Another review, another moment of shock…..and even awe. :p I can honestly admit that I am NOT a coffee snob. You know those people who treat coffee with the same reverence as wine? They feel the need to describe each and every flavor note in the profile. They must consume their product out of special vessels. Certain beans from certain regions in the globe get more respect than others. You get the point. LOL! While I certainly don’t subscribe to the idea that ANY coffee will satisfy me, Folgers or Maxwell House and their ilk would never be in my cup. Yuck! Flavored water with hints of faint coffee-like properties are not very appealing to me. Mix in the horrendous reality of commodity coffee farmers/workers and you have another area of concern, but I digress….
Speaking of faint properties of taste, let’s discuss the antithesis of that — Coffee with Spices. I never knew there was really a market for such a concept. Amazing! If you’re feeling adventurous (that’s really how we felt when we tried this product) and have somewhat of complex flavor palette, I would suggest trying this product from Trader Joe’s. I’m fairly sure that the Wintry Blend is a seasonal product although I cannot confirm that with absolute certainty since my monthly trips to TJ’s NEVER included the idea of making a purchase of Spiced Coffee. We received this product as a Christmas gift and were excited to try it although my wife nor I were not really running to the coffee machine to make the first cup. LOL!
Another “rule” we follow with the act of preparing coffee is to not follow the recommended proportions to make the “perfect cup” as is usually written on the product packaging. Inevitably, it tends to be very weak and what’s the point of making/drinking weak coffee? Well, being that Spiced Coffee was a new adventure to our taste buds, we decided to follow the recommended proportions. Big mistake! It ended up being weak and quite tea-like. If we were going for that result, it actually would have been perfect since the light colored liquid presented itself as a really great, complex “tea”. But, this was COFFEE we were on the quest to sample and when we eventually brewed the second pot, we were really starting to warm up to the flavor profile. The third pot yielded a unique sense of satisfaction never before experienced due to the immense complexity dancing on our taste buds. WOW! Subsequent pots yielded that same feeling of joy. Seriously, it was very odd to be obsessed with something we had never had so very quickly. LOL!
The 14oz container was finished sooner than we thought, but the experience of this unique Wintry Blend of Spiced Coffee will not soon be forgotten. I tend to be a fan of peppercorns, but the idea of that permeating my coffee? Odd, but it really works in this product. I also select whole beans to grind myself, but although this product came already ground, the flavor was pretty intense and was a product I suggest you try although you MIGHT have to wait until the end of this year to get your hands on some…..
Categories: life · product review
Tagged: coffee, flavor profile, gourmet, new product, specialty food product, spiced coffee, spices, trader joes, wintry blend
