SingleServeCoffee.com Forums

[NDJollyMon]

K-Cup Review

Ok, you saw my POD review...now it's time for the K-Cups. I find these to be superior to pods in taste. Not sure if it's the machine, or my taste buds...but I love K-cups!

Keep in mind that I like MEDIUM roasts the best, followed by lighter roasts. Dark roasts...don't like most of them. I don't use cream or sugar either. Ratings go from 4 stars being the favorites, down to 0ne star being....terrible. I tested most of these at 7.25 oz setting.

~Red color indicates my favorites/frequent orders.~
~Blue color indicates BRAND NEW or recently updated reviews!

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters

**** Vermont Country Blend – One good tasting coffee. One of my Fav's!
**** National Wildlife Blend – Excellent coffee blend, mild taste. A little chocolate note on the end.
**** Extra Bold 10% Kona Blend - Ultra smooth texture, in a medium roasted EB. This is a great blend! It is lacking that big Kona punch...yet it still is lingering on the backside. A keeper.
**** Spring Revival Blend (Fair Trade) - Very tasty medium roasted seasonal coffee. Very smooth, with nice aroma. Very consistant blend.
**** Extra Bold Kenya AA - Another great EB from GM! Way to go on these new coffees! A great medium roast, at just the right strength. I brewed at 7.25 oz, and got a great cup. Very smooth, but not much aroma. It's so smooth...you'll forget all about it.
*** Heifer Hope Blend – Very good, very light roast. Good blend, great cause. Always in stock at our house...wife's fav!
*** PBS Blend - Another keeper. Hints chocolate, and tastes 'woody' to me. (aroma is woody too) At first, I thought it tasted like a dark/medium blend. I don't think dark is listed....but my tongue says it's there lurking. It's pretty good coffee.
***Columbian Supremo - Very good medium coffee with fruity tones. I love the body in this one. This almost reached 4 stars...I was on the line with it. Very aromatic coffee.
*** Fair Trade Organic House Blend
*** Fair Trade Autumn Harvest Blend -Blended with dark, but not over the top. Smooth, without that 'burnt' aftertaste.
*** Summer Celebration Blend - This coffee has some wine-like notes, and is pretty good. A limited edition coffee. It's a good medium roast.
*** Nantucket Blend - Great tasting medium blend coffee.
*** Island Coconut – Very light coffee, with a light coconut flavor. Great coffee with just the right amount of flavor.
*** Fair Trade Rain Forest Nut - Very light, nutty flavor with hint of vanilla. Great flavor!
*** Vermont Country Blend Decaf - Not as good as the caffinated version...but good. Much of the great taste remains.
*** Sumatran Reserve Extra Bold - This is good tasting, and pretty strong but not over roasted. No aftertaste or bitterness. On a second sample...I needed to brew with more water. It was very strong for me. Good, strong coffee for you bold lovers!
** Silver Celebration Seasonal - Smooth, medium taste with great aroma. Not a favorite, but no slouch either.
*** Breakfast Blend – Good Breakfast Blend taste. Gave this a second chance and upgraded a star.
** Caramel Vanilla Cream – Good flavored coffee. Very mild.
** Our Blend – Great, light tasting coffee. (Many say this is close to Dunkin' Donuts in taste...but I'm not one of them)
** Wild Blueberry – Overwhelming taste of blueberry. Can’t taste the coffee.
** Lake & Lodge - Dark roast with a burnt aftertaste. Full body.
* Fair Trade Pumpkin Spice - Too much allspice flavor and not enough pumpkin. Coffee is smooth, but the flavor balance is off. No like.
* Fair Trade Raspberry Rhapsody - The aroma of this one is great! I rated only one star because I don't much like flavored coffee. This is not as bad as some other flavors, however. Pretty smooth medium roast.
* French Roast – Mild, dark roast flavor. I don’t like dark roasts very much.
* Mocha Nut Fudge - I don't care for this one either.

Timothy’s

**** Kona Blend - Very tasty blend of about 20% Kona coffee. Medium and very aromatic. A keeper.
**** Fair Trade Wilwili – Smooth and delicious. No aftertaste.(no longer available)
**** Fair Trade Wilwili Extra Bold– Same, but extra strong. Really good, shade grown coffee. (now called FT Nicaragua)
**** Columbian La Vereda - Great medium blend coffee.
*** Mocha Java - This is a pretty smooth blend of coffees. Earthy, but very subtle. I tried it several times and it is consistant. No bitterness or aftertaste.
*** Private Blend- Really smooth, medium blend.
*** Breakfast Blend - Light on taste and roast. Good morning or evening cup. Smooth.
*** Morning Blend – Great light coffee for wake up call!
** Spanish Sol - A meduim coffee with a spicy flair! More of a flavored type coffee with some sass.
*** Caramel Vanilla Nut- Nutty flavor with hints of vanilla/caramel. Not overpowering in the flavor.
*** Decaf Columbian - Great decaf...without that decaf (chemical) taste. Very good decaf! Better on smaller drop settings.
** Timothy's Perfectly Pumpkin - This didn't have enough pumpkin flavor for my tastes either. More spice, less pumpkin. Not as overpowering as the Green Mt Pumpkin, but leaves me wanting more intense pumpkin flavor. Coffee is smooth, and medium roasted.
** Irish Cream - Typical Irish cream flavor, but I don't care for it much. Wife liked it with cream and sugar.
** German Chocolate Cake - Chocolate flavor with a buttery taste. Not too bad, but I wouldn't drink it everyday. Tastes better when it's real hot.


Gloria Jeans

**** GJ Special Blend
**** French Breakfast Blend Decaf - Smooth and delicious. Not as dark as you would think with the word French in the title. Hard to tell it's decaf!
*** Special Blend Decaf - Very good decaf. Much like the regular I like so much.
*** Pumpkin Spice - The aroma is pleasant, not overly strong. The taste of this coffee is outstanding! The flavor is just about as close to Pumpkin Pie as you can get. Not overly strong, or bitter. The aftertaste has a hint of Allspice.
*** Sleigh Ride - Great real chocolate taste with a hint of mint. This is a great seasonal coffee to ring in the holidays with. Not overly strong, with great flavor.
*** Capaccino - Not bad, but not like a cap downtown. Mild flavor, no froth.
** Classic Reserve
** Black Gold, Extra Bold - WOW! Strong cup 'o joe! Dark tasting coffee...in extra strong. A good one for the mud drinkers...but not my fave.
* Mudslide - Fake chocolately taste in a medium roasted cup.

Van Houtte

**** Costa Rica Tarrazu- Another EXCELLENT CR! My favorite VH yet! Smooth, silky, medium roast. Great eveyday cup. Very mild, light roast.
**** Ethiopia Limu - Nice bodied, smooth medium taste. I really like this single origin coffee. It has a little zip. The cooler it got, the better I liked it. Great aroma, and no bitterness.
**** House Blend - This is one of the best House blends I've had! Very good balance, great body, and so smooth. Slightly woody taste, but no overwhelming. Overall...a great coffee!
****Pink Ribbon - a medium roast, very smooth and not bitter. Pleasant taste, without any aftertaste. The aroma is good, and smells slightly dark...but it's not. At a 7.25 drop, it was plenty strong. Love it.
*** Fair Trade Peru/Perou - Mild and smooth. Almost another star.
*** 100% Columbian - Good body, very earthy, without an aftertaste. Smooth, strong, and a little woody.
*** Mexico - Good medium tasting coffee.
*** Decaf (medium) - Great decaf, nice finish with no aftertaste. (Swiss Water Process made)
*** Macadamia Nut - I'm not big on flavors, but this is a refreshing change. Nutty, but not like hazelnut. Very light on flavor, just the way I like it. Very light coffee.
** Amazonia Fair Trade Organic
* Eclipse - Strong, dark, full bodied coffee with a bitter kick. This coffee is only for dark roast, strong coffee drinkers. It holds up strong to milk as well.


Tully’s

**** Evergreen Blend
*** House Blend- Excellent coffee! Tully's coffee has better body/ mouthfeel. (thicker)
*** Full City
*** Madison Blend - Very bold, yet smooth taste. Silk-like textured medium roast. I like it.
*** Kona Blend – Very smooth Kona taste.
*** Breakfast Blend - After another sample, I've upgraded it a star. Nice, full body. Very smooth and strong. Good for "waking up."
** French Roast - I never give any FR coffee more than a star. This one is an exception. Not as smoky tasting as some others.

Bellaccino

***Cinnamon Stick - This is an nice smooth medium roast, with a touch of cinnamon. Not overly strong. Tully's bills it as an EB...but it's not too strong. Just right at 8 oz.

Diedrich

*** Columbian - Very aromatic, really good flavor, and smooth. Really love the aroma of this coffee.
*** Columbian Decaf - Good as it's above brother. Excellent decaf.
*** Sumatra - Full body, great tasting medium roast. Earthy, woody taste.
** Morning Edition
* Paridiso House – Burnt, smoky taste. Over-roasted. Thumbs down.

Newman's Own
*** Organic Special Blend Xtra Bold - Even though I hate dark roast coffee...this blend isn't bad. It has enough medium roast to satisfy. There is a definate 'dark' flavor lingering in the cup. Overall, it was better than I thought it would be. It is xtra bold...and is nice and strong.
*** Special Blend Decaf - Dark roasted, but not over the top. Pretty smooth and full, with a slight burnt aftertaste.

Coffee People
**Donut Shop - I taste a bit of some of the other Coffee People roasts in this one. It is a medium roast...with bite. Very strong, mellow, but still not a favorite.
**Wake Up Call- Extra bold coffee, but I'm not big on the flavor. Just strange to me.
**Kona Island Style - A dark roast that I don't care for. I don't find it to taste much like the Kona I know and love.
* Organic - Very dark, and very strong...even at 7.25 oz. Another one I just don't care for.

Caribou Coffee
*** Daybreak Morning
***Fair Trade - This is pretty good. I find it to be a pretty strong, medium roasted coffee. A little earthy, and full bodied.
**Caribou Blend - Flat taste, kindy woody flavor.
* Sumatra - Dark roasted, woody overtones. Strong enough to hold up to milk. The only way I would need milk is to mask the flavor of the roast. No like.

TEA:
**** Twinings English Breakfast Tea- Very good, strong tea. This is good hot or cold. (really good as iced tea) (this brand bought loose works very well in the MyKcup device)
**** Twinings Earl Grey - Very mild with flowery-mellow taste. Very calming. (this brand bought loose works very well in the MyKcup device)
*** Celestial Seasonings Mandarin Spice - Very tasty, great iced tea. Orange flavor is not overpowering.
** Celestial Seasonings - Lemon Zinger - Very lemony flavor, good tea. (tastes great iced!)
** Timothy's Lemon Blueberry Passion - Tastes good, but I'm not a big hot tea fan. I can't drink more than a few ounces of tea...unless it's iced.
*** Gloria Jeans Mango - Light mango flavor, medium tasting tea.
*** Gloria Jeans English Breakfast Tea - Very mild tea. I like it a little stronger. May need to brew at 6oz setting.
** Gloria Jeans Chai - Very spicy flavor. Plenty strong...with a tastefull kick.
_________________
Pete (Jolly) -
Forum Moderator
____________
Keurig: B130 ~ (2) B-50's ~ (1) B-60 SE
Cuisinart SS-1
2-Handpresso Wild/Handpresso DomePod (Portable Espresso)
1-Fresh Roast Plus 8 Coffee Roaster
GSI JavaDrip
Bodum French Press

[chicago_animal]

The best part of the GMCR BLUEBERRY coffee IS the fact that you can taste the blueberries so much. I am tired of coffee where you only get a very small hint of a flavor. Thats why this is FLAVORED coffee

[NDJollyMon]

Maybe that's YOUR opinion....but not MINE!
_________________
Pete (Jolly) -
Forum Moderator
____________
Keurig: B130 ~ (2) B-50's ~ (1) B-60 SE
Cuisinart SS-1
2-Handpresso Wild/Handpresso DomePod (Portable Espresso)
1-Fresh Roast Plus 8 Coffee Roaster
GSI JavaDrip
Bodum French Press

[Alice2]

Very interesting choices, NDJollyman ~~~

I felt the Heiffer Hope and Breakfast Blend in GM were enjoyable enough, but didn't have that extra dimension I was looking for. And the Vermont Country blend kinda the same.

After all the other raves about the Blueberry which I have yet to taste --- I changed my June order from one box to two boxes because I am so SURE I will LOVE it. Silly me.

I agree Gloria Jeans Classic Reserve is yucky, Van Houtte Amazonia is yucky, although I think I liked it at first. Tully's Kona Blend is just passable.

In fact the only K-Cups I have tried that I like enough to want to buy some more are
---Van Houtte Costa Rica Tarrazu
---Timothy's Columbian La Vereda (although I like Tarrazu so much MORE I might dump my second choice here)
---Van Houtte Pecan Praline for those flavored moments. . . .

Now I got used to drinking up the Van Houtte Columbia, which I wasn't crazy about at first but after I used up my favorites it became the FAVORITE of the ones I had left! (next to La Vereda). So that tells me that Van Houtte has got that something special to it that the other brands are lacking.

Of course I mean what I say when I say it, but the thing about these K-Cups is I found myself changing my mind about a few of them.

There's my idle thoughts on K-Cups til my blueberry comes in!
_________________
Cafe My Bunn! ~~ Keurig B40 ~~ KitchenAid Compact 4-Cup Coffeemaker ~~ Keurig B30

[Marci]

NDJollyMon,

I guess I will have to send you my Vermont Country Blend since you like those bad boys! Now, do I still have your address?
_________________
OPOD & Romeo

[NDJollyMon]

[Hodaka]

[NDJollyMon]

I find that as I taste test more coffee...
My ratings adjust. I find other coffee that rates higher, and the other coffee suddenly tastes different to me. I'll adjust my ratings if anything changes.

So far...my favorites are:

Timothy's Fair Trade Wiliwili (reg and EB)
Tully's Evergreen
Green Mt. Vermont CB
_________________
Pete (Jolly) -
Forum Moderator
____________
Keurig: B130 ~ (2) B-50's ~ (1) B-60 SE
Cuisinart SS-1
2-Handpresso Wild/Handpresso DomePod (Portable Espresso)
1-Fresh Roast Plus 8 Coffee Roaster
GSI JavaDrip
Bodum French Press

[Bucfanmike]

Its interesting how different people's tastes can be. NDJolly.. I'm 100% with ya on music. Jimmy is my all time favorite.. but on coffee we are way different. I go for the dark roast first and the tullys french is probably my favorite k-cup so far. I drink way more of the dark magic EB right now cuz my best buy still isnt out of them at 3.99 a box. I think im the only keurig owner around here.

On a lighter scale I find the tullys kona very good and i do enjoy that one, but the house blend, i just dont care much for. On the timothy's I have only tried the decaf .. and well again way different opinion. On the GM I really like their french roast. Do not like their Vermont country blend, our blend, breakfast blend.

I think this just really proves the strength of the single serve coffee idea. My wife tends to agree more with NDJolly than me and because of these great machines its easier for each of us to have exactly the coffee we enjoy. It also means you can experiment and try so many different kinds and I have found things that i like that i never thought i would have.
_________________
Hi, Im Mike and I have an addiction...
i have tried them all and ended up with:
Nespresso Romeo E350,
Grindmaster OPOD, Toddy Cold Press, Krups kp1010
and now home roasting with HG/BM method

[NDJollyMon]

I tried to get rid of all my dark K-Cups when my family was here. My sister drank several GM French, Tully's French, and some of the others I have.

I got another shipment in today with several Timothy's K's I haven't tried yet. I only found one Timothy's so far I can't stand...that's the German Chocolate Cake!

I'll be adding more reviews today!
_________________
Pete (Jolly) -
Forum Moderator
____________
Keurig: B130 ~ (2) B-50's ~ (1) B-60 SE
Cuisinart SS-1
2-Handpresso Wild/Handpresso DomePod (Portable Espresso)
1-Fresh Roast Plus 8 Coffee Roaster
GSI JavaDrip
Bodum French Press

[coffeecat]

Jolly, your reviews work for me! I just follow the opposite of everything you have starred....a complete turnaround....LOL.
You give a five star, I give a no star....you give a 4 star, I give a 1 star.....yada, yada.
Mandy
_________________
* Keurig B60 * Keurig B50 * Bunn My Cafe
* Bodum French Press * Cuisinart Drip Brewer
* Kitchen Aid Proline Burr Grinder
* Convection Oven/Stir Crazy Roasting Combo
* AeroPress

[Bucfanmike]

lol. coffeecat, think you, me and marci are in the same boat
_________________
Hi, Im Mike and I have an addiction...
i have tried them all and ended up with:
Nespresso Romeo E350,
Grindmaster OPOD, Toddy Cold Press, Krups kp1010
and now home roasting with HG/BM method

[NDJollyMon]

Ok...does ANYONE like the same coffee as me???

_________________
Pete (Jolly) -
Forum Moderator
____________
Keurig: B130 ~ (2) B-50's ~ (1) B-60 SE
Cuisinart SS-1
2-Handpresso Wild/Handpresso DomePod (Portable Espresso)
1-Fresh Roast Plus 8 Coffee Roaster
GSI JavaDrip
Bodum French Press

[MattM2G]

I like the same coffee as you Jolly!!!!....but I also like the same as Marci and the others. alot depends on my mood (and which of my 140 personalities has taken over - lol just kidding).

Some days I like very dark....but more times I like a medium or lighter roast. I have been really liking the Tulley's Madison Blend lately. It is very well balanced and has an incredible finish that makes me want to take another sip!!!!

Anyhoo, you are not alone out there!!!
_________________
Own: Tassimo , Keurig B-60, Gevalia Pod Machine (Travel Machine), Bunn MyCafe, Bodum French Press, Bialetti Brikka Stovetop Espresso Maker, DeLonghi Drip machine (retired), Gevalia 4 cup drip machine (retired).

[Maniac]

Just give me dark roast all the time. I just tried Newman's organic and CP's Black Tiger. I really like them both. The light and some of the med roasts taste too much like water to me.But then I love espresso. Its a good thing there are so many blends. Everyone's taste runs to something different.
_________________
Bosch Tassimo
Nespresso C90
Keurig B60SE
Saeco Via Venezia
Delonghi Alicia
Newco OCS8/ Mr. Coffee 4 cup