Trader Joe's Bali Blue Moon coffee

 

A few months ago, I traded in my Keurig for a much more practical two-cup (16 oz) french press, partially because K-cups were a waste of money and partially because I heard that french presses were one of the best ways to brew coffee.   Since then, I've become pretty good at using it, developing a system even more precise than the way I brew my tea and trying out some sample blends at the supermarket.  I also went to Trader Joes and ended up getting two of their coffees, the Joe blend and Bali Blue Moon.  The Bali was supposed to be a gift for my boyfriend's brother but I figured it would be a good thing to try out.

Outsides:  Bali Blue Moon is labled as a medium roast that is very full-bodied, rich and smooth and supposed to make a clean, smooth cup of coffee with a chocolaty finish.  The cool thing about Trader Joes coffees is that you grind them in store (or buy them whole bean and grind them at home), so they should have a lot of flavor when you take them home.  At first, the coffee smells robust and sweet but then you're hit with a slightly pungent bitter smell.  I've had to play around with the press method for making this a few times but best way I've found is adding 3 tablespoons for 8-10 oz of water, starting the timer at 4 minutes right before you pour in the water and making sure you press down at 30 seconds (if you want to make 16 oz, use 5 tablespoons).  I like drinking my coffee with a foam so that's what you see there.  The sweetness in the smell is still there as well as the bitterness, but the rich robust smell isn't as...robust.

Insides:  First off, this is a bit of a pain to press.  I usually add 2 tablespoons for 8 oz and start my 4 minute timer after I put on the lid, but that resulted in it tasting weak yet bitter.  I think I got it right this time as it does taste like something that's drinkable.  It has a sweet top note with a touch of roasty malted flavor but is quickly followed by a harsh bitterness that I just can't get rid of.  As for the claims on the package, the aftertaste does remind me of dark chocolate but it really does lack smoothness and has a medium body to it.

Tilt:  This was one of the more expensive coffees at Trader Joes being $8.99 for 13 oz.  Although this isn't a bad price for coffee, you do have to use more coffee per cup to make something acceptable (this was true with the Joe blend as well but at least that one is cheap as dirt).  I mean, this is just bad.  I can't give any reccomendations on what to do with it.  It's too light to be used for iced coffee but too bitter for anything else.  It might be good to someone who likes Starbucks though.

Overall:  I was skeptical of the brother's taste in a lot of things but hearing this was his favorite blend from Trader Joes just put another nail of the coffin for me.  Someone just take this away from me!  Blegh.

My Rating:  Pass.

Trader Joes coffee can be bought at Trader Joes in America (and I think it's Aldi Sud in Europe).  Coincidentally, they offer a full refund on their products which is actually quite nice.  The cookie butter they sell there is pretty amazing.