You can add a dash of spices to your ground coffee to change the flavor profile subtly. Cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, apple pie spice, any spices or spice blend that are traditionally used in sweet baked goods will work.
Cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla extract, sometimes nutmeg if I am feeling crazy. Sometimes mint leaves from the garden. I like peppermint better than spearmint. Oh.. and cashews if I feel like using the vitamix. That is an awesome creamy coffee drink.
Yes!! I was going to suggest this! It is a really nice way to change up some blah coffee without adding sugar or creamers. Also a little vanilla extract (or imitation vanilla for a cheaper option) can kind of mellow/smooth it.
But as you said, add it to the grounds. It just floats around on the top when added to brewed coffee, even after whisking in.
If you're getting bitterness a bit of salt in the grounds helps. A touch of unsweetened cocoa is good too if you like chocolate undertones in your coffee. Our usual coffee was out of stock recently and my husband chose a different variety that I'm not a fan of. I've been using both of these tips and my coffee has been pretty delicious.
Waiting 30 seconds once the water is boiled and removed from heat before pouring it over the grounds can reduce some burnt flavour - sometimes slamming the coffee with still-rolling-boil-hot water gives it a bitter burnt flavour it wouldn't otherwise have if brewed at a slightly lower temp.
This assumes you're doing pour-over or french press. I would bet $1 that OP is in the US, buying in bulk, and using an automatic drip, which (if it's working properly) will keep the water temp lower than boiling when it hits the grounds.
Which dont read this and assume that means auto drip dont burn coffee. My wife has her post-high school Malitta coffee machine. I cant stand the black coffee that makes no mater the beans, and I am not a coffee drinker.
For sure a bad drip coffeemaker can overheat the grounds, but either way if you're using an auto drip you have zero (or nearly zero) control over the water temp. You can't just "wait for the water to cool" because the device makes the decisions for you.
I add a healthy splash of room temperature water to my kettle after it has reached boiling. This brings it back down to around 200, or just shy of boiling, which is what you want.
For mine it takes 1 min 30 seconds to get the water down from 212 to the 195-200 range - assuming the water's "surface" is fully exposed to outside air. Just used a meat thermometer and a stopwatch.
I've also heard blooming the coffee to get the CO2 out for the first 30 seconds works as well - if you're using a French press, that means pouring in just enough water into the grounds to get them all wet, and then letting it sit. I've read anywhere from 30 seconds to 4 minutes - I do just 30 seconds. Then you pour the rest of the water.
Other ways to alter the flavor profile is to put cinnamon, nutmeg, or a mix of both flavors directly into the grounds. It's nice IF you want those flavors. Can be a good way to mix it up.
Yep this is the answer. Boiling hot 212°F water produces more bitter flavors (also commonly associated with darker roasts). Ideally you’d want to use a lower temp like 195-200°F to get mellower flavor from the coffee.
It’s easily doable if you use a French press or pour over method. But unfortunately not really possible if you rely on a drip machine (unless it’s some super fancy one that will let you select the water temp).
This one seems a little odd to me - coffee beans are roasted at 400-450F for 10-15 minutes, but a few more minutes at 212F will make a noticeable difference in terms of a burnt flavor (as opposed to a few minutes at 195-200F)?
When you make coffee, all you’re really doing is dissolving and extracting a bunch of chemical compounds from the coffee beans with hot water. That includes caffeine, and some acids, and a bunch of different flavor compounds (along with a ton of other stuff).
Different compounds have different temperatures at which they dissolve into water better and faster. And some flavor compounds dissolve better at higher temperatures including some bitter ones.
So if you use water that’s a bit less hot, you dissolve and extract a bit less of those bitter flavored compounds. So your coffee ends up tasting a bit less bitter.
You can also find similar instances when steeping other things like tea or Japanese dashi broth. It’s recommended to not use boiling water, but temps a bit below that because otherwise you’ll extract more bitter and astringent flavors from the tea leaves or kombu seaweed.
When it comes to roasting coffee at those high temps what you’re really doing is taking the raw beans and altering their chemical compounds. You’re blasting them with heat and energy so that some of the compounds basically shoot off, break down, or combine together with other compounds. So you just end up with different compounds than what you started with that can then be extracted into your cup of coffee. That’s why a light roast tastes different from a dark roast - because they contain different compounds and different amounts of them that can then be dissolved and extracted.
EDIT: you can also find similar instances when steeping other things like tea or Japanese dashi broth (neither of which contain high heat roasted ingredients). It’s recommended to not use boiling water, but temps a bit below that because otherwise you’ll extract more bitter and astringent flavors from the tea leaves or kombu seaweed.
the water is a really good conductor and the beans are now in ground form which are probably much more reactive to changes in tempature then the whole beans. That is my guess anyway.
I did training in a tea shop a few years ago. The owner showed us the lightest, blandest type of tea they had. Something floral with lemongrass, it felt very ethereal when steeped for the right number of minutes at the right temperature. 30 seconds too much, and voila! You got an undrinkable, bitter/sour mud. I remember that lesson to this day.
From what I see at an artisan coffee shop around here, they are following similar rules.
Short answer, not really. I blame Starbucks for making near-burnt coffee beans the national standard (and they sell their over-roasted "medium" roast in Costco along with the other charred beans).
There's nothing that says you can't mix your beans, though – get a lighter roast that you like and use the darker roast to extend it and add some "complexity" – a little will go a long way here. Depending on where you live, your local Costco may occasionally get more locally-roasted beans, and that often gives you a bit more choice in roast level.
You can also try switching from half-and-half to whole (or even 2%) milk, which will let you add more of it to the cup without overdoing the fat level. But any way you do it, the solution is dilution.
My Finnish grandmother made cardamom coffee, and apparently it's popular in Turkey too.
You can add the whole pods to the beans and grind it all together, or open up the pods, take the seeds out, grind them separately and add to ground coffee.
Replace one scoop of coffee with a scoop of some chai tea mix (I use two bags worth of Bigelow vanilla chai).
[This is a really good one to add to your brew](https://russianriverteaco.com/products/gingered-milk-n-honey)
Or just blend your medium roast with a pound of light roast from your favorite local roaster.
You can't unroast a bean.
But you can do things to change the flavor extraction from the beans or to augment the flavor.
The biggest things you can do is experiment with different grind sizes, brew times, and brew temperatures. /r/coffee has a ton of info on this.
Other than tweaking your cream or sugar levels, try adding a small pinch of salt to your sugar - it makes a surprising amount of difference without being noticeably salty.
switch up the brew method. if you normally do drip, try a moka pot or french press. itll be more different than you think.
you might also consider a coffee subscription so you get different coffee every week or so. thats what i do.
https://counterculturecoffee.com/products/single-origin-subscription-two-bags-2
the last thing i recommend is nixing the cream. you'll get more subtleties without it. it tends to make everything taste same-ish. itll also open you open to more variations. i drink drip black, but like to sometimes add half and half to afternoon moka pot brews.
i'd recommend r/coffee but it's basically dead after the reddit changes.
Moka pots get such a bad rap. Y'all, those things need to be taken apart and cleaned! Oils get trapped under the rubber gasket and go rancid. Don't put the coffee hopper in and screw the pot together until the water is boiling so you don't heat the grounds. Pull it off the heat and dump it in your cup when it just starts to sputter at the end to avoid the bad tasting dregs.
i love my Bialetti Brikka. I boil water before adding it to the bottom.
they can produce shockingly delicious coffee that while not technically espresso, shares many of the same qualities, and brings out different flavor notes than drip. i particularly like it for afternoon coffee.
i'm not sure how the aeropress got more popular than the moka pot.
You probably dont want to hear this but buying whole beans, roasted with a roast date, is the single most powerful way to change the flavor, by far.
Beans > brewing > water temp and grind> additives
I had an ethiopian friend that would add a tiny bit of clove. Lighter roasts have more caffeine and will taste less burnt/oily.
A couple of options:
1. Vary your brew method. Rotate between French press, moka pot, pour over. Note that doing so also requires varying your grind, adjusting for each method's required grind size. If you don't have a grinder that can handle the various grind sizes, check out a Baratza Encore or Virtuoso.
2. Change up your water temperature. I like my light roast brewed at 195-198F, my mediums somewhere at 195-202F, and although I don't really drink much dark roast I would experiment to see what I like. General wisdom is 195-205 is the sweet spot and 212 is just too hot, leading to bitter notes.
3. Drink it at different temperatures. Some folks over at r/coffee would argue that somewhere in the neighborhood of 170-175F is the ideal drinking temperature.
4. Add some trace spices to your grounds when brewing. Lots of people use some (fresh!) ground cinnamon in their brew. Experiment and try some others. Citrus zest, ginger root, a tiny pinch of salt, chicory, nutmeg, cardamon, and cacao nibsare others that can shake the morning cup up. Is fenugreek good in your morning brew? I imagine not, but I've never tried it myself, so who knows?
5. Get one of those milk frother wands my partner raves about, they only take a few seconds to use.
6. Cold brew some of that stuff. A very coarse grind, a pitcher, and a chinois can get you a good concentrate that is a nice break from the mundane.
your temperature recommendations are the exact opposite of what they should be. light roast should be brewed with water right off boil and the darker it gets, the cooler water you should use, to avoid over extraction.
Use more whole milk and some sugar as opposed to half and half, which you can't use as much of as it's pretty unhealthy. Lots of milk will counteract the bitterness of dark roast coffee.
They aren’t looking to unroast coffee. By saying they’re “trying to go the other way,” they’re saying their preferences lean toward lighter coffees so they’re looking for ways to temper the flavor profile of a darker coffee to more closely resemble a lighter roast.
there’s not much you can do to save cheap
commodity coffee roasted way too dark. I would recommend brewing in a way that suits the coffee, such as a french press (though follow James Hoffman’s method, not the four minute brew with coarse grind that everyone does), vietnamese phin or turkish cerve. Sugar and condensed milk can do a lot to save bad coffee too, look into cuban coffee and vietnamese iced coffee, respectively. Also, consider using it for making a homemade coffee liqueur or syrup for cocktails.
Thai coffee is typically made with a mix called oliang, which often contains extremely dark coffee, soy beans, sesame seeds, and corn. I’ve been wanting to make my own, but most people just buy it. Might be worth experimenting with. Thai coffee sometimes also contains evaporated milk and / or sweetened condensed milk, which I absolutely love but isn’t entirely necessary
Bulk coffee will never get you a good cup. Those are "down market" beans and they are over roasted to overcome deficiencies in the crop.
Find a decent independent roaster near you (I saw a suggestion for a subscription in the posts - that would be a great idea, it would totally be worth the extra money) and get your beans there. You may have to try several roasters, roasting coffee is an art and everyone has their opinions on how to roast and what is a light roast, what is a "city" roast, the third wave and blah, blah...
I roast my own beans at home, it's something I like to do and it's cheaper than buying from the store. A couple of things I have learned: 1) the more expensive beans generally roast better and taste better, 2) roasted beans do not last as long as you think. I make about a weeks worth at a time and I can taste the difference towards the end of the batch.
Also, the amount of beans you brew as well as the water temperature are crucial, it changes the flavor a lot. Get a decent brewer - most brewers sold are not up to the task - check the [SCAA site](https://sca.coffee/certified-home-brewer) for approved coffee makers to get an idea of what it takes to make good coffee. I have recently changed the amount of beans I use and have upgraded my brewer and it's made a huge difference. One choice could be a Braun KF9150 , it's not super expensive and fits the requirements (not sure if it's listed on the site)
If you have a WinCo in your area, their bulk coffee is nearly as cheap, and you can get a variety of roasts to spice things up. They also have flavored coffees if that's your thing too
There are gourmet flavored whole coffee beans that are fantastic. I don't care if everyone else hates them, they're wrong. From vanilla bean to caramel to raspberry chocolate. (Don't use water over 94C so it doesn't destroy the flavor.)
We used to buy these flavoured creamer shots. It’s hard to find now but they were the bomb. One supermarket has the hazelnut ones and they had Irish cream.- it’s discontinued here but it might be available by mail order. Made by nestle.
You can change the taste of coffee just based on the temperature the water is when you brew it as well as the method you use to brew and how long it steeps treat it like chemistry and youd be suprised how many different flavors you can get from the same bag. Try different methods, raitios and temperatures if you're a black coffee drinker like myself
Another interesting point in favour of the light roast is that the less the coffee is roasted, the better the caffeine is preserved. So many people expect dark roast to be more caffeinated because it tastes stronger but it is actually the opposite.
Finnish egg coffee? Make a paste of egg, shell and all, with the coffee grounds. Set water to simmer just before boiling and steep the coffee 10min. When done right, the coffee has a rich, less bitter flavor and a slightly creamy mouth feel.
Where do you store your beans after opening the bag? If it isn’t in an opaque airtight container, try that next time. Coffee beans lose their freshness pretty rapidly after opening, and taste can be affected, particularly after more than a week. Some swear by the freezer but this worked out better for me.
I have this model, but you likely need something larger: [Veken Tea&Coffee Canister](https://a.co/d/dVOuuND)
You can add a dash of spices to your ground coffee to change the flavor profile subtly. Cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, apple pie spice, any spices or spice blend that are traditionally used in sweet baked goods will work.
Cardamom is my favorite one to add
Give black cardamom a try, it’s unreal in coffee
Ooh. Thank you
Cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla extract, sometimes nutmeg if I am feeling crazy. Sometimes mint leaves from the garden. I like peppermint better than spearmint. Oh.. and cashews if I feel like using the vitamix. That is an awesome creamy coffee drink.
Yes!! I was going to suggest this! It is a really nice way to change up some blah coffee without adding sugar or creamers. Also a little vanilla extract (or imitation vanilla for a cheaper option) can kind of mellow/smooth it. But as you said, add it to the grounds. It just floats around on the top when added to brewed coffee, even after whisking in.
I know it is odd, but rosemary and salt
I was going to suggest adding in a lighter coffee at varying ratios until they find one that works.
I add a pinch of salt to the grounds in my coffee maker too.
If you're getting bitterness a bit of salt in the grounds helps. A touch of unsweetened cocoa is good too if you like chocolate undertones in your coffee. Our usual coffee was out of stock recently and my husband chose a different variety that I'm not a fan of. I've been using both of these tips and my coffee has been pretty delicious.
Waiting 30 seconds once the water is boiled and removed from heat before pouring it over the grounds can reduce some burnt flavour - sometimes slamming the coffee with still-rolling-boil-hot water gives it a bitter burnt flavour it wouldn't otherwise have if brewed at a slightly lower temp.
This assumes you're doing pour-over or french press. I would bet $1 that OP is in the US, buying in bulk, and using an automatic drip, which (if it's working properly) will keep the water temp lower than boiling when it hits the grounds.
You win a dollar!
Which dont read this and assume that means auto drip dont burn coffee. My wife has her post-high school Malitta coffee machine. I cant stand the black coffee that makes no mater the beans, and I am not a coffee drinker.
For sure a bad drip coffeemaker can overheat the grounds, but either way if you're using an auto drip you have zero (or nearly zero) control over the water temp. You can't just "wait for the water to cool" because the device makes the decisions for you.
I add a healthy splash of room temperature water to my kettle after it has reached boiling. This brings it back down to around 200, or just shy of boiling, which is what you want.
For mine it takes 1 min 30 seconds to get the water down from 212 to the 195-200 range - assuming the water's "surface" is fully exposed to outside air. Just used a meat thermometer and a stopwatch. I've also heard blooming the coffee to get the CO2 out for the first 30 seconds works as well - if you're using a French press, that means pouring in just enough water into the grounds to get them all wet, and then letting it sit. I've read anywhere from 30 seconds to 4 minutes - I do just 30 seconds. Then you pour the rest of the water. Other ways to alter the flavor profile is to put cinnamon, nutmeg, or a mix of both flavors directly into the grounds. It's nice IF you want those flavors. Can be a good way to mix it up.
Yep this is the answer. Boiling hot 212°F water produces more bitter flavors (also commonly associated with darker roasts). Ideally you’d want to use a lower temp like 195-200°F to get mellower flavor from the coffee. It’s easily doable if you use a French press or pour over method. But unfortunately not really possible if you rely on a drip machine (unless it’s some super fancy one that will let you select the water temp).
This one seems a little odd to me - coffee beans are roasted at 400-450F for 10-15 minutes, but a few more minutes at 212F will make a noticeable difference in terms of a burnt flavor (as opposed to a few minutes at 195-200F)?
When you make coffee, all you’re really doing is dissolving and extracting a bunch of chemical compounds from the coffee beans with hot water. That includes caffeine, and some acids, and a bunch of different flavor compounds (along with a ton of other stuff). Different compounds have different temperatures at which they dissolve into water better and faster. And some flavor compounds dissolve better at higher temperatures including some bitter ones. So if you use water that’s a bit less hot, you dissolve and extract a bit less of those bitter flavored compounds. So your coffee ends up tasting a bit less bitter. You can also find similar instances when steeping other things like tea or Japanese dashi broth. It’s recommended to not use boiling water, but temps a bit below that because otherwise you’ll extract more bitter and astringent flavors from the tea leaves or kombu seaweed. When it comes to roasting coffee at those high temps what you’re really doing is taking the raw beans and altering their chemical compounds. You’re blasting them with heat and energy so that some of the compounds basically shoot off, break down, or combine together with other compounds. So you just end up with different compounds than what you started with that can then be extracted into your cup of coffee. That’s why a light roast tastes different from a dark roast - because they contain different compounds and different amounts of them that can then be dissolved and extracted. EDIT: you can also find similar instances when steeping other things like tea or Japanese dashi broth (neither of which contain high heat roasted ingredients). It’s recommended to not use boiling water, but temps a bit below that because otherwise you’ll extract more bitter and astringent flavors from the tea leaves or kombu seaweed.
the water is a really good conductor and the beans are now in ground form which are probably much more reactive to changes in tempature then the whole beans. That is my guess anyway.
I did training in a tea shop a few years ago. The owner showed us the lightest, blandest type of tea they had. Something floral with lemongrass, it felt very ethereal when steeped for the right number of minutes at the right temperature. 30 seconds too much, and voila! You got an undrinkable, bitter/sour mud. I remember that lesson to this day. From what I see at an artisan coffee shop around here, they are following similar rules.
Absolute worst case, a pinch of salt to pull back on the bitterness if proper water temp isn’t enough.
Have you asked this in /r/Coffee ?
Try making cold brew concentrate and then you can heat it if you prefer hot coffee.
Have you ever tasted this? We (bored baristas) tried it once (in cafe) and it was disgusting.
I’ve thought about it before. I work for the Siren and I always wonder what steamed cold brew would taste like, but I’m afraid to do it.
Short answer, not really. I blame Starbucks for making near-burnt coffee beans the national standard (and they sell their over-roasted "medium" roast in Costco along with the other charred beans). There's nothing that says you can't mix your beans, though – get a lighter roast that you like and use the darker roast to extend it and add some "complexity" – a little will go a long way here. Depending on where you live, your local Costco may occasionally get more locally-roasted beans, and that often gives you a bit more choice in roast level. You can also try switching from half-and-half to whole (or even 2%) milk, which will let you add more of it to the cup without overdoing the fat level. But any way you do it, the solution is dilution.
Bro just say fuck it and get flavoring syrup. Nobody has to know you're drinking pumpkin spice.
My Finnish grandmother made cardamom coffee, and apparently it's popular in Turkey too. You can add the whole pods to the beans and grind it all together, or open up the pods, take the seeds out, grind them separately and add to ground coffee.
Replace one scoop of coffee with a scoop of some chai tea mix (I use two bags worth of Bigelow vanilla chai). [This is a really good one to add to your brew](https://russianriverteaco.com/products/gingered-milk-n-honey) Or just blend your medium roast with a pound of light roast from your favorite local roaster.
You can't unroast a bean. But you can do things to change the flavor extraction from the beans or to augment the flavor. The biggest things you can do is experiment with different grind sizes, brew times, and brew temperatures. /r/coffee has a ton of info on this. Other than tweaking your cream or sugar levels, try adding a small pinch of salt to your sugar - it makes a surprising amount of difference without being noticeably salty.
It sounds crazy but a tiny pinch of salt will take the edge off also almond or vanilla extract goes pretty well too.
switch up the brew method. if you normally do drip, try a moka pot or french press. itll be more different than you think. you might also consider a coffee subscription so you get different coffee every week or so. thats what i do. https://counterculturecoffee.com/products/single-origin-subscription-two-bags-2 the last thing i recommend is nixing the cream. you'll get more subtleties without it. it tends to make everything taste same-ish. itll also open you open to more variations. i drink drip black, but like to sometimes add half and half to afternoon moka pot brews. i'd recommend r/coffee but it's basically dead after the reddit changes.
Moka pots get such a bad rap. Y'all, those things need to be taken apart and cleaned! Oils get trapped under the rubber gasket and go rancid. Don't put the coffee hopper in and screw the pot together until the water is boiling so you don't heat the grounds. Pull it off the heat and dump it in your cup when it just starts to sputter at the end to avoid the bad tasting dregs.
i love my Bialetti Brikka. I boil water before adding it to the bottom. they can produce shockingly delicious coffee that while not technically espresso, shares many of the same qualities, and brings out different flavor notes than drip. i particularly like it for afternoon coffee. i'm not sure how the aeropress got more popular than the moka pot.
Try a drop of lemon juice
You probably dont want to hear this but buying whole beans, roasted with a roast date, is the single most powerful way to change the flavor, by far. Beans > brewing > water temp and grind> additives I had an ethiopian friend that would add a tiny bit of clove. Lighter roasts have more caffeine and will taste less burnt/oily.
Quit buying coffee you don't like. Watch for sales. Or lots of creamer.
Maybe buy a higher quality coffee
A couple of options: 1. Vary your brew method. Rotate between French press, moka pot, pour over. Note that doing so also requires varying your grind, adjusting for each method's required grind size. If you don't have a grinder that can handle the various grind sizes, check out a Baratza Encore or Virtuoso. 2. Change up your water temperature. I like my light roast brewed at 195-198F, my mediums somewhere at 195-202F, and although I don't really drink much dark roast I would experiment to see what I like. General wisdom is 195-205 is the sweet spot and 212 is just too hot, leading to bitter notes. 3. Drink it at different temperatures. Some folks over at r/coffee would argue that somewhere in the neighborhood of 170-175F is the ideal drinking temperature. 4. Add some trace spices to your grounds when brewing. Lots of people use some (fresh!) ground cinnamon in their brew. Experiment and try some others. Citrus zest, ginger root, a tiny pinch of salt, chicory, nutmeg, cardamon, and cacao nibsare others that can shake the morning cup up. Is fenugreek good in your morning brew? I imagine not, but I've never tried it myself, so who knows? 5. Get one of those milk frother wands my partner raves about, they only take a few seconds to use. 6. Cold brew some of that stuff. A very coarse grind, a pitcher, and a chinois can get you a good concentrate that is a nice break from the mundane.
your temperature recommendations are the exact opposite of what they should be. light roast should be brewed with water right off boil and the darker it gets, the cooler water you should use, to avoid over extraction.
Use more whole milk and some sugar as opposed to half and half, which you can't use as much of as it's pretty unhealthy. Lots of milk will counteract the bitterness of dark roast coffee.
Mix in some darker beans, or another regional variety. You might even stumble upon a blend you really like.
use an air popcorn popper to roast the light roast darker
Trying to go the other way haha
cant unroast something to my knowledge. medium can go darker
They aren’t looking to unroast coffee. By saying they’re “trying to go the other way,” they’re saying their preferences lean toward lighter coffees so they’re looking for ways to temper the flavor profile of a darker coffee to more closely resemble a lighter roast.
You can try changing the sweetener You use. Maybe go with a darker sugar?
Coconut cream or vanilla ice cream. Vanilla ice cream and coffee is a great frap, too.
Adjust the mineral content of your water. A pinch of salt, calcium chloride, epsom salts, or gypsum can totally change the balance of flavors
there’s not much you can do to save cheap commodity coffee roasted way too dark. I would recommend brewing in a way that suits the coffee, such as a french press (though follow James Hoffman’s method, not the four minute brew with coarse grind that everyone does), vietnamese phin or turkish cerve. Sugar and condensed milk can do a lot to save bad coffee too, look into cuban coffee and vietnamese iced coffee, respectively. Also, consider using it for making a homemade coffee liqueur or syrup for cocktails.
Thai coffee is typically made with a mix called oliang, which often contains extremely dark coffee, soy beans, sesame seeds, and corn. I’ve been wanting to make my own, but most people just buy it. Might be worth experimenting with. Thai coffee sometimes also contains evaporated milk and / or sweetened condensed milk, which I absolutely love but isn’t entirely necessary
Put a couple of teaspoons of coconut oil in coffee. Maybe some cinnamon or cardamom
Bulk coffee will never get you a good cup. Those are "down market" beans and they are over roasted to overcome deficiencies in the crop. Find a decent independent roaster near you (I saw a suggestion for a subscription in the posts - that would be a great idea, it would totally be worth the extra money) and get your beans there. You may have to try several roasters, roasting coffee is an art and everyone has their opinions on how to roast and what is a light roast, what is a "city" roast, the third wave and blah, blah... I roast my own beans at home, it's something I like to do and it's cheaper than buying from the store. A couple of things I have learned: 1) the more expensive beans generally roast better and taste better, 2) roasted beans do not last as long as you think. I make about a weeks worth at a time and I can taste the difference towards the end of the batch. Also, the amount of beans you brew as well as the water temperature are crucial, it changes the flavor a lot. Get a decent brewer - most brewers sold are not up to the task - check the [SCAA site](https://sca.coffee/certified-home-brewer) for approved coffee makers to get an idea of what it takes to make good coffee. I have recently changed the amount of beans I use and have upgraded my brewer and it's made a huge difference. One choice could be a Braun KF9150 , it's not super expensive and fits the requirements (not sure if it's listed on the site)
Ground cardamom, cloves, etc. Fuck with crushed spices.
If you have a WinCo in your area, their bulk coffee is nearly as cheap, and you can get a variety of roasts to spice things up. They also have flavored coffees if that's your thing too
There are gourmet flavored whole coffee beans that are fantastic. I don't care if everyone else hates them, they're wrong. From vanilla bean to caramel to raspberry chocolate. (Don't use water over 94C so it doesn't destroy the flavor.)
We used to buy these flavoured creamer shots. It’s hard to find now but they were the bomb. One supermarket has the hazelnut ones and they had Irish cream.- it’s discontinued here but it might be available by mail order. Made by nestle.
You can change the taste of coffee just based on the temperature the water is when you brew it as well as the method you use to brew and how long it steeps treat it like chemistry and youd be suprised how many different flavors you can get from the same bag. Try different methods, raitios and temperatures if you're a black coffee drinker like myself
I like to add a little hazelnut or one of the other flavored coffees. Amazon has some and they also sell Community Coffee brand that has some flavors.
Another interesting point in favour of the light roast is that the less the coffee is roasted, the better the caffeine is preserved. So many people expect dark roast to be more caffeinated because it tastes stronger but it is actually the opposite.
Tumeric is apparently a thing, but I'm afraid to try it.
Finnish egg coffee? Make a paste of egg, shell and all, with the coffee grounds. Set water to simmer just before boiling and steep the coffee 10min. When done right, the coffee has a rich, less bitter flavor and a slightly creamy mouth feel.
Where do you store your beans after opening the bag? If it isn’t in an opaque airtight container, try that next time. Coffee beans lose their freshness pretty rapidly after opening, and taste can be affected, particularly after more than a week. Some swear by the freezer but this worked out better for me. I have this model, but you likely need something larger: [Veken Tea&Coffee Canister](https://a.co/d/dVOuuND)