Best Canned Coffee?

[michiganlover]

I am posting this kind of tongue in check, as I don't believe a truly good canned coffee can exist.

But let's discuss it anyway, what's the best canned coffee, and why?

This question is a bit like discussing the merits of Canned Goo....

In the past I absolutely detested canned coffee as utter garbage that was fully undrinkable. But with coffee constantly brewing at work for the last four years, I can now drink it, and not find it fully repulsive.

At home I typically drink Starbucks, or Seattle's Best Coffee, generally liking the darker roasts.

The absolute worst I have ever had has to be Eight O'Clock Coffee. It had a bitter musky flavor. Ick!!

The best is probably the Sam's Choice/ Wal-Mart brand, since at least it is Arabica, vs. the really low grade Robusta.

Chock Full of Nuts seems to be a bit more palatable than most as well.

I seem to remember a Italian brand from college called Illy, that was superb but quite expensive, especially for a canned coffee.

P.S. I drink all of my coffee black: good coffee doesn't need to be tainted by sugar, and creamer.

[mckolit]

Freeze dried Sanka! Just drown it in sweetened condensed milk and add more sugar for extra kick.

[Argonaut]

Personally, I like 8 O'Clock whole bean, grind at home as needed. Also, it was rated much higher than Starbucks by consumer digest. I use a french press for coffee making so it may be different if you use a different method.

[msandoval858]

Cafe Bustelo! That stuff has nice strength and a great rich flavor. For a canned coffe, not much comes close for me.

It's cheap stuff too. I think I've even seen it at the local WalMart.

[Leche]

Trader Joes' brand is pretty good.

[dpm802]

Trader Joes' brand is pretty good.

+1

I haven't tried their ground coffee, but their instant coffee is superior. I'm also impressed by the fact that it comes in a glass jar, instead of plastic. I stock up on coffee whenever I get to TJ's, which isn't often enough.

[dpm802]

Starbuck's VIA is the best instant coffee I've ever tasted, and I really like the fact that it comes in single serving packets, so its always fresh.

That being said, I don't like paying the exhorbitant prices they demand. Even in the larger packages, and with my Gold Card discount of 10% off, it still works out to around 75 cents a serving for an 8oz cup. Although it tastes great, I stick with other brands of instant that are less than a dime per serving.

[Matt555]

Foldgers Black Silk. Obviously only if you like it string though

[jrowen]

The absolute worst I have ever had has to be Eight O'Clock Coffee. It had a bitter musky flavor. Ick!!

...

Chock Full of Nuts seems to be a bit more palatable than most as well.

I just got 2 press pots, the bodum chambord and brazil (one for work, one for home ) and was looking for some good whole bean supermarket coffee to grind in my burr grinder. I am a member at cooks illustrated, so I went and searched over there recently to see if they had any taste tests and... viola! Unfortunately, you have to be a member there to see the full results. Fortunately for us, like I said, I am! Cooks Illustrated always seem to do a pretty good job of mixing the ideal and practical, and the scientific and personal preference. Obviously, this is a specific sampling, and doesn't cover all possible supermarket "canned" coffees, but its kind of a nice overview.

In order to make the data make sense, here are definitions of "agtron" and "quakers". These definitions can also be found in the like provided, but I've copied them here for reference.

Agtron - The higher the Agtron reading (that is, the more light the beans reflect), the lighter the roast: An Agtron reading of 85 would indicate an ultra-light, almost tealike coffee; the darkest French roast out there would be closer to 15.

Quaker - a quaker is coffee-industry jargon for an underdeveloped coffee bean that fails to get sorted out before the roasting stage. Less dense than a regular, mature bean, quakers can wreak havoc on the coffee's flavor profile, imparting a spoiled taste to the brew. So desirable is quaker-free coffee that beans are graded based on quaker count, and buyers are willing to pay a premium for beans that come up clean in spot tests.



So, without further ado, Here is a summary of what they found:

1) Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Our Blend

Commentary - Soft, balanced, and pleasantly acidic, this was a lighter roast even the dark-roast camp could get on board with. Hints of caramel and fruit.
Recommendation - Highly Recommended
Type of Coffee - Lighter Roast
Agtron - 48
Quakers - 6
Price - $7.49 for 12 ounces

2) Millstone Columbian Supremo

Commentary - This brand was neck-and-neck with Starbucks for winning over our dark-roast enthusiasts. The deep, smoky, “chocolaty” flavor profile with a bitter finish proved a good foil for milk, but some of our light-roast camp found it “harsh."
Recommendation - Highly Recommended
Type of Coffee - Darker Roast
Agtron - 36.5
Quakers - 1
Price - $7.99 for 11 ounces

3) Eight O'clock Coffee Original

Commentary - We liked this inexpensive brand’s smooth body, its nutty, almost chocolaty flavor, and its “toasty aroma,” especially in the plain tasting.
Recommendation - Highly Recommended
Type of Coffee - Lighter Roast
Agtron - 51.4
Quakers - 6
Price - $4.99 for 13 ounces

4) Folgers Classic Supremo

Commentary - “Yuck—from my dad’s old thermos,” recalled one taster. “Reminds me of bad truckstop coffee,” said another. The strong astringency was fine with milk but bothered tasters in the plain round.
Recommendation -Recommended with Reservations
Type of Coffee - Lighter Roast
Agron - 48.9
Quakers - 8
Price - $3.99 for 12 ounces

5) Starbucks Coffee House Blend

Commentary - This self-proclaimed “light roast” from Starbucks was darker than any other coffee in our lineup. Fans praised the rich, “almost chocolaty” flavors and deep, smoky aroma, but others found it burnt.
Recommendation - Recommended with Reservations
Type of Coffee - Darker Roast
Agron - 34.9
Quakers - 1
Price - $9.39 for 12 ounces

6) Seattle's Best Coffee Seattle's Best Blend

Commentary - Not a quaker to mar the flavor profile, but tasters still weren’t that impressed. Dark and smoky, yet this brand lacked the complexity to round out such strong flavors. “Smells like tar."
Recommendation - Not Recommended
Type of Coffee - Darker Roast
Agron - 40
Quakers - 0
Price - $7.69 for 12 ounces

7) Dunkin' Donuts Original Blend

Commentary - The lightest roast of the group failed to impress our tasters. (“Chocolaty but thin—is there coffee in here?”) Unpleasant “molasses” off-notes, a bitter aftertaste, and the highest quaker count in our lineup.
Recommendation - Not Recommended
Type of Coffee - Lighter Roast
Agron - 59.9
Quakers - 9
Price - $8.49 for 16 ounces

8) Chock Full O' Nuts SoHo Morning Roast

Commentary - The three bags we sent to the lab had three different roast darknesses. (The company says it was aiming for about 40.) Every version our panel tasted was plagued by metallic off-notes, “bracing acidity,” and a “cardboard” aftertaste.
Recommendation - Not Recommended
Type of Coffee - Darker Roast
Agron - 40.3
Quakers - 7
Price - $5.79 for 12 ounces

[RichGem]

Trader Joe's (various blends)
Sam's Choice/Wallymart
Chase & Sanborn (yes, really)
Dunkin' Donuts regular/unflavored

[CEFranklin]

Foldgers Black Silk. Obviously only if you like it string though

+2 (one for me and one for the wife)

[jrowen]

Oh yeah... I find the archer's farm brand from Target to be ok too.

[jherm77]

I would give an opinion, but I don't believe good and canned coffee truly exist together :)

[cricky101]

I agree with the Folger's black silk. It's pretty good as far as canned coffees go.

I usually buy whole bean - either Eight O'clock or Trader Joe's. Great flavor for the price.

I haven't tried any of the Trader Joe's canned coffees but am planning to head there tomorrow and may need to pick up some to try.

[VR6ofpain]

I'm confused, people are referencing bagged coffee like Dunkin Donuts. I thought this was "canned" only? Wouldn't bagged coffee include too much to even discuss? There is a lot of good coffee that comes in prepackaged bags IMO. My preference is San Francisco Bay Coffee Co. French Roast. Pick up 3 lbs bags at Costco for $13 (previously they were $9).

Cafe Bustelo! That stuff has nice strength and a great rich flavor. For a canned coffe, not much comes close for me.

I have always wanted to buy this because of the unique and loud can design.

Starbuck's VIA is the best instant coffee I've ever tasted, and I really like the fact that it comes in single serving packets, so its always fresh.

Agreed. It is instant coffee, but it is damn good. Honestly I have had worse cups of coffee from Starbucks (they seem to let their drip coffee sit longer than it should).

[Will P.C.]

trader joe varieties is what I have right now and its probably my favorite canned

[jtoddaz]

My vote goes to Illy.

[StillShaving]

Trader Joe's carries a number of different types of coffees, surely they have some good and bad ones? I can only remember the last couple of cans I tried:

1. Their Peaberry was pretty good, I could drink it again:


2. But I could not finish "Joe's Bay Blend" which is labeled as an ultra roast, it was just too burnt tasting. I could not finish the first cup, it tasted as if it had been brewed hours before. To be fair, I did not read the label carefully to see that it was a dark roast, when I prefer a light-medium roast. It comes in a blue can and the label description reads:

Joe's Bay Blend is a bled of Colombian Excelso and Mexican arabica coffee beans which have been roasted especially to appeal to coffee enthusiasts who like the hearty, full flavor of deeply roasted coffee. If you like coffee "Seattle style" or "Bay Area style", we think you'll like Joe's Bay Blend, Trader Joe's darkest roasted coffee.

[Matt555]

I was buying high priced beans and grinding them myself. It was really good. But like I mentioned, I tried the Foldgers Black Silk and I thought it was even better! Coffee is a strange thing though. So many variables: cream, milk, sugar, flavored coffee mate, black. I think it is gonna be different for everyone. Kinda like wine....

[jrowen]

Oh... you mean caaaaannnned coffee. Right, right. Sorry... I'm new here

I'm confused, people are referencing bagged coffee like Dunkin Donuts. I thought this was "canned" only? Wouldn't bagged coffee include too much to even discuss? There is a lot of good coffee that comes in prepackaged bags IMO. My preference is San Francisco Bay Coffee Co. French Roast. Pick up 3 lbs bags at Costco for $13 (previously they were $9).I have always wanted to buy this because of the unique and loud can design.

Wow, VR6... apparntly I'm confused too. Folger's, Maxwell House, Grocery store brand and Illy is the only thing that comes canned (in a can )out here and is widely available. Dunkin and everything else is pre-bagged or open bin. Is SFB Coffee Co. bagged or canned? I'm also confused because the OP mentioned Seattle's Best, Starbucks, 8 O'clock, Chock full of nuts.... all pre-bagged, here... not in physical cans. So, I thought my information would be relevant. I took "canned" to mean pre-packaged EDIT: pre-bagged, as in, "he gave a canned speach." What are we talking about here, folks?? Are we talking about canned in a can, or canned as in speach?