CoffeeCow Reviews Green Mountain Sumatran Reserve K-Cups

 Strong coffee lovers have been flocking to Green Mountain Organic  Sumatran Reserve, but for those that want an event stronger, bolder, espresso-like dark roast blend, we’re pulling a rabbit out of the hat with Green Mountain Dark Magic Extra Bold K-cup. The truth is in the brew, so we rounded up our dark roast coffee enthusiasts around the Coffee Cow office to give their verdict on this très intense dark roast coffee blend.

The Test: We popped a K-cup into our Keurig coffee maker and immediately noticed its pleasing aroma with an espresso vibe. At first sip, we realized that Green Mountain’s Dark Magic coffee was the real deal. The flavor has a spellbinding complexity with a strong yet smooth taste combined with an almost ethereal sweetness. The K-cup was strong enough to deliver its bold, dark roast flavor on the largest cup setting on our Keurig Brewer. During a second round, we added a bit of flavored creamer and noted that this exceptional dark roast can easily be morphed into a latte experience. It’s obvious that this K-cup will also keep its flavor and strength as an iced coffee.

The Result: On a scale of 1-5, we give Green Mountain Dark Magic K-cup a 4.9. For serious coffee drinkers, this is a must-have first cup of coffee in the morning. We imagine this coffee will hit the spot during the mid-afternoon slump, as well! The body has an attractive feel and no bitter aftertaste. You will not find a blend like this on your average supermarket shelf. This coffee is for real coffee drinkers, but adventurous light and medium roast drinkers could learn to love its robust flavor.

General Information: Each box Green Mountain Dark Magic Extra Bold Coffee K-Cups contains 24 single-serve cups for your Keurig K-Cup brewer.

Ideas about what we can review next? Let us know in the comments below!

Visit Coffee Cow.com today and browse our entire K-Cup selection.

Coffee: A Relaxation Technique?

Sometimes we say things without following through on them. We’re all guilty of this from time to time (or all the time), and this seems especially true when it comes to us – taking the necessary time needed for us to maintain a healthy lifestyle, successfully manage a household, feel relaxed and just generally enjoy life.

Which brings us to our point: Make yourself a priority in your life, today!

Even if it’s just a moment of your day, take that moment because it will allow you to regroup in preparation to take on the world. We agree with Ora Nadrich, a Life Coach who recently wrote an article about using your cup of coffee as meditation/relaxation time.

This goes even for end-of-the-year craziness! Here are 4 steps, inspired by Ora, on just how to relax with a delicious cuppa joe:

Step #1: Make your favorite cup of coffee, just how you like it. It’s all about you, at least for the moment!

Step #2: Take your coffee to a comfortable and quiet place.

Step #3: Sit down, close your eyes, take a sip of coffee and clear your mind. Only think of your coffee – the aroma, warmth (unless it’s iced, of course) and taste.

Step #4: Do NOT get up from your chair until your coffee is no more!

If you follow these 4 simple steps first thing in the morning, your day may take on a whole new attitude.

Visit CoffeeCow.com to add this coffee relaxation technique to your life (and your coffee arsenal) today!

How To Pronounce Various Coffee Regions & Coffee Varietals

Did you know that coffee has its own language? Okay, not really, but sometimes trying to pronounce coffee regions and a few of the less common coffee varietals can leave you feeling like you’re back in high school French class. Don’t be discouraged! CoffeeCow.com is here to the rescue, providing you with a quick and easy tutorial.

Let’s start with Brazil - ah, Brazil. As Frank Sinatra put it, they’ve got an awful lot of coffee! With that being said, it’s no surprise that they are the largest coffee producer in the world. Learn how to say these coffee regions of Brazil:

Cerrado

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Sul de Minas

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Next, let’s travel to the birthplace of coffee - Ethiopia. There are two types of Ethiopian coffee: dry-processed or washed. Dry-processed will create a bold, earthy cup of coffee; washed will give you a light-bodied cup. Learn how to pronounce these coffee regions of Ethiopia:

Harar

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Sidamo Sidama

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Yirgacheffe

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Now let’s make our way over to Indonesia. Did you know that all (and we mean all) Arabica coffee in Indonesia is hand-picked, regardless of where it’s being grown? According to Wikipedia, Indonesia is also the fourth largest producer of coffee, making this job of hand-picking the coffee a big one. Think about that while learning how to say these coffee producing regions:

Gajah Aceh

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Sulawesi

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As your favorite infomercial would say - but wait, there’s more!  Learn how to pronounce these coffee regions:

Boquete (Panama)

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Burundi

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Huehuetenango (Guatemala)

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Nyeri (Kenya)

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Tanzania

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Now that we’ve covered regions, let's learn how to pronounce varietals, or types of coffee.

Bourbon - Arabica coffee from Réunion, Rwanda and Latin America.

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Caturra - Arabica coffee from Latin and Central America.

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Catuai - Arabica coffee from Latin America.

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Pacas - Arabica coffee from Latin America.

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Now you can impress all your friends by correctly pronouncing the regions and varietals. You can also impress your friends with our variety of coffee products!

Top 5 Reasons To Keep Drinking Your Coffee…Maybe!

Coffee is such a versatile beverage! Many people will attest to needing a cup first thing in the morning (in order to function) along with a few more cups to get through their day. Coffee can even be dessert-like and served as an after dinner treat! The question is: what does your doctor say about coffee? Here are 5 supposed health benefits that encourage you to keep drinking your coffee:

 

1.       Caffeine Linked to Lower Skin Cancer Risk: A new study published in the Cancer Research Journal earlier this month claims that drinking 3 or more cups of coffee a day can decrease your skin cancer chances by 20 percent! The study followed approximately 113,000 coffee drinkers to reach these findings, but they’re still inconclusive. Though the research on this claim continues, the results they’ve documented are promising.  

2.       Coffee May Help Slow Age-Related Muscle Deterioration: Coffee helps to wake our minds and bodies, but is it possible coffee may help maintain our muscles by slowing deterioration as we age? Tests performed on mice look promising enough that human testing may be in our future! By giving caffeine to mice of differing ages and measuring progress, sports scientists did find improvement over mice that were not given caffeine. We think they were probably pretty alert and productive, too.

3.       Coffee Lowers Depression Risk In Older Females: According to a report from the Harvard School of Public Health within the past year, analysis of over 50,000 women over a period of 24 years showed a decreased risk of depression. Analysts actually tried to predict who would have depression later in life by looking at a cumulative time period within the 24 year study! With a statistic of 1 out of every 5 women in the United States who suffer from depression, hearing that coffee may help lower the risk of depression is a wonderful thing. 

4.       Drinking Coffee May Help Prevent Alzheimer's Disease: Published early last month in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, a study conducted by researchers of the University of Florida and the University of Miami shows that drinking coffee may help prevent/delay the onset of the Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers say that older adults who have mild memory impairment and drink coffee are less likely to develop dementia. With Alzheimer’s attacking an estimated 6 million Americans, the study raises hope for the fight against this incurable and deadly disease.

5.       Coffee Might Actually Help Your Heart: Researchers found that people who drank 2 cups of coffee a day had a lower risk of heart failure than those who did not drink coffee, but they emphasize that moderation is key. Analysis of data from 2001 to 2011 of over 140,000 people in Sweden and Finland yielded these findings, claiming that those who drank coffee were 11 percent less likely to have heart failure. Besides that, they also found that drinking coffee may also protect against other illnesses and even improve exercise performance!

What do you think – is caffeinated coffee really the super food it’s touted to be?

In the end, coffee and other caffeinated beverages in moderation may actually benefit you in the long run. There’s still more research to do, but we think these studies are on the right track. Who knows? Maybe coffee will get recognition for curing something other than sleepiness.

Cure your sleepiness with fresh coffee from CoffeeCow.com today!

Today is National Doughnut Day!

Did you know that the first Friday in June is National Doughnut Day?  (We personally love this idea.  Doughnuts and coffee are practically like peanut butter and jelly!)

National Doughnut Day was originally created by The Salvation Army in 1938 as a fundraiser to help people who were in need during the Depression.  It was also meant to honor women who served their country by serving doughnuts to World War I soldiers (known as Salvation Army “Lassies”).

Today at Dunkin’ Donuts, many locations are offering a free doughnut when you purchase any beverage.

Krispy Kreme’s Doughnut Day Facebook Page touts one free doughnut for every customer today, with no purchase required.

National Doughnut Day may not be the healthiest holiday, but we think everyone deserves a treat once in a while. So go ahead!  Have a doughnut!  And maybe to go with it, try Green Mountain’s Donut House Chocolate Glazed Donut K-cups!  Mmm, chocolate coffee and doughnuts!

Happy National Doughnut Day from your friends at CoffeeCow!