Say It Ain’t So, Lavazza! (UPDATE 9-10-24)

(I know it's spelled "Selezione" but I always spell it the way I say it!)

**UPDATE 8/10/14:

I have come back to eat a light helping of crow. After giving the Italian Dark Roast a fair try - why not, since I had so many free bags? - I have to admit that it's tasting better. I won't say that it is the same as  Gran Selzione, but it's good enough that I wouldn't be surprised if Lavazza was only testing our taste buds. Maybe they only changed the look of the packaging but not everything about the flavor??? I could see that. Like I said, this is starting to taste better and better to me. I can also find this version for better prices than with the Gran Selzione. So there is that...

UPDATE:

My eBay purchases were all duds. I had to return them. The sellers did the same thing the Amazon seller did: substituted that icky Italian Roast for the Gran Selzione. Trying to be slick like Rick...

Apparently, there is no Gran Selzione to be had anywhere - unless those 90 dollar bags on eBay are the real deal, and I don't love any coffee that much!

 I feel as if I have lost a good friend. I haven't, thankfully, but I just learned that Lavazza is discontinuing their Gran Selzione roast. I had hoped that I was just hearing rumors but... I got confirmation straight from someone in customer service for Lavazza. 

In case you missed it, this is the heartbreaking part:

Such sad news...

I'm not a coffee snob but I do have my preferences. I like a very dark roast with a bit of sweetness and notes of chocolate and a smooth flavor.

If you go looking for the flavor description of Gran Selzione, you usually run across something like this:

chocolate, intense, chocolate &
out of stock!

That describes Gran Selzione perfectly. You know what it does not describe? The Italian Roast that Lavazza has "swapped" in... I know because I got 3 free bags of that stuff courtesy of Amazon (a seller sent me the Italian because they ran out of Gran Selzione. The nerve!) I even got a free bag of the Italian Extra Dark. I haven't tried that one yet.

The Italian Roast is not horrible but it comes nowhere near the flavor of Gran Selzione. It is about as much like Gran Selzione as some influencers are like the photos they post. Come on, now!

 It is so unlike Gran Selzione that I gave away 2 of the free bags. I'd already opened one bag so I tried adding a little bit of Dutch chocolate powder to see if that helped. Did it? Not really.

A "hint" so subtle, I can't even taste it...

I was so miserable that my brother was laughing at me for taking it personally. (I was over here practically singing "Nothing Compares 2 U"!) He did make the great suggestion that I get over to eBay pronto and order some Gran Selzione before prices go up. That was some good looking out, bro! And yes, I was able to get a few bags without blowing my budget. But now, I have to find an affordable replacement for when I run out.

I'm over here being mad at whoever at Lavazza made this stupid decision. But I'm going to dry my eyes and take a deep breath. I have to get back out there to find something halfway good enough to replace my Gran Selzione. I have one picked out but it's not the most affordable coffee I know of. That is Jim's Sweet Love blend. Illy probably has something but I know that won't be affordable...

For now, it's goodbye Gran Selzione.

Peace

--Free

Chasing the Perfect Dark Roast Coffee

 Hi. My name is Free and I am a coffeeholic.

When I gave up smoking a few years back, I thought I wouldn't enjoy coffee as much. Wrong. Coffee has become my main addiction. Sometimes, that can be a problem. For instance, the only time I have trouble with intermittent fasting is during that last 30 to 40 minutes before I can have my coffee with sweet cream. It's kind of sad. I go into special ops mode to avoid even looking into the kitchen. Otherwise, I catch sight of the coffee pot and get tempted. 

My apartment is barely big enough to cuss a cat in (as my mama would say) so the coffee machine is visible from everywhere except behind the closed doors of the bedroom or bathroom. There are times I try not to come out of the bedroom until I can have my morning coffee. Once, near the end of a 24-hour fast, I started to hallucinate about that first cup of brew.

I usually spend those stressful last minutes of a fast just pretending that coffee is not even a thing. I will avoid looking toward the kitchen as I get ready for the morning. I keep my head averted as I go through the apartment - opening the blinds and turning on plant lights and the humidifier -doing the general morning stuff. At that time of day, my muscles are still half asleep and I'm like mud flowing uphill. But when my phone chimes to let me know that my 16 (or 18 or 20 or 24) hours of fasting are ... I'm moving at warp speed toward that coffee pot. No kidding. 

Nothing smells or tastes as good as that very first sip of morning coffee. 

It's not just the first cup. Any time of day, I love a good cup of coffee. And a dark roast is preferred - probably because I have to have sweetened creamer with mine. I love a good cup of coffee more than I ever loved any kind of food.  

In my opinion, the best coffee is strong and rich. I love a little bit of dark chocolate flavor coming through the brew. I'm not talking bitter or burnt but just enough chocolate "bite" to hit the back of my throat. 

What I absolutely hate is a weak cup of coffee. Especially coffee that is so weak that you can't make it stronger without getting a taste like bad office coffee. I'm talking about coffee that is nasty in a non-descript way. The old, rank, stale coffee you get in the lobby of a car dealership or emergency room. 

Lately, I've been trying to find a brand of ground coffee to replace the Gevalia I've been drinking on the regular. I'm not crazy about all the Gevalia coffees like I used to be. They changed something since I used to get that subscription service way back in the day. Remember back when you could get a free coffee pot if you signed up for a monthly delivery of Gevalia? That's how I discovered the brand but that has to have been 20 years ago or more. There'd be these little subscription cards inserted in a lot of the women's magazines.

These days, the only Gevalia I love is the Dark Gold Roast. I was usually able to find the 11-ounce bag for about 11 bucks and change (or around $0.90/oz). That Gold Roast is tasty. It's extra bold and has the chocolate/brown syrup notes that are so yummy. However, that particular roast has just gotten too unreliable in availability. I think they might be phasing it out or something...

So.

I've been on the hunt for a new favorite brand of ground coffee. Coffee that I can afford, can easily find and don't have to work too hard to make. Price is important. I drink at least 7 cups a day so I cannot be playing around with anything that's going to cost more than it should. I've found a couple roasts I like. I just have to figure out how to work a regular purchase into my grocery budget.

Here's what I've tried so far:

1. Kaladi Brothers Waykan (Guatamala). $17.95lb or $1.12/oz. This is definitely a favorite, and it's from my favorite roaster - an Alaska-based roaster. However, it only comes as whole bean. I like freshly ground coffee but I don't always have the time, energy, or motivation. (I still might get the occasional bag though.) Notes, according to Kaladi are "warming spices, raisins, and chocolate". That sounds about right to me. This is what made me fall in love with Guatemalan coffee.
2. Jim's Organic Sweet Love. 11 ounces for $12.34 or 1.12/oz The first time I had this, it tasted so good that I set up a Subscribe & Save. It's much better than the Gevalia. The problem is that I go through the bag too quickly (for the price). It reminds me a lot of the Waykan except I get a lot more of the chocolate note. The brand describes it this way:  "Ambrosian aroma with full-bodied, smoky taste". 
3. Tim Horton's Dark Roast. 12 ounces for $7.59 or $0.63/oz. First of all, that price... Second of all, I happen to find Canadian-made products of all kinds to be of a higher quality overall. Having lived in Alaska all those years, I've driven through Canada many times. Everything I bought there - from aspirin to coffee - was just top quality compared to American-made stuff.  I think the last time Yuban coffee still tasted good was when I bought it in Canada. Anyway... Tim Horton's coffee is tasty. It's not as richly flavored as the K.B.'s or Jim's but it's good. The description I found from Horton's is simply "Rich and full-flavored". I think they are being modest.  Elsewhere, I found this description of the flavor: "subtle notes of chocolate, cedar, and even hints of fruit and floral characteristics". 
4.  Fresh Roasted Coffee's Dark Guatemalan Huehuetenango. 32 ounces for $26.99 or $0.84/oz. This is the next one I am trying. That price is good but I worry about ordering in a 2-lb bag. I will have to let you know what I think when I try it. I wanted it because of the price and because it's another Guatemalan. The brand describes the flavor profile this way: "Full bodied with dark chocolate notes. A bold and spicy body, and a smooth finish. A wonderfully rich dark roast with little to no acidity" except they used a lot of capital letters. The worrisome thing is that of over 3000 Amazon reviews for the brand, none is for this Huehuetenango. Oh boy.

Since I need to get something for my daily brew, I came up with a plan:

If I love the Guatemalan Huehuetenango, I will order that every 3rd month since it's a 2-pound bag. If not, I will do a Sub & Save on the Tim Horton's monthly and Sub & Save on the Sweet Love every 4 months as a treat. Of course, I will order some of the K.B.'s a couple of times a year as a treat. I'm done with the Gevalia. As I was writing this post, I checked and see that it's currently unavailable. Again. I've only been able to find it twice out of the past 2 and a half months.

By the way, because I am intermittent fasting (it's been over 8 weeks now), my grocery list tends to be lighter. I'm not baking every week or cooking larger meals. I haven't fixed spaghetti in at least 4 weeks now. So all this cutback on groceries leaves a little room in the budget for a decent coffee. If only I could learn to drink coffee black...

I will continue to be on the hunt for a dark roast coffee with that chocolatey, rich, sweet taste to it. Let me know if y'all have any suggestions.

Peace

--Free

P.S.: I seriously do NOT like Starbucks coffee. How did it get to be so popular? Just saying.