Friday, July 10, 2015

Mugged: Driftaway Coffee



Subject: Driftaway Coffee
Coffee Mugged and Rating [see key]:
- Profile 1 (Fruity): Rwanda Gitesi 6+
- Profile 2 (Classic): Brazil Fazenda do Serrado 4+
- Profile 3 ( Balanced): Nicaragua Las Nubes Co-op 5+
- Profile 4 (Bold): Honduras San Vicente 4+

It's no secret that there are different types of coffee drinkers. Some like the beautiful nuance and vibrant flavors of a lightly roasted African coffee, brimming with fruit and luscious chocolate. Others like their coffee a bit stiffer and thicker, a brew with a mellow sweetness and smatterings of different flavors. And then there's some folks who like their coffee to bathe their tongue in bitterness and smoke, favoring the dark roasts bearing European country names. 

But what if people don't really know where they fall? What if someone grew up in a dark roast house and are only now beginning to explore the glorious nature of well-crafted light roasts? And what if someone is tired of fruit and exciting flavors, and is currently looking to ashen up their coffee? Fortunately there's a subscription service that allows you to explore the options and move from there. 

Driftaway Coffee is a monthly coffee subscription that offers four coffees falling into one of four profiles: fruity, classic, balanced and bold. When someone starts the service, they get the four different coffees, each representing a profile. Then after they've had a chance to slurp and sip them all, they simply tell Drifaway what they like and the next shipment reflects the winners of the taste test. 

Looking as always to try out new things, I was able to give a Driftaway mailing a go. Since the coffee only comes in 4 ounce pouches, the following reviews only reflect pourover infusions.

Going in order, I started with the Fruity profile, the Rwanda Gitesi. This coffee proved my clear favorite, with raspberry jam, fuji apple, chocolate, caramel, sunflower seeds and toasted oats within a light body. Fruity, luscious and well-balanced.

The Classic profile represented by the Brazil Fazenda do Serrado came next. While tasty, these beans had some minor straw flavors that overshadowed the experience. Beautiful were the positives of apple juice, black tea and cashew, but the consistent chaff-like, straw notes throughout definitely detracted.

The Balanced profile of the Nicaragua Las Nubes Co-op made for my second favorite, belting out cascara, toasted cracker, chocolate, wheat grass, kale and butterscotch. A light-bodied brew with sugary aspects and a slight brothiness.

The final profile of Bold featured the Honduras San Vicente, a coffee that sang of rye roast, chocolate, vanilla bean, butter, cloves, coriander and slight blackberry. I expected this brew to sample a little heavy, but it proved still good, full of spice, malt and sweetness.

Thus, as Driftaway had intended, I came out with 2 profiles I would order again and two I would likely defer. The only real contention I had was that I don't see the straw-like qualities present in the Brazilian coffee as something any coffee drinker would seek (though I'm sure there's one).

If you're looking for a coffee subscription that really offers the option to explore different profiles from the hand of a single roaster, definitely give Driftaway a try.

note: coffee was provided free of charge and the above review is objective feedback.

1 comment:

Coffee Pouches - Flexible packaging said...

Wow very unique kind of Coffee blog. I am coffee lover, African roasted is my favorite.