Waitrose Java Coffee

Waitrose Java CoffeeThis one turned up from our rookie Judge "cougheee" with the bold claim of the next Lava Java. It was just the two of us and he made his first pot following the strict Judge's rules - 5 spoons. Holy shit - this thing was so strong he may as well have picked up a piece of lead piping instead and smashed me about the face with it. Surely there must have been a mistake in the making?  Tablespoons instead of dessert spoons maybe? So today Judge Hank is back, swaggering about, with the intention of putting things right. What gets delivered is thick, heavy and oily. Just by looking you know that this is going to hurt. And it does. So far under normal Judge rules this is the strongest thing ever tasted. The underlying taste is pleasant enough, but it's just hard to pick it out when your mouth is pouring with blood. Again I can't finish the cup - which must score it badly - but I know deep down there's a good coffee here, you just need to treat it like it's radioactive: handle carefully and brew in a lead lined caffetiere. I can only give it 6/10 for now - but I'm sure this will jump up when we get the strength right.  And this is a STRENGTH 4 for God's sake... I thought Waitrose was the store for lily-livered Guardian Readers!

What the Manufacturer's say: 

"Full-bodied, dark and spicy with an exotic flavour. Waitrose Java coffee is grown on two farms, Blawan and Jampit. The farms are situated on the ljen plateau in East Java near the Kawah ljen volcano and the coffee is grown and processed at 4800ft altitudes. The coffee is specially produced from eco-friendly cultivation which preserves a sustainable coffee cycle that produces a better quality coffee."

Where you can buy it: 

You can only get it from Waitrose/Ocado so get yourself moved to a more poncy area you chav.

Tags: 
Waitrose
Strength 4
Java

6.8
Average: 6.8 (5 votes)
0
Your rating: None

Comments

Judge Hank's picture

Submitted by Judge Hank on 31/8/11.
The packet says it's Full Bodied, dark, exotic and spicy, I couldn't wait to meet, but 20 minutes later I regret it. It's too strong in flavour for me and I didn't get a kick. I think the flavour over powered my senses briefly and I'm only just recovering. As an all round offering it looks the part. Java, Arabica (of course arabica had to be on it somewhere) and volcano are the buzz words in use. The pack does also advise you do not let stand for very long. I would say just add water, stir, plunge and pour. Hardened drinkers who have lost all other sense of taste will adore this potent offering from waitrose. Too much for me though but I'm keen to try some of their other blends. 6/10. It was just too much.

Submitted by cougheee on 31/8/11.
Really strong. Really really strong. Doubling up the spoons not recomended with this one... A first for this office. Rating this would be a little unfair until the ratio's are sorted out. Could probably brew this by leaving the beans and water together in the same room for a little while. This is one powerfull coffee - and modest too, claims to only be a strength 4!

Submitted by mattcroxall on 10/1/14.
I have this one on the go at the moment at work. I bought and tried it before I read the reviews here, but there was a wry smile on my face when I did my reading as the experiences mentioned here mirror my own. Open the packet and it's a very dark roast, ground relatively coarse and the smell itself is even slightly oily - like a combo of wet earth and tar. Brewed to my usual strength and left to stand for a minute, the grinds accumulated into a thick crust at the top of the cafetiere. Another quick stir seemed to settle this down, but it would be fair to say that this initial experience did not exactly auger well. Unfortunately there are no unexpected twists or turns. It turns up in the cup as you'd expect: thick, oily and over the top. I think the Judges have been very kind and understanding with their reviews, but I won't be; I think it's quite unpleasant. Seems to me that they clearly overdid the roast. There might indeed be a very good coffee lurking underneath here (it certainly has the credentials), but you'd need the deductive powers of 1000 Jessica Fletchers to unmask it. It's bitter, quite harsh and lingers in the mouth for what seems like days. On the packaging there's a load of lovely detail of all the trouble they've gone to in the growing and production of the beans to deliver a really complex and tasty coffee. Doesn't seem much point going to that trouble if it turns up in the packet like this. It's a pity as I had high hopes... but this one gets a 3/10.