If you are in a hurry and just want to find out what the best ground coffee is. Then we recommend the Caribou Ground Coffee. As the best one in our ground coffee reviews.
In this article, we’re going to review the following Ground coffee.
- Death Wish Ground Coffee
- Peak Performance high Altitude Organic Coffee
- Peet’s Coffee
- Caribou Ground Coffee
- Valhalla Java Ground Coffee
What To Consider With Ground Coffee?
The first thing to be aware of is the freshness of the coffee. The taste and freshness of the coffee goes hand by hand.
Why? You see coffee tends to start degrading as soon as you take it out of the package. Sometimes you can see on related note when the coffee was packaged and where it’s from.
The coffee tends to lose its flavor about three to four weeks after being taken out of the package. This is no matter how well it is packaged or how trusted its manufacturing brand may be.
When we look at the freshness at roasted and unroasted coffee. The roasted coffee will lose some of its flavor in a couple of weeks.
But the unroasted coffee can stay fresh for months. It is not everyday thing to run into unroasted coffee.
But should you get the chance, you should definitely look for it. By using variety of household appliances the coffee can be roasted easy.
When you have coffee then you need the A good coffee maker. If you have tried a good coffee maker. Then you know that there are world in difference when preparing coffee.
Even a low-end coffee can get a higher standard with good proper preparation. The cause behind this is, that the good coffee makers can reach between 195 and 205 degrees F during the brewing process.
This is the optimal temperature to get the most out of most coffee beans, grounded or not.
How to choose the right roast level?
There are 3 roast level to choose from, Light, Medium, Dark. The darker the roast is the more coffee tastes similar.
This is because of the darker you roast coffee, the more dominant is the charred flavor.
Light Roasted
The light roasted coffee tends to keep more of their origin flavors. And unique elements, reflecting the natural qualities of the coffee.
You can also say that, the light roasted coffee brings the origin character of that specific coffee.
With the light roasted you will be better able to taste, the difference between the coffee brands or the place it is from.
Light roasts offers multilayered complexity, revealing traces of sweetness, fruit tanguness or even a subtle floral aroma.
There are some customers that don’t like light roasted coffee. That’s because it can taste of too much citrus, too much floral and are not balanced.
Medium Roasted
The medium roasted coffee is a compromise, that often get the best flavors in coffee that have begun caramelization.
But don’t have any burnt or the chocolate darkness to them. Medium roast coffee have a brown color and rarely has an oily surface.
The medium roasted coffee are more balanced, well rounded, and are darker and sweeter. Specialty coffee roasters loves medium roast.
Because they are more approachable than light roasts to the average coffee drinker.
Dark Roasted
It is no surprise that the dark roasted coffee has a dark brown surface color. The dark surface is also oily.
The dark roasted have a low acidity, heavy body, and tend to reveal deeper, darker flavors. When the coffee roasted to this level, then it tend to not have many of their origin characteristics left.
Yet this doesn’t mean that these are bland and boring. There is big difference between light and the dark roast coffee.
The best way to taste the difference is to try it side-by-side.
How to choose the best grind level?
In this section we will look at the different types of coffee makers. That works best with a specific kind of grind.
The Grind level has influence on how rough or ground the coffee beans are. This has impact on the taste of the final brew.
Coarse grinds have a texture like kosher salt will work best with:
- Percolators
- Plunger pots
- Vacuum coffee pots
- French press machines
Medium grinds will work best with:
- Manuel/auto drip machines that have either paper or steel filters
Fine grinds works best with:
- Cone paper filters in a drip
- Espresso Moka pots
Extra fine grinds works best with:
- Pump espresso machines
- Steam espresso machines
Turkish grind works best with:
- Turkish coffee pot, called Ibrik or Cezve
Just in case have in mind that this is only recommendations and guidelines. For what works best the specific grind level. Yet coffee machines can work with big range of different grind levels.
The 3 factor of buying best ground coffee
There are 3 factors that can be helpful on your way to buy best possible coffee:
Ratings
We have never before had so many opportunities for communication with each other. We now have many devices in our hands.
We can quickly write a review of the products we have bought. This means that we now have several useful product reviews on the market.
This is something that you should definitely use when you are about to make a purchase.
Exposure
As we have talk about how oxygen, as well as humidity can affect the quality of your coffee. Once you take it out of the package.
We do recommend you to invest in a airtight jar or any similar recipient for easy storage. We say this because you can extend the flavor and aroma of your coffee.
Price
The big brands tends to command a price tag to match. But keep in mind that even though good coffee doesn’t really cost a fortune.
Look for coffee produced in the same region as the coffee that you normally enjoy. Even if it comes under a different brand.
If the smaller brands follows proper protocol when packaging the coffee. It is unlikely that it will have a different taste.
Our Top 5 Best Ground Coffee
We have chosen our top 5 ground coffee, below you can see more about them.
Death Wish Ground Coffee
Key Features
- Efficient packaging to ensure fresh coffee
- Fair Trade Coffee and USDA certified organic
- Hyper-strong, delicious coffee grains
- Available in a 16-ounce package
- Conveniently ground for use in an auto-drip coffee maker
Death Wish coffee should be on your bucket list, you just must try once in your lifetime this coffee. This is the only way you will know if you can handle the World’s strongest coffee.
The smart marketing tactics of Death Wish Coffee. About being the strongest coffee in the world. And with sporting imposing skull and crossbones logos it made the brand world known in no time.
This is off course their standard ground offering. Called the World’s Strongest Coffee. This coffee is available in smaller 16 oz bags, as well as 5lb bulk bags.
Despite using robusta beans. They have managed to keep the taste at least tolerable which is quite an achievement.
And with this brand you know exactly what you are getting, A higher dose of caffeine than you body should need. This brand has all the right certifications, including Fair Trade.
Pros:
- Strongest coffee with the high caffeine content
- Safely packaged box
- Quality bag material
- Have all the right certifications
- Tolerable taste thanks to some arabica beans
Cons:
- Too much caffeine for some people
- Have more strength than taste
Peak Performance high Altitude Organic Coffee
Key Features
- Fair Trade
- Single Origin Coffee
- An Organic coffee
- Derived from coffee beans grown in Guatemalan Highlands
- Rich in antioxidants
This single origin coffee that is organic. And is grown in a high attitude comes from coffee beans grown in the Guatemalan Highland.
And it is fair trade coffee that is pesticide-free and loaded with antioxidants.
As an organic coffee. It ensures that it’s not heavily treated with herbicides, pesticides or fungicides. This coffee is not harmful to your health.
And because of it is derived from beans grown in the Guatemalan highlands. which is a high altitude region makes this high-quality grade coffee.
The reason for this is that beans delivered in these regions are dense. While also having more antioxidants.
This coffee is a fair trade coffee. That is USDA certified organic to ensure that this is safe for consumption. The quality of this coffee makes it long-lasting.
This coffee is in four different flavors. Including medium-roast whole bean, medium-roast ground, dark-roast ground and dark-roast whole bean.
Pro:
- Organic coffee
- Nicely ground
- No bitterness
- Super High quality
- Not acidic
- Wonderful scent
Cons:
- Mild smell and flavor
Peet’s Coffee
Key Features
- Dark roast coffee derived from deeply roasted coffee beans
- Combines coffee beans from high-elevated regions
- 36 different flavors and nine size available
Peet’s coffee has 36 other coffee blends in the product lineup. They have these coffees in nine different sizes and packs, from 10.5 ounces to 20 ounces.
The blend that’s reviewed here is about 50 years old and it’s named after its creator, a retired army officer. This dark roasted coffee is ideal for an espresso machine or a French Press.
The thing that is amazing with this blend is that they get beans from all the major regions in the world. So you will get a bit of Asian, American and African flavors in this blend.
And they managed to harmonize and balance all the flavors well.
They got roast date in the package which is a very good thing. But the minus is that they not have any certification on their packaging.
Pros:
- Available in different sized packs
- Roast date on the package
- Smooth, light and flavorful
- Coffee beans from all over the world
- Fresh taste
Cons:
- No FairTrade certification
Caribou Ground Coffee
Key Features
- Handcrafted with 100% Arabica coffee
- Rainforest Alliance certified
- Extracted from the world’s finest beans
- Available in 22 flavors in 12 sizes
This brand is one of the most popular brands of espresso and specialty coffee products. The Caribou’s standard blend is available in 12 different sizes, ranging from 12 to 40 ounces. There are 22 coffee flavors in their range.
Caribou has made several things right with this blend. Their premium Indonesian and American arabica beans. Results in a very complex yet smooth flavor profile.
Caribou got everything from woody, to sweet, spicy, and fruity notes.
Caribou is hand-crafted with 100% Arabica coffee. Sourced from Rainforest Alliance certified growers in Asia, South and Central America.
Pros:
- Smooth
- Consistent good taste
- Very rich and flavorful blend
- The best quality Arabica beans
- Rainforest Alliance certified
- Available in a wide of sizes and specification
Cons:
- Doesn’t include a fresh whole bean version
- The chocolate flavor is quite weak
- Too bitter for some users
Valhalla Java Ground Coffee
Key Features
- Medium-dark roast coffee with nutty and chocolate notes
- Extracted from expertly selected and roasted coffee beans
- Fair Trade And USDA certified organic
Valhalla Java Ground coffee is manufactured by Death Wish Company. They may be one of the best ground coffee brand. This is a medium-dark roast blend.
Founder from Death Wish says. That this coffee is specifically made for heavy metal guitarist Zakk Wylde. He was lead guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne. This coffee blend is available in 12 and 36-ounce bags.
Death Wish keep their overdose of caffeine they are famous for in Valhalla Ground. But in this package it is more flavorful.
The medium dark roast has flavors reminiscent of cocoa and nuts. It has also a smoother mouthfeel and better flavor than their standard blends.
As other products from Death Wish, you get the FairTrade certifications as well.
Pros:
- Smooth and Delicious
- High caffeine content
- Better taste and flavor
- Organic Product
- FairTrade certifications
- Rich dark coffee
Cons:
- Too much caffeine for some
Conclusion
There are many opportunities to find the coffee that suits one’s taste. Best way to find out what you like best is just to try many coffee.
Please stick to Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance brands or similar certificates. Our best ground coffee recommendations are Caribou Ground Coffee. It’s a cheap coffee but has quality like the expensive premium coffees.