Coffee is important. It’s important to a lot of people, and if you’re one of those people, chances are you’re reading this while drinking coffee. Happy with your coffee? Would you like something better? The fact is, lots of things go into producing a great cup of coffee or – to avoid any more clichés – a lot of things go into or are left out of bad coffee, and that’s bad. But your coffee time is precious, and you wouldn’t be reading this unless you were looking for a quick answer to the pressing question of how to avoid the bad and find the good. Our list will help you. Let’s go.
Counter Culture Coffee
Yes, they’re sustainable across their whole production and supply chain, and they produce distinctive tasting beans from Kenya and South America. They’ve also teamed up with the nation’s coolest radio station, NPR to provide exclusive products as part of your NPR subscription. This is the future of coffee, but it means nothing if it doesn’t taste great. Nutty, deep, caramel flavours or super strong bitterness. Counter Culture knows how to make the stuff taste good, don’t worry.
Dope Coffee
Moving away from a lot of the mystique inherent in coffee production and consumption, Dope sells a great tasting product – pure and simple. Priding itself on its roots in black culture and saying it loud and proud. With tie-ins to hip-hop and skin and body care coffee products, Dope promotes this stuff like it’s the hottest stuff on the street. CEO Michael Lloyd is a former Marine – he doesn’t mess about.
Stumptown Coffee Roasters
A coffee that blooms beautifully as it steeps, this Hair Bender blend from Portland cult-favorite brand Stumptown has impressive depth of flavor and is wild, rich, and smooth. A blend of coffee from Indonesia, Latin America, and Africa, Hair Bender gets its name from the shuttered beauty parlor that formerly housed the brand's first location. With notes of citrus and dark chocolate, this is the brand's most popular, best-selling blend, and we think it's the best-tasting coffee on this list.
Grounds & Hounds Three Blend Starter Kit
We love coffee brands that give back, and especially ones that care deeply about animals. Enter: Grounds & Hounds, a dynamic Los Angeles-based coffee brand focused on animal rescue. With the purchase of each of their organic, fair-trade-certified coffee products, Grounds & Hounds provides funding and resources for life-saving initiatives that impact rescue pups nationwide.
La Colombe Corsica Blend
You might be familiar with one of La Colombe's brick-and-mortar cafés across the country — or even their canned Draft Latte line — but we bet you didn’t realize that you can purchase their full line of coffee beans online. What started as a flagship café and bakery in Philadelphia is now an award-winning nationwide coffee brand, and we think La Colombe's Corsica Blend is the best expression of the brand's deliciousness.
Peet's Coffee Italian Roast Dark Roast Ground Coffee
The reviewers say that their satisfaction comes from the smoky but yet slightly sweet flavor of this dark Italian Roast from Peet's Coffee. They note that they've never felt a bitter or burnt aftertaste, even though this blend is darker than others, which is a big plus for most of the people. You'll feel the ultimate taste of the Peet's best espresso, with its balanced sweetness and robust flavor when you prepare it as espresso or by using a French press.
