes through in the roasting process. It gives you information on how the coffee beans develop in color and how their chemistry changes as they are brought to your favorite roast - be it light roasted coffee or dark roast coffee.

Coffee roasting is something that can be done at home, and there are several methods of doing it - roasting in a pan, roasting in a popcorn popper (don't laugh, its good stuff), or building and roasting in a "custom" homemade coffee roaster - using an old gas grill for the heat source. One disclaimer - if you do your own roasting, I am not responsible for your injuries you may incur - you are supposed to use common sense in handling hot stuff. Enough said, enjoy the videos, and as always, may your next cup be your best!

Roast Development Stages For Coffee Video

Watch for the second time he samples the roast in the first crack stage - one of the beans actually pops out of the sampler!!

Using a Homemade Coffee Roaster Video

Video For The Week Of August 29, 2011

Light Roast Coffee versus Dark Roast Coffee

I got to thinking - what is it about coffee that most of us don't know much about - my answer - roasts and roasting. What happens to turn green coffee beans into a dark roasted blend?

So I looked around and found several great videos about the topic of roasts and roasting. This video covered some basics that you should know to understand more about your favorite dark roast coffee blend - or ANY coffee you consume.

The video is short, but informative - enjoy!




And as always, may your next cup be your best!

Peet's Café Domingo - Review

Review Of Café Domingo By Peet's Coffee

I don't blog on medium roasts often, but Peet's Coffee always seems to have some great roasts, so I thought I would give Café Domingo a try.


These coffee beans have only a little oil on them, so I was uncertain about the level of depth this coffee would have. A taste of the unsweetened brew yielded a smooth mouth feel with only a slight bitterness. There is also a hint of earthiness in the brew, but I think it would not be noticed by a casual drinker.


After several more sips the coffee still gives you a pleasant taste on your tongue. For this reason i think this is an ideal coffee if you have a guest that prefers Folgers or some other coffee that is for the general market. It isn't overpowering, nor is it as strong as most premium blends. It is the kind of coffee you would have at breakfast, then sip on all day. In my opinion, Peet's has once again created an excellent coffee that would easily be accepted by the average consumer and the coffee gourmet alike.

My personal rating on this coffee would be a 8.9 out of 10. This is based on my personal tastes, since I prefer the darker roasts. (Yes, I am a fanatic for dark roast coffee!) I would gladly purchase this if I were going to have a guest that doesn't care for my "fancy" coffee. This way, I could have a really nice cup and enjoy it with my guest.

As always, may your next cup be your best!

Video For The Week Of August 8, 2011

Coffee Health Benefits Video

I have been out for a couple of weeks, enjoying the summer while I can. I kept trying to decide what might be good for this week, and I thought that it would be good to put out my video pick for the week.

I found this an interesting video as it covers some of the things that coffee does to our body, and more specifically, our minds. Coffee beans contain caffeine, along with antioxidants, so your morning cup of dark roast coffee affects you physically and mentally as well. I believe that it is always important to look at what we eat and drink and how it may effect our health.

I hope you find this video informative. Please feel free to comment and let me know what you think of it.





Thanks for coming by and, as always, may your next cup be your best!

Video For The Week Of July 25, 2011

Coffee: The Greatest Addiction Ever

The featured video for Dark Roast Coffee this week is filled with trivia and interesting facts about our favorite beverage. It is enlightening and funny. The video gives you some interesting facts that you may or not be aware of, so pour up a cup of your favorite dark roast blend and watch it. I hope you enjoy it.



Thanks for stopping by and may your next cup be your best!

Boyer's French Roast Dark Roast Coffee - Review

French Roast by Boyer's

The first taste of this coffee puts a pleasant bitterness on the tip of your tongue. As you sip more of this brew and you get more familiar with it, the flavor grows on you. It has a slightly earthy quality that is very subtle. This is one coffee that is very easy to drink without any sweetener. It doesn't have the depth of French Roast from Starbucks of Seattle's Best, but it is a very pleasant brew to drink, indeed.


Boyer's has traditionally made very good coffee, and I have drank it several times and have always been very satisfied with their offerings. I purchased this particular coffee at a Sam's Club and got it for a very good price.

On a Scale of one to 10, I would rate this coffee about an 8.8 - this coffee is very dependable and it gives you excellent value for the money spent.

With the addition of sweetener this coffee gets even better. I've had this coffee with milk chocolate and it is wonderful stuff.

Thanks for coming by and may your next cup be your best!

Video For The Week Of July 18, 2011

This Is Coffee - Video

I am starting a new addition to Dark Roast Coffee. Each week, I will find a video for your pleasure and information.

This week's choice is a video from 1961, titled "This is Coffee." It has some interesting information, including video of coffee beans being harvested and processed.

I hope you will enjoy it. Comment and let me know what you want to see videos of, or just leave me your opinion of the week's video.

Thanks for coming by and may your next cup be your best!

Oxo Stainless Steel LiquiSeal Travel Mug Review

Review of Oxo Stainless Steel LiquiSeal Travel Mug

Several months ago I reviewed a plastic travel mug manufactured by Oxo. It is an excellent mug but it has a couple of drawbacks:

• It only keeps coffee hot for a couple of hours
• The lid can fill up with grime that cannot be cleaned out

The good folks at Oxo Softworks have a vacuum insulated stainless version of this mug that can be opened up for cleaning and can keep coffee drinkable for over 4 hours (see temperature chart).

I used this mug for a few days and one morning it disappeared - I discovered my wife had grabbed it for her use. Both of us were impressed by the mug. The triple silicone seals in the
OXO Stainless Steel Mug work as well as they do in the plastic mug, and it has the advantage of having an easy to clean lid. The inner seal has an arrow showing you how to loosen it for clean up. It isn't a perfect solution, but it is a vast improvement.

The mug has a 13.5 ounce capacity and a very comfortable non-slip grip just below the lid. Like the previously reviewed mug, it opens and closes with a press of its push button seal.


The downside to this mug is that it is supposed to be hand washed and because it is stainless, you can not reheat your coffee in the microwave. Because of the ability to keep the coffee temperature for so long, this should not pose a problem if you put in coffee that is good and hot. I would rate this as a 9.5 on a scale of 10 - this is a great mug for taking your dark roast coffee along with you.


Click HERE to get an OXO Stainless Steel Mug

Choosing A Quality Coffee Cup

The Importance Of A Quality Coffee Cup

I had an awesome Father's Day this year. My wife fixed me a great breakfast, I went to church after eating breakfast with my family. My youngest kids were better than usual, and I got to have a long phone conversation with my eldest daughter.

The day was awesome and one item that made it that way was my gift - a box of sugar-free chocolates, a pound of Starbucks Cafe Estima coffee beans and a new coffee cup.

This brought to mind something I have not blogged on - the importance of a quality cup. I cannot stress how important a good, quality cup is in your search for a perfect cup of coffee. Let's say you have a metal cup. A stainless mug looks nice and will not alter the flavor of the brew, but it could burn your lips if the coffee is very hot from a French Press. This also applies to the porcelain-covered cups you use when camping - these cups require that you use something as an insulator on the handle - go to a place that serves "chuckwagon" dinners if you doubt me on this.

Use of glass or Pyrex cups is good, but there is always the danger of chipping them. You can have a small chip that can cut you - so always inspect this type of cup before use. In addition, a thicker glass cup helps keep the coffee hot longer, so you may want to consider this when purchasing one.

Insulated mugs are great for keeping your coffee hot. Unfortunately the first few mugs seem to have a plastic or metal taste to them. I suggest you "sacrifice" one strong cup that you let sit in the mug for an hour or so. This seems to lessen the number of times you have before the mug has no artificial taste. I also recommend that you just rinse this type of cup with hot water and never scrub it with soap - unless you want to waste another mug full to break it in again.

If you are going to be someplace where your cup can be broken, you need to look for a good plastic cup. Get one with thick walls as these are more durable and will hold the heat for a longer time. Break this type in as described for insulated mugs to get the best flavor from the coffee.

My favorite cup is a nice, large ceramic cup. Stoneware cups are fine, but a ceramic cup is just so much better for getting the most out of your cup of Java. Over the years I have received several great ceramic cups and this year's cup is a really great one (see photo). A good ceramic mug will seem light for its size, and it will ring when you thump on it with your finger. A good stoneware mug will seem heavy for its size and will have a duller ring when you thump on it. The ringing sound indicates that the ceramic or stoneware is tightly bound together - thus insuring no leakage and good insulating qualities. This type of cup, if clean, will not alter the flavor of the dark roast coffee you put into it.

If you don't have a good ceramic or stoneware cup, I suggest you treat yourself and get one - you won't regret it.

You can pick up a nice ceramic travel coffee cup with a silicone lid by DCI Decor here.


Get a dozen Carlisle Food Service 8 Ounce Stone Double-Wall Insulated Coffee Mugs here.


Get a Set of 6 Anchor Hocking Mocha Color 16 oz Cafe Mugs here.

I hope this information has helped you, and as always, may your next cup be your best!

Caribou Coffee Daybreak Morning Blend Review

Review Of Daybreak By Caribou Coffee

Although I normally blog on dark roast coffee, in the interest of being fair, this time I decided to take on a lighter roast. Even I will break from my regimen of dark roast coffee to sample some of the other great coffees out there.

When I opened the bag, the aroma reminded me a lot of Gevalia Coffee.

The coffee beans are fairly light in color and have little oil on them.

My first taste of this lighter roast blend is impressive. The flavor is very much like a medium roast - more so than the light roast that it actually is. There is some great depth of flavor to this coffee. It has, as I assumed, a similar flavor to some of the Gevalia offerings.

It would be an excellent offering as a breakfast coffee. In addition it would work well as a midday coffee with a slice of cake or some chocolate.

As is typical of most light roasts, there is no excessive amount of bitterness. This coffee works out so well you don't need any sweetener for it.

As the coffee cools, I noticed some earthiness, and the level of bitterness did not increase.
This is definitely a great coffee to have around your house. It is especially good for those who do not like dark roast coffee and prefer a lighter roast.

On a scale of one to 10, I would rate this blend at about a 8.8 to a 9.3 - it definitely is a coffee worth having in your house.

I hope this review has helped you in your search for the perfect cup of coffee and as always, may your next cup be your best!