Coffee Reviews

Coffee: A beloved caffeinated elixir made from roasted coffee beans, providing a rich and aromatic cup of energy that fuels both mornings and conversations.

This blog may have started out focused on beer, but it wouldn't exist without the restorative and energising power of coffee (and nor, I suspect, would much of the rest of the Internet!)

We also have a coffee list which lists every coffee review on the site, broken down by country, region and brand.

Ginevra Miscela Special

Brand:	Ginevra
Rating:

Italians take their coffee quite seriously. Some years ago we were visiting a friend in Italy and when we stopped in a coffee shop for a late morning cuppa, I made the mistake of asking for a cappuccino. He flat-out refused to order it, because it was "the wrong time of day" to be ...

Reads Coffee Sumatra Bourbon Espresso

Country:	Sumatra
Brand:	Reads Coffee
Rating:

Whenever I go somewhere new, I like to explore the local produce as much as possible. Just about anywhere you go in the world - and especially in the UK - there is guaranteed to be at least a smattering of local beers to be explored. This is increasingly the case for coffee, ...

Grumpy Mule Peru Cafe Femenino

Country:	Peru
Brand:	Grumpy Mule
Rating:

I've tasted Grumpy Mule before, although not for a long time. Back then, I was a little underwhelmed - although to be fair, that was one of the weakest coffees in their range so it perhaps wasn't the best starting point for someone with my tastes. It's taken quite a while, but finally I ...

Pact Bibi Plantation

Country:	India
Region:	Karnataka
Brand:	Pact
Rating:

It's fair to say that at times, my coffee tasting lags slightly behind my coffee acquisition. There are some times when I'm down to my last bag, but more often there's a half-dozen different coffees lurking in the cupboard, waiting to be tasted. That's generally fine, because coffee - even ground coffee - ...

Aldi Specially Selected Rich Java Coffee

Country:	Indonesia
Brand:	Aldi
Rating:

Rounding off this trio of Aldi Specially Selected coffees, we leave the African continent and head for Indonesia. Java is apparently the world's most populous island, despite being considerably smaller than the islands in the next two spots (Honshu in Japan, and Great Britain). And yet, they manage to fit enough coffee plantations in ...

Aldi Specially Selected Rich Java Coffee

Aldi Specially Selected Ethiopian Coffee

Country:	Ethiopia
Brand:	Aldi
Rating:

Continuing my exploration of Aldi's fancier coffees, and we move one country northwards from Kenya, to Ethiopia. Aldi Specially Selected Ethiopian Coffee is another darkly roasted coffee, rated slightly stronger than the previous Kenyan blend. The ground are sweet and dark, with chocolate-dipped black cherries and dark, sun-warmed old wood. Brewed, the chocolate becomes darker ...

Aldi Specially Selected Ethiopian Coffee

Aldi Specially Selected Kenyan Coffee

Country:	Kenya
Brand:	Aldi
Rating:

Aldi is a curious place to shop. Their prices are undeniably lower than the traditional big supermarkets, but their products are ... variable. They've had some remarkable whisky at times, and some terrible 'beer'. I'm a big fan of their pastries, and a lot of their staples are pretty decent. Their own brand clones are ...

Pact Finca La Esperanza

Country:	Guatemala
Region:	Huehuetenango
Brand:	Pact
Rating:

After a remarkably booze-filled festive period, it's about time to get back to the caffeinated side of life! Today we're back to Central America, and the Huehuetenango region of Guatemala. Finca La Esperanza is a relatively light roasted coffee, as the picture hopefully shows. Despite this, the grounds have a rich fruity aroma - apricots ...

Taylors High Voltage

Country:	Indonesia
Brand:	Taylors
Rating:

I'm a big fan of Taylors - their coffee is easily available, well priced and generally pretty damn tasty. In recent months their range has expanded, with the arrival of "single origin" coffees, showcasing the character of four bean-producing nations - and hopefully more to come. Happily, their blended range remains - when I first ...

Raw Bean Unwind Laid-Back Latino Fusion

Brand:	Raw Bean
Rating:

I'm honestly not sure what to make of Raw Bean. They make a big thing about how coffee is best when it's fresh, and so "we only roast our coffee once the order has been placed". All very sensible stuff, but then they put their coffee into bags and sell it to Waitrose ...