Coffee Connoisseur on the cheap
I am a Keurig user. I love it. The brillant minds in the Keurig marketing department did a promotion in my area where they gave you a free machine. I think through market research (probably Facebook posts, etc. referring to our coffee habits) I was "randomly" selected to receive one. I have the Keurig B60 Special Edition Brewing System. I understand that the latest model Keurig 2.0 will not allow you to use generic K-cups without a special clip work around so if you do not have a Keurig coffee machine and are looking to purchase one keep that in mind. The reason the company could afford to give away the brewer is because they know you are going to be hooked and have to buy their K-cups. These can get very pricey quickly. I don't think it is as easily found in stores and the price on Amazon right now for it is ridiculous (around $329). I found the Keurig K45 Elite Brewer in Black on Amazon for $115. This is my exact machine.
No matter which brewer you might have we are all looking for ways to save some cash. The coffee habit can get expensive. I know a lot of folks do the Starbucks thing every morning and probably throw down $5 a day on coffee but I am just too frugal for that. I am too frugal to pay the $1 per K-cup so I set out looking for decent coffee for under .50 cents a K-cup.
I tried the Aldi's cups and I just did not like the coffee. I said I was cheap but I can't sacrifice taste either. The local grocers will sometimes run the top name brands on sale and I am quick to jump on those deals when I find them but I wanted to find a go to solution for good tasting coffee that didnt eat up the household budget.
As a huge Amazon shopper, I started there. The first inexpensive brand I tried was from San Francisco Bay coffee. I bought the Rain Forest blend first and it was much better than I honestly expected for 35 cents a K-cup. These are also not your usual K-cups. They are environmentally friendly. Take a look at these babies. You do not have the waste that you get with the traditional K-cups. The company that makes these are family owned and have a good story too. They offer several flavors and strengths. I tried the Rainforest based on the reviews as it sounded like the flavor that I prefer. It is a medium roast and as described by the company it is an artful mix of coffees from Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala, and Indonesia that produces a smooth, yet full-bodied taste with lively acidic notes. I was very pleased.
I also like to keep some decaf on hand for the evenings when I just really want a cup of coffee but would rather not stay awake late. The San Francisco Bay Gorilla Decaf is perfect. It comes in under 50 cents a cup as well. You can also use the Amazon Subscribe and Save deal and you will save even more.
Before I subscribed to one particular brand, I wanted to give a few a try. The next one I tried is Mad Monkey. I tried both the Swingin' Bold and the Midtown Medium. The Mad Monkey Swingin' Bold is the winner here. I have not tried their decaf yet but probably will. These price out at 42 cents each so a little more than the San Francisco Bay. They also are not environmentally friendly like the San Francisco Bay but I have to say the Swingin Bold has them beat in taste in my opinion. The man child (my twenty year old son) has taken up my coffee habit and his preference is the Mad Monkey Swingin' Bold.
Some of my other favorite K-cups are the Green Mountain Wild Mountain Blueberry flavored coffee. It prices out at around .69 cents a cup but is a nice treat. If I really want to splurge, my all time favorite coffee is Wolf Gang Puck Jamaica Me Crazy. It is over $1 a cup and worth it but not something I want to use everyday.
