Hardy Coffee Co. Subscription Box Review – June 2016

Hardy Coffee Co. promises “excellent, approachable coffee roasted in Omaha Nebraska.”  They offer a number of subscription options, including one or two 12-oz bags of either their Benchmark blend, a decaf version of their Benchmark blend, or a Single Origin selection.  Prices start at $16/month for one bag of the Benchmark blends or $18/month for one bag Single Origin; they also offer discounted prices for prepaying for multiple months.

I am reviewing the Single Origin subscription.  This month’s offering is Sulawesi Pango Pango coffee.  As I’ve mentioned before, I enjoy coffee subscription boxes because once I find a good local or small batch roast coffee, I get stuck in a rut.  I love expanding my list of fave coffees and am glad to try these from Hardy Coffee Co.  I have tried Sulawesi coffee before, so I was looking forward to see how Hardy Coffee did it.  

Hardy Coffee Co. promises, on the bag, “fresh and unique coffee experiences.” The bag also provided a few tasting notes (savory chocolate, dates, and lemongrass).  I liked also that the bag displays a roast date — here June 16.  It arrived at my house just a few days after that.  Fresh!

Here is a photo of the beans (on the right) and ground (on the left).  I tested this coffee using my Black & Decker burr grinder and my mid-level Mr. Coffee maker.  I’m not fancy, but I love good coffee.

Out of the bag, the beans had a nice roasted coffee aroma.  Upon grinding, the coffee had a fresh, maybe slightly citrusy smell.

The taste:  I got what I expected from this coffee; Sulawesi can be bold (and I brew my coffee strong) but it also very smooth with the right amount of acidity.  The flavor was rich – I got almost a raw cocoa flavor that got slightly sweeter as the coffee cooled a bit.  There was a good bit of complexity in this coffee.  I could drink it all day, every day.

Bottom line:  Hardy Coffee Co. roasts some nice coffee.  Seriously tasty joe.  As I noted before, though, the one thing I wish they would do is provide some more information.  Perhaps they could give me a little more detail in the tasting notes or tell me about Pango Pango – nothing too much, but in addition to providing me with a unique coffee drinking experience, I would love a little background for that experience.  As to the  coffee, which is of course the key piece, Hardy Coffee Co. is great.
Have you tried Hardy Coffee Co.?

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