July 2011

This one is not bad at all. Looks and smells great - the whole room had the warm and welcoming feel from the aroma wafting off these 3 cups. the pale head was there at the start, and stayed there all the way down to the bottom. A very full taste with maybe a hint of a sour aftertaste that lingers for a while on the very back of the tongue. This is a strength 3 officially - but it's hitting above that I think - a 4 easily. Judges rating 7/10

Our first Starbucks - people have been asking Where are the Starbucks?!!  So we picked this one to start, drawn in by the idea that this tastes of black currants. First things first: it doesn't. Again we fall foul of the self grind and I think over grind it, giving a very muddy coffee resulting in a dry taste. There's nothing else that stands out about this - which is shocking considering the whopping £4.25 price tag. That's nigh on double the cost of a packet of the Taylors Hot Lava Java. Needs a second try. Initial Judge rating just 5/10!

Well this was a real turn up. There I was expecting the most repulsive coffee known to man - sweet, spicy and full of "chicory" - whatever the hell that is. I don't know but it should be in FOOD and not COFFEE that's for sure. However... bigotry aside, this thing 'ain't bad. True we did have it ball-crushingly strong, which maybe masked the chicory shit. But I liked it! What the?!!  Maybe my taste buds are wrecked from that skinful last night - so I demand a recount. This thing must be awful... 7/10.

It's a strength 3 and it's early afternoon. We're risking it here, but that's how we live life down these parts... on the edge. We did 6 spoons for three cups and it came out looking very caramelly. I was dreading the first mouthful - but it was kind of OK. They claim "citrus" on this one - which in my world is a by-word for "utter-bollocks". The trouble is that this thing gets weaker as you go. As your buds adjust, that first initial mini-hit diminishes to nothing and I felt as though I've ended up with mug of milk. A five year choir boy could punch harder than this one. Needs redoing with a few more spoons. Rated 4/10.