Biggby Coffee

Alright, alright, I realize that I have been spending way too much time trying and posting about store bought coffee. You are correct to be getting sick of it and considering me a turn-coat because this site was founded upon the purism of freshly home-roasted coffee. I promise, I will return to my roots but for now, well, I have to use this store bought coffee before it gets any more stale.

I don't know if you have noticed one of the 150 or so Biggby stores that have popped up in 6 states. But they are around us and I've noticed. I would like to do some research concerning their business model and how they plan to compete with Starbuck's and the others but I'll leave that for another day. Today I'll simply talk about the coffee.

I could say it is "AWESOME!", I could say that it is "great", I could say that I have been converted from my home-roasting ways but then I would be a liar. At best the Biggby Coffee was a lot better than the Ugly Mug and light years passed the Seattle's Best. I would concede that it is on par with Dunkin's Coffee and less burnt than Charbucks. So if you want a really great cup of coffee learn to home roast.

Ugly Mug Coffee

It would seem that my latest coffee exploits have veered away from the original scope of this blog (to review my home roasted coffees) - but hey, at least I am still posting.

I tried a new coffee from the store called Ugly Mug Coffee. It's not all that great but a heck of a lot better than my Seattle's Best sample. The best part of this Memphis brew seems to me to be the packaging and the dreadful morning pictures of people that they use on their packaging and website.

Oh. The taste review? Hold on a sec while I go brew a cup...... Alright, here it is.

This roast is called "BOLD" and while it is certainly dark roasted the flavor nor the aroma calls out to me. This could be in part because the package indicates that it would have been best if used by last month but hey - that explains why it was on sale. However, the flavor is good enough that I am not trying to figure out what I can mix it with to mask any annoying attributes.

This brew does remind me of a cup of coffee that I can only get in the office break room, early in the winter morning when it is still dark and nobody else is there to disturb the few moments of peace before the work day begins. The coffee made from a mass packet of grounds that has been in the cupboard for only God knows how long and brewed with office sink water. In those moments it is not the flavor of the cup that stands out but the peacefulness and warmth of the moment.

So Ugly Mug Coffee is not exceptional coffee but it does seem to have a nostalgic quality about it.

Dunkin Donuts

I purchased a bag of Dunkin Donuts coffee to have on hand when I was out of fresh roasted beans. I have to say that I was expecting something really extraordinary by the way people gush about the stuff. I found it a little bitter with a flowery note. It was better than Seattle's Best - but then again Folger's is better than Seattle's Best is.

To correct the DD's bitter and floral taste I did add a 50% mix of Seattle's Best to the mix and it was not a bad blend at all. I need to sample it again but I think I found a decent blend of store bought coffees. I'll keep you posted.