Celestial Seasonings Chai

Just as I had lost all hope for tea k-cups, I tasted the Celestial Seasonings Indian Spice Chai tea k-cup.

Oh my, my, my.  The aroma while brewing?  Delightful.  Spicy, sweet...so good!  As usual, I brewed with 8 ounces of water, and even still it wasn't too watered down.  It tastes more like the chai flavor I'm used to.  I added a smidge of sugar, and it was delicious.  I imagine over ice, with milk?  Instant iced chai latte!  My search for the perfect tea k-cup is over.  =)

The lowdown:

Flavor:  10.  This tea is so good!  Very nice chai flavor, and strong enough to brew over ice, I'd think.  Yum.

Price:  8.  At $0.55 per cup, it's a great price.  Definitely worth it!

Overall rating: 10!  This is my favorite tea k-cup.  The others have been too bland for me.

Would I buy again?:  Definitely yes.  A million times, yes!  Yum.

Twinings Earl Grey Decaf

I was in the mood for a cup of tea this evening, so I reached for my new Twinings Earl Grey Decaf k-cup.

I love Earl Grey tea.  I love it!  I love the aroma, I love the flavor, and I love the warm goodness.  Mmm.  I used to drink this brand's tea bag variety, so I was looking forward to trying this k-cup!

The aroma while brewing was great.  A nice, pleasant bergamot aroma.  Mmm...my favorite part!  However, after it finished brewing, much like the other tea k-cup I tried, the flavor was bland, bland, bland.  Maybe it's my Georgia gal upbringing, but I like my tea to have a strong flavor, not taste like dirty water.  Every tea k-cup seems like it needs another two minutes to steep before it extracts all the flavor.  I have one more to try, but I'm starting to think that the tea k-cups are a lost cause.  =\

The lowdown:

Flavor:  1.  This tea was so bland.

Price:  10!  At $0.46 per cup, it's a great bargain.

Overall rating: 2.  Booo-ring!

Would I buy again?:  Definitely not.  I will be sticking to Tazo tea bags for my Earl Grey fix.

Timothy's World Coffee Chai Tea

Today I got several samplers in the mail that I ordered from Kenoza Coffee!  I decided to try a Timothy's World Coffee Chai Tea after supper today.

I guess in order to be fair to this tea, I should preface it by saying that I really like Chai lattes more than Chai tea.  But I was super disappointed in this tea.

The aroma was the first clue that this tea was going to be quite bland.  It did have a chai essence to it, but there was barely any spiciness to it at all.  It was bland, bland, bland.  Honestly, I drank three sips of it before I poured it out.  Nothing was saving this tea.

The lowdown:

Flavor:  1.  This tea was so bland.  Weeeeeak.

Price:  4.  At $0.56 per cup, it's more than I would be willing to pay for it.


Overall rating: 2.  Booo-ring!


Would I buy again?:  Definitely not.

Gloria Jean's Butter Toffee

This morning's choice was Gloria Jean's Butter Toffee.

I am not usually a fan of flavored coffees.  This is one of the choices that came in my sample packs that came with the brewer I bought.  The aroma while brewing was very...flavored syrup heavy.  It completely masked the aroma of the coffee altogether.  When I tried this k-cup plain black, I had a bit of shock.  Wasn't this supposed to be flavored coffee?  It tasted more like...super bitter and gross.  I was hopeful from the name that this was going to be delicious...because c'mon.  Butter?  Toffee?  Yes and yes, please.  After adding half and half, it was a bit less harsh (I wouldn't use the word smooth), but it wasn't until I added sugar that it was drinkable.  I still don't enjoy the flavored syrup after-taste, though.  Blech.

The lowdown:


Flavor: 4.  I was not a fan.


Price: 8.  At $0.55 a cup, it's not a terrible price, but I like to shoot for a $0.50 and under range.


Overall rating: 6.  Not exactly my cup of...coffee?  lol  But if you enjoy a flavored coffee or don't mind cream and sugar, go for it.


Would I buy again?: If it came in a variety pack again, I would drink it, but not black.

Timothy's World Coffee Decaffeinated Columbian

After supper, I decided a nice cup of decaf sounded delicious.  So I tried Timothy's World Coffee Decaffeinated Columbian.

Oh, my my my.  So.  Good!

The aroma while brewing was fantastic.  I could hardly wait for the brew cycle to be over!  When tasted straight black, the bitterness was PERFECT.  I could drink this coffee black any day of the week.  I added a bit of half and half, and oh my...smooth, rich...so so good!  When I added a dash of sugar, it was amazing.  Without a doubt, this k-cup is great no matter how you take your coffee!!

The low down:

Flavor: 10.  I really liked the bitterness level, and it was smooth and rich.  So good!

Price: 10!  The link above will get you 2 boxes of 25 k-cups for $22, which is about $0.48 per k-cup!

Overall Rating: 10.  Great flavor, great price.  There is nothing about this choice I didn't love!

Would I buy again?: Yes, definitely!  This is a great choice for any time of day!

Donut Shop Coffee by Coffee People

This morning's selection was the Donut Shop Coffee by Coffee People.

Um, first of all, the packaging is adorable!  But that is neither here nor there when talking taste.  This k-cup was much better than my last.  The aroma was great while it brewed, but it actually wasn't as nice as the Caribou Coffee Daybreak Morning Blend I had yesterday, which is odd considering I liked this k-cup a lot better than the last. I tried it black, but found it a bit too acidic for me to drink without cream (really, I haven't had a proper cup...meaning without cream and/or sugar...since before my pregnancy, so there's that).  With cream it was much milder, and the flavor was great!  I added a touch of sugar and it was excellent.

The low down:

Flavor: 8.  Even with the bit of acidity, it had a great flavor!

Price: 8.  When you buy the 50 pack, it comes out to about $0.56 a cup!

Overall Rating: 8.  Even with a slight acidic aftertaste, I found this k-cup to be quite enjoyable.

Would I buy again?: Yes.  I probably wouldn't drink it without cream, though.

K-Cup review: Caribou Coffee Daybreak Morning Blend

The first k-cup in the journey is the Caribou Coffee Daybreak Morning Blend, pictured below.

I chose it arbitrarily from the non flavored section of my Keurig 5060 K-Cup Carousel, and got down to business.

The Caribou Coffee Daybreak Morning Blend had a great aroma as it brewed (but really, what coffee doesn't smell good as it brews?), and I was excited to try it.  However, I found that like most other "breakfast" style coffees, it tasted a bit too bright and lacked the flavor I was looking for.  If you typically like a breakfast blend style coffee, you might enjoy this k-cup.  However, if you like a bolder taste to your coffee, skip this one (and for that matter, all other "breakfast" style coffees) completely.  This is not a k-cup I will be purchasing again.

The low down:

Flavor:  5  It was pretty weak.
Price:  4  At about $0.84 a cup, it is a bit pricey.
Overall rating: 4.5  Not the best
Would I buy again?:  No