Strength 4

The Judge's reviews of Strength 4 coffees. Check them out here, leave your own comments and rate them out of 10.

Morrisons The Best Fairtrade Guatemalan Ground Coffee

Morrisons The Best Fairtrade Guatemalan Ground CoffeeThese Morrison Coffees are always hard core killers, and this is no exception. We made this as normal and it was just way over the top. A bitter, filthy dirty brew. This could only be at home on a building site being drunk by hardened, crack-showing navvies who would probably even dunk a biscuit in it. The only way we could take it was to water it down a spoonful - but even then the first taste sends you reeling and staggering backwards. However - if you keep the faith, this one does improve as you go down the cup. I don't know how this works - maybe because your taste buds a being systematically stripped off and by the end, you just don't care. Who knows - but my head now feels a bit fuzzy and I'll rate it above the 5/10 "never buying it a again" watershed. Its a 6/10.

8.28571
Average: 8.3 (14 votes)
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Marks and Spencer Colombian Coffee Beans

Marks and Spencer Colombian Coffee Beans

We picked up two M&S'ers at the same time and the other one - the Luxury Italian - was bleedin' awful. Because this one looks so similar, in our heads, this one was  going to be shonky as well. But hang on!! We were wrong!! This one has a real citrus twist to it  - even the ground beans smelt a bit like a lemon farm. Tasting it too, the first thing you get is the slightly citrus taste more usual with those high altitude east African coffees - we've not had this taste in a South American one before. The follow through gulps are smooth and sweet - and the end effect is you just want more. The only criticism this judge could possibly make was maybe it's not quite strong enough. If this was a strength 5 it would be a 10/10, but as it stands, it's a 9/10.

8.2
Average: 8.2 (15 votes)
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Marks and Spencer Luxury Italian Coffee

Marks and Spencer Luxury Italian CoffeeThis is not just Luxury Italian Coffee. It's fucking awful Luxury Italian Coffee. This one claims all sorts on the packet - but forgets to mention lack of flavour and all round general weedy-ness. This is only marginally better than instant - if someone offered it to you at their house you would be grateful that it least is was real coffee, but it wouldn't be worth the effort of making it yourself, you may as well spoon up a Nescafe and save yourself the bother - and disappointment. The final inch in the cup really sealed it - a bitter nasty mess. This Judge's summing up: starts disappointing, ends badly. Gets a 4/10.

8.25
Average: 8.3 (4 votes)
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Whittard Guatemalan Elephant Coffee

Whittard Guatemalan Elephant Coffee

The first thing you notice with this one is the aroma - it's leaping out of the cup to put it's hands around your throat. In the cup it looks velvety and chocolatey - there's no way you can leave this one to get cold. This is a strength 4 buts it's packing a mellow strength 5 - you know it's doing you the right kind of damage but you're blissfully unaware of it as it just slips down. The only minor grumble is the super-fine grind resulting in a final mouthful of mud at the bottom of the cup which leaves you with a slightly tainted parting memory of this one. 8/10

7.6
Average: 7.6 (15 votes)
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Percol Americano Arabica Coffee

Percol Americano Arabica CoffeeEvery cup of this has given us a smooth creamy head with less effort than Divine Brown. It's a strength four - which in this case means it packs tons of coffee flavour without any aftertaste or sickly sweetness. It can take a massive overdose too - don't be afraid to spoon this one up and it will just get better and better. As usual, the Percol packaging is as unattractive as Divine Brown on a Sunday morning after a long night with this year's RADA intake. What in their right minds, makes them think that derelict building and an old ladder makes you want to pop off and make a nice cup of coffee? One off for the packaging - as it's SO offensive - gives it 8/10

7.25
Average: 7.3 (20 votes)
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Waitrose Monsooned Malabar Coffee

Waitrose Monsooned Malabar CoffeeIndia is renowned for its tea, not its coffee, and that holds true here. We gave this the benefit of the doubt and had three goes at this, but every time it just got worse and worse. The first glug lulls you into a false sense of security before the after burn kicks in, leaving your entire thorax ripped out and lying in your lap. You just have to grin and bear it and hope the pain goes away. If you read the side of the packet, the writing was always on the wall for this one: they basically leave the bloody thing out in the rain - presumably going moldy - and then try and turn this neglect into a marketing gimmick. Give it up lads. 3/10.

8.13793
Average: 8.1 (29 votes)
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Natural Coffee Co Freedom Blend Coffee

Natural Coffee Co Freedom Blend CoffeeThis one was picked up from The Windsor Farm Shop on a recent London bike ride from Hampton Court to Windsor with the quintessentially English Merry Pedaller Bike Tours. A shop full of game pie and venison. Never seen this brand before - but given where I found it, it's got to be poncy - even though it only cost a standard three pound something. To be honest it was nothing special for me - it was definitely strong and can easily be over done, which we did a couple of times. There's a bit of a chocolate taste going on - which they don't even mention on the packet, for once. 7/10

7
Average: 7 (3 votes)
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Sainsbury's So Organic Peru Coffee

Sainsbury's So Organic Peru CoffeeWe've had this one a while and put off the making of it. Why? The packaging. My God it's dull. We want our coffees to draw us in with silvers and golds and feel all continental-like, but this one looks like a packet of grass seed. When we finally do crack it open, it does what it says on the tin. Smooth and mellow is right enough - there's a really punchy flavour without being too overpowering, and every time we've  made one it's come out trumps. I don't think you can get this one wrong - it would easily round off your cafetiere cock-ups and still deliver. Not quite strong enough for me - but then it's not meant to be. But one definitely to dish up at home after your dinner party with confidence that they'll all like it, and it will turn out ok. (8/10)

8.25
Average: 8.3 (8 votes)
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Marks and Spencer Colombian Coffee

    Marks and Spencer Colombian CoffeeArriving at the office first thing on a Monday morning we find that the carpets have been cleaned over the weekend. Now they didn't seem that bad last week, but the assault on the nose this morning was like the Charge of the Light Brigade armed only with lemons. It seems that if you run out of carpet shampoo, Lemsip makes a good alternative. This coffee is claiming a "fruity acidity" - yet this morning everything has a fruity acidity. This is not a good neutral environment for a Judge. So it comes back out over the next few days - and it proves tricky to get right. Even though were sure we make it exactly the same each time, one is foamy, one is heavy and dirty tasting and one is even light and creamy. How can it vary this much? The final one though comes good. There's plenty of depth of flavour and no after taste at all. But still no sign of the fruit. Not one I'd rush out and buy again, but perfectly fine. (6/10)

5.88889
Average: 5.9 (9 votes)
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Lavazza Qualita Oro Coffee

Lavazza Qualita Oro CoffeeThis one has been a real puzzle. First time round it had a creamy taste to it. Like it was crying out to be made stronger. It was also quite sweet tasting - I was definitely thinking that this is a coffee for girls. Then every time we've made it since it just got more bitter - now is this a part of the aging process? Can it change that much, over 2 days, kept in a sealed tin? Or is it some kind of reaction to us emptying the stupid vacuum pack out into the uber-cool Illy tin? Whatever, I needed a tiny bit more sugar to make this to taste for me. In the end though, it's a 7/10 while you're drinking it, but it does have a bitter after taste, which pegs it down to a 6/10.

7.35
Average: 7.4 (20 votes)
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