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First up, is this French Market brand from Walmart:
This is a great price($4.98/12oz can) but it's not to be found in all stores (like my local Walmart) so I have to order it from the online site. Amazon has it at a slightly higher price.
The color and smell are wonderful and a little bit of this goes a long way. I had to remember that for a couple of reasons. For one thing, even without adding anything, this chicory coffee does have calories (10 for every 2 tablespoons). That is because of the chicory. Also, the chicory has a laxative effect. The first time I used the coffee, I made it strong thinking it would be like regular coffee It's much richer and just a little bit goes a long, long way. When I brew this coffee now, I use 1 full tablespoon for every 1.5 cups of water and I get a very strong brew.
By the way, when I opened the can and saw the coffee grounds, I was reminded of the roasted chicory root I used to buy in Anchorage.
I was disappointed by the Monterey Bay Spice Company chicory root I recently tried:
Let me mention something I found interesting about French Market Coffee. The brand is from Reily Foods Company but the name "French Market" does make one think of Cafe Du Monde - which is the more famous chicory coffee brand. Keep that in mind.
Reily Foods covers several brand products you might recognize. This includes the Luzianne Tea which I see in stores all the time.
As for the Cafe Du Monde:
Notice that, like the French Market brand, Cafe Du Monde also has a non-chicory French roast. The French Roast cans look quite a bit alike - both in purple cans and all. Interesting. Of course, taste is the main thing, so let's talk Cafe Du Monde.
These pics compare the look of the grind from both brands:
When I brewed the Cafe Du Monde, I used the same 1 tablespoon to 1.5 cups of water recipe. The taste?
Both coffees are rich and 'deep' with flavor, but I have to say that the Cafe Du Monde is a bit smoother and richer in taste. I can find the 15oz can for $10.79 on Amazon ($12.99 on Walmart).
While there is a slight difference between the two brands, it's not enough to make me buy one over the other due to a slight price variation. There are some things that make a difference for online purchase:
- Walmart.com and Amazon have both brands.
- On Amazon, I could currently only find French Market as a Prime Pantry purchase. I don't liek Pantry purchases because you have to fill a 'cart' to qualify. The Cafe Du Monde was available with non-Prime but free shipping for 1 can; a 2-can purchase was Prime. Now that I know I like the coffee, I would use that option.
- On Walmart, the shipping was very unstable this time. In spite of the 2-day shipping on my order, I ended up waiting until Sept 5th (Wed.) for things I ordered on Aug 31st (Fri). Even allowing for the weekend, that was 3 additional days. I found out that they hadn't even shipped my order right away. Also, Walmart's online system of tracking orders does not always reflect the correct information. My Aug 31st order was shown on their page as "expected to arrive" Sept 1st. Unless they are using drones, no one is that fast yet.
- My local Hy-Vee has the French Market chicory coffee and they deliver. That means I can add that brand to my usual monthly grocery order since Hy-Vee is where I get my perishable items.
So, yeah, you have to kind of shop around to find a good chicory coffee. If you are lucky enough to have a local health food store (I have to check mine), you might be able to just get some decent chicory root.
Peace
--Free
