Coffee

Best whole-bean coffee

Almost without exception, experts and taste testers preferred freshly ground coffee to pre-ground. You'll need a coffee grinder (which start at about $20), and it adds an extra step to your coffee-making routine, but the near-unanimous conclusion in reviews is that whole-bean coffee is far superior.

In the tests at Cook's Illustrated, staffers tested whole-bean coffee twice: black and with milk (over half of coffee drinkers add milk or creamer to their coffee). Interestingly, those who preferred their coffee with milk ended up preferring darker roast whole-bean coffee like Millstone Columbian Supremo (*est. $7.50 for an 11-ounce bag) and Starbucks House Blend (*est. $10 for a 12-ounce bag). Without milk, Starbucks House Blend ranked fifth out of eight samples, with one tester saying it was "like gnawing on charcoal." On the other hand, testers that preferred their coffee black top-rated milder coffee like Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Our Blend (*est. $7.50 for a 12-ounce bag) and Eight O'Clock 100% Colombian (*est. $5 for a 12-ounce bag). Interestingly, these milder coffee varieties were deemed bland when tasted with milk.

Cook's Illustrated is one of the few reviewers that tests coffee in this way -- both with and without the addition of milk (we didn't find any experts that taste-tested with added sugar), and the results suggest that the coffee you choose depends partly on whether or not you take milk.

Though it wasn't as well liked in every review, two experts say that low-priced Eight O'Clock 100% Colombian (*est. $5 for a 12-ounce bag) is a standout among whole-bean coffee. Cook’s Illustrated reviewers praise it for its nutty, almost chocolaty flavor, especially when sampled without milk. Other reviewers recommend it as well. Kenneth Davids of CoffeeReview.com is the one expert that lambastes Eight O'Clock Original, saying it "combined bitterly sharp mildew tones with rotten, compost-pile ferment." Davids preferred the company's Royal Signature Blend (*est. $5 for a 12-ounce bag). Despite this, we found good reviews overall for Eight O'Clock whole-bean coffee, and its low price makes trying it less risky.

We didn't find as many reviews for Dunkin' Donuts Original Blend (*est. $8 per pound) , but the reviews we did find are polarized. One roundup ranks it at the top, but Cook's Illustrated's panel of 25 testers found it to be too light and bland with a "bitter aftertaste." Among lighter roasts, Cook's testers preferred Green Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Our Blend (*est. $7.50 for a 12-ounce bag). Frustratingly, we didn't find many reviews of the same variety of Green Mountain coffee. Consumer Reports tests only the Kona variety, and CoffeeReview.com's Kenneth Davids only tries the Colombian Supremo Popayan variety.

One coffee that appears to be quickly gaining popularity is Caribou Coffee’s Colombian whole-bean coffee (*est. $13 for a 16-ounce bag). Caribou Coffee is the second-largest roasting chain (after Starbucks) in America, and recently began offering its products in various supermarkets across the country. Though it is relatively pricey for a supermarket coffee, especially compared to Eight O’Clock Coffee, reviews are good. Kenneth Davids says that it has a "round, rich aroma with distinct butter notes and hints of flowers and lemon." Another selling point for this coffee is that it is a Rainforest Alliance coffee, meaning that its production meets standards set by an independent coalition of NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) which aims to sustain the environment and respect certain socio-economic values in its trade practices.

The Cook’s Illustrated review also provided interesting information regarding the Agtron rating -- a numerical indicator of the roast level (the lower the number, the darker the roast). Experts say you can pretty much ignore labels like "French roast" on coffee, and instead look to the Agtron rating for a relative gauge if you typically like a very dark roast. Cook’s Illustrated conducted a taste test of nine supermarket French roasts -- traditionally very dark roast coffee with Agtron readings of between 20 and 30. The darker Starbucks French Roast (*est. $10 for a 12-ounce bag), with an Agtron rating of 16.8, is one of the darkest supermarket coffees you can buy; in tests, it was either loved or hated.

A lighter (and less expensive) dark roast coffee, Chock full o’Nuts French Roast (*est. $4 for a 12-ounce bag), with an Agtron rating of 31, was better liked by more people. Millstone Colombian Supremo, with an Agtron rating of 36, was better liked still, and is also considered a dark roast coffee. It's also a top pick of testers at Real Simple magazine. Davids of CoffeeReview.com says that Millstone coffee is "distinctly sweet," bitterness-free and pleasantly complex due to its acidity.

A relatively new edition to supermarket shelves is Peet’s Coffee & Tea. Though Peet’s began in Berkeley, CA in 1966, and had a committed local following, it has only received national recognition within the past ten years or so as its chain stores have spread. Now, it is being carried in national supermarket chains. Peet’s Major Dickason’s Blend (*est. $13 per pound) is a noteworthy dark roast, receiving equally positive reviews from CoffeeReview.com, Food & Wine magazine and consumer websites. The fact that it wasn’t sampled in either the Consumer Reports or the Cook’s Illustrated reviews, that Food & Wine magazine didn’t specify the methodology for their selection, and the strength of reviews for Millstone’s Colombian Supremo, precluded Peet’s from being selected as the best dark roast for ConsumerSearch Fast Answers. Davids describes Peet’s trademark deep roast as "a pungent, cling-to-the-palate roast."

Reviews are pretty much all over the map for coffee, but most agree that whole-bean coffee -- because you grind it fresh before brewing -- tastes vastly superior to pre-ground coffee. Eight O'Clock Original looks like the best budget whole-bean coffee. If you can spend a bit more, try Caribou Colombian or Green Mountain Roasters. Millhouse Colombian Supremo gets good scores if you like a darker roast coffee. If you are one of those folks that likes very dark coffee, Starbucks might suit you, but Chock full o'Nuts French Roast may also be worth a try, and it costs less.

Ground coffee

Reviews for pre-ground coffee are mixed. Almost all reviewers prefer whole-bean coffee to ground, but grinding beans every morning adds an extra step to the process, and can be messy. One review likes pre-ground Dunkin' Donuts Original 100% Arabica (*est. $8 per pound), but we didn't find many other recommendations for it.

The Today Show’s food editor, Phil Lempert, called Dunkin’ Donuts Original Blend smooth and mellow, and declared it not only the best coffee in America, but also a “best buy” 100% Arabica coffee. However, it's not clear whether Lempert was tasting the ground version, the whole-bean version or even the prepared coffee available at Dunkin' Donuts outlets. CoffeeReview.com’s Kenneth Davids had reservations about the coffee, despite the numerous nominations he received to review the blend. He said that the product was inconsistent, with some batches tasting better than others. Most samples had a "classic American" taste.

In the eight-brand pre-ground roundup of coffee from Cook's Illustrated magazine, one only brand even passes muster -- Chock full o'Nuts 100% Colombian (*est. $4 for 12 ounces) -- which "tastes like diner coffee." The other seven ground coffee brands, including Folgers, Maxwell House and Starbucks, aren't recommended at all. Cook's Illustrated didn't test the pre-ground version of Dunkin' Donuts coffee, though they did try the whole-bean version.

There are two main types of coffee beans -- better tasting and higher quality Arabica and lesser quality, cheaper Robusta beans. Many less expensive ground coffees are a blend of the two. Some are all-Robusta. In reviews, coffee varieties using Arabica beans (usually Colombian Arabica) are higher rated overall.

Despite being outsold by Folgers, Maxwell House Original (*est. $4 per pound) is described by CoffeeReview.com as the best of the ground Robusta bean supermarket coffees. Kenneth Davids of the CoffeeReview.com says that Maxwell House escapes this characterization, and actually shows "at least a little nuance and no sewery taint whatsoever." It is deemed a relatively clean cup of coffee, with a sweet aroma. In a consumer poll on favorite coffee conducted by Money Magazine and AOL, Maxwell House came in second to Folgers. It is not hard to find brand loyalists debating whether Folgers or Maxwell House is the better coffee. In other reviews, Folgers and Maxwell House are interchangeable, both receiving average to low ratings compared to others. The 100% Columbian versions of both (as opposed to the Robusta original blends) are rated a bit better overall.

Fair Trade and organic coffee

There's been a lot in the press lately about organic and fair trade coffee. According to an excellent article on the subject in TheNibble.com, coffee is a "heavily sprayed" crop, meaning that its production involves pesticides. Organic coffee is certified to have been grown without the use of such chemicals.

In order for coffee to be labeled as "Fair Trade," it must meet a set of parameters set by the Fair Trade Labeling Organizations International and the U.S. governing body, TransFair USA. In short, the coffee must be produced by small, individually owned coffee farms, and companies buying the beans must pay more than a set minimum per pound for beans. Producers must run farms democratically and be committed to sustainable agricultural and environmental practices. Many Fair Trade coffees are also organic.

We didn't find many specific reviews for Fair Trade or organic coffee, but CoffeeReview.com conducted a review of 20 Fair Trade coffees, in which the Green Mountain Organic Ethiopian Yirgacheffe (*est. $9 for a 12-ounce bag, whole bean or ground) received high praise. This variety is also organic (Green Mountain makes several organic and Fair Trade varieties). This coffee is also highly rated in an article at TheNibble.com, which doesn't rate or rank coffees as rigorously as CoffeeReview.com, but does declare Green Mountain Yirgacheffe one of its favorite coffees.

While we didn't find many other top ratings for Green Mountain Yirgacheffe coffee, we did find several other articles that recommend Ethiopian Yirgacheffe beans in general. CoffeeReview.com editors call the Green Mountain coffee a rich, bittersweet coffee that would be enjoyed by those who like a "softly exotic" medium brew or a cup that hovers between sweet and savory. In a more recently written review, testers at CoffeeReview.com rate Allegro Rwanda Karaba Fair Trade coffee even higher, though this brand is harder to find than Green Mountain.

Ethiopian Yirgacheffe in general was selected as the favorite type of coffee in both Food & Wine and The Nation, but both tested varieties from specialty coffee roasters whose products are not available in supermarkets. Food & Wine chose the top five boutique coffee roasters and named a few of their favorite coffees -- Yirgacheffe was mentioned twice. Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee also pops up in The Nation’s Fair Trade taste test, in which the writer said, "Clearly, Yirgacheffe from any vendor has something going."

Boutique coffees from small roasters are outside the scope of this report, but that's where you'll find a wide variety of organic and Fair Trade coffees. According to critic Davids, coffee lovers no longer sacrifice taste when choosing organic vs. non-organic.

Decaffeinated coffee

Coffee purists will argue that decaffeinated coffee isn't "real" coffee. Nonetheless, there's plenty of demand from those who want good-tasting coffee with less caffeine.

The decaffeination process occurs before beans are roasted, or still in their "green" state. Caffeine is an odorless, crystalline substance with a very slight bitter taste that gets lost in a coffee’s perfume. So the isolation of caffeine doesn’t theoretically alter a coffee’s taste. The challenge arises when attempting to remove the caffeine without ruining the other factors that contribute to the resulting coffee’s flavor, like acidity and body. There are a few different processes used to remove caffeine from coffee beans, and experts disagree about which method most maintains the integrity of the coffee. Most experts say that factors other than removing caffeine contribute more to taste, including the quality of the green coffee before the process, the care of roasting and the coffee's freshness.

Despite which method is used, decaffeinated coffee can be first-rate, as determined by Consumer Reports, which was the only blind taste testing of supermarket coffees that included decaffeinated brews. As Kenneth Davids of CoffeeReview.com says, the stakes are higher. Taste, quality and character are even more important when a caffeine fix isn’t a criterion of satisfaction. Though Consumer Reports was the only one of our main sources that included decaffeinated coffees in their taste tests, we did fine some individual consumer and CoffeeReview.com write-ups that corroborated data from Consumer Reports. We found good scores for Eight O’Clock 100% Colombian Decaf (*est. $5 for a 12-ounce bag). Consumer reviews also support Eight O'Clock decaf as a good-tasting whole-bean Columbian decaf.

Though CoffeeReview.com hasn’t conducted a report specifically on decaffeinated supermarket coffees, Kenneth Davids and editors did conduct a taste test of specialty decaffeinated coffees in which Davids concluded that Colombian coffees were the best quality decaf brews. Another noteworthy decaffeinated coffee was hailed by Davids as an "impressive price-to-value achievement" -- Wal-Mart’s Great Value 100% Arabica (*est. $2.50 per pound, ground).Davids characterizes Great Value decaf as a sweet and deep coffee with semi-sweet chocolate and cherry tones. He does, however, caution that an Arabica coffee at this value price may short-change the workers who toil to deliver the product. Decaffeinated Fair Trade coffee is also available, but we found few reviews on these.

Important Considerations: Coffee

Clearly, what matters most is how a coffee tastes to you. Still, experts say there are some basic distinctions you can use to whittle your choices.

• Try a darker roast if you take milk. In Cook's Illustrated's tests, those who typically drink their coffee with milk preferred a darker roast, while those that liked their coffee black were happier with a lighter roast.

• Grind your own beans if you can. In taste tests, whole-bean coffee is almost always higher rated. It's not hard to see why. When you grind your own coffee, the coffee's natural oils are fresher and more flavorful. But grinding coffee every morning isn't everyone's idea of fun.

• Arabica beans are best. Arabica beans are grown in semitropical climates at high altitude in both hemispheres and require monitoring and special care because when they ripen, they fall off of the trees and spoil easily. Therefore, production costs of these beans are higher. But subsequently, experts say Arabica beans taste better. Robusta beans are grown at low altitudes in the eastern hemisphere and remain on the tree when they are ripe. Experts say Robusta beans are harsher-tasting. Many cheaper coffees use a blend of the two, while better supermarket coffees use 100% Arabica beans, often from Colombia.

• Fair Trade coffee isn't a trade-off. Coffee aficionados used to worry that organic and Fair Trade coffee couldn't compete taste-wise with other coffee, but this is no longer true. The catch is that Fair Trade and organic coffee is harder to find and more expensive. But if you can find it and want to support environmental and socio-economic causes, experts say taste is competitive with other coffee, and is in many cases better.

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

# of picks	Model (with retailer links)	Details from Amazon.com
4	Millstone Colombian Supremo (*est. $7.50 for an 11-ounce bag)	details
4	Dunkin’ Donuts Original Blend (*est. $8 per pound)	details
3	Peet’s Major Dickason (*est. $13 per pound)	-
3	Maxwell House (*est. $4 per pound)	-
3	Eight O’Clock Coffee 100% Columbian (*est. $5 for a 12-ounce bag)	-
3	Green Mountain Organic Ethiopian Yirgacheffe (*est. $9 for a 12-ounce bag)	-
2	Caribou Coffee (*est. $13 for a 16-ounce bag)	-
2	Starbucks Coffee House Blend (*est. $10 for a 12-ounce bag)	-
1 each	Chock full o’Nuts French Roast, , Great Value 100% Colombian Decaf (Wal-Mart), Eight O'Clock 100% Columbian Decaf

Strangely enough, the brand that comes up in almost every review we read was Starbucks coffee, even though it is only mentioned as a top choice alongside Millstone’s Colombian Supremo in one review.

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