I grew up in a house and family where coffee was king, no matter what the occasion. death – out comes the coffee, Wedding – there must be a few after ceremony cups, Christmas season – coffee was always ready for carolers. Like I said, coffee was boss. And in those days of my youth, the words “instant coffee” was very much frowned upon – coffee was made on way and one way only – fresh roasted coffee beans were grounded and brewed, if you wanted instant, well go to someone else’s house. This was a place for Percolators, preferably stovetop (these have since transformed to coffee machines, espresso machines, etc, but a few are still around today). They generally looked something like this (of course this one is more refined than what I remember from childhood)
Although I have since been captured by the Starbucks machine but my mother has never been impressed with designer coffee mixtures – she still loves her ground coffee and roasted coffee beans. She even has a vintage percolator, a coffee grinder and several coffee machines (backup in case one breaks I guess)- the woman loves her coffee. I usually can’t help myself and always pick up coffee I think my mom will enjoy. On her most recent weekend visit to NYC, I introduced her to Community Coffee. I should say I showed her the coffee I got from Community Coffee, which was the Rich Taste of Louisiana Coffee Sampler
I had to pull my hands back very quickly or risk missing a few appendages. After the oohs, a very faint “you shouldn’t have” and he sound of the package being ripped opened I thought to myself – should I tell her that I was just showing her the coffees and it wasn’t a gift for her? My answer was of course no after I saw the intense salivating going on in front of me let me know this coffee was never meant to be mine – so this will be a review of Community Coffee through my mother’s eyes or rather her taste buds (yes, my mom proceeded to give me details on how much she liked or loved each flavor) – sweet, isn’t she?
A little bit about these coffees – First, Community Coffee is Louisiana-based, family-owned company and has been around since 1919. The Rich Taste of Louisiana Coffee Sampler comes with four 12oz bags of coffee beans – Evangeline Blend™, Louisiana Blend™ (Medium Dark), French Quarter Fusion™ and Crescent City Blend®. The four 12oz bags cost only $34.99 and each bag cost a very, very low $7.99. One thing I noticed from the time I got the coffee, even though the package was sealed, the aroma was very present from the coffee, at first I thought one package might be ripped but turns out each bag has a little valve (known as nitrogen-flush containers)which allows the you to enjoy the amazing aromas. “The valve keeps oxygen from entering the bag and causing the coffee to lose freshness. This also keeps the bag from opening prematurely due to excessive pressure.” This little valve was the coolest thing to my mom, she kept on poking the bag so more of the coffee aromas came out (told you she loves her coffee). Anyway, out came the coffee grinder, filters, etc. We went through each bag and here are the findings
Crescent City Blend (Medium-Dark Roast) – mom thought this was a gentle and mild coffee, it smelled and tasted a bit sweet, was smooth and had no after taste. A great start to this little tasting adventure (and some quality mom and daughter time)
Louisiana Blend (Medium-Dark Roast) – this blend had a nutty aroma and taste; it was bold and rich, very srong. It didn’t smell nor taste sweet (even though this is medium-dark roast like Crescent City, they are quite different)
Evangeline Blend (Dark Roast)- heaven…this ultra smooth blend was mom’s favorite. She said it reminder her of coffees from the Caribbean/Latin America. It’s not as bold as the Louisiana Blend but was the perfect combination of sweet and richness.
French Quarter Fusion (Medium Roast) – this blend had a strong and bitter taste, it was my mom’s least favorite (she still finished it though). She doesn’t add milk to her coffee, but she said she would with this blend.
So there you have it, great coffee at a refreshingly low cost and this is coming from a coffee addict. The weekend visit ended with my mother taking “her” coffee back with her – as I said, the coffee was never mine. I think next time I’ll go for tea instead, she doesn’t drink it as much.
Before I end this, I must let you know some of the other cool things Community Coffee offers, such as a Mardi Gras Giftset (complete with mardi gras designed Tumbler and beads)
or maybe you’re in the mood for some of Marguerite’s King Cakes, which comes in Cinnamon (shown below), Cajun Praline or Cheesecake) – yum
