Starbucks Reserve 100% Oahu Coffee, reviewed

You’ve heard of Kona coffee. And you’ve probably heard of Kauai coffee. But you probably had never heard of Oahu Coffee before Starbucks launched its 100% Oahu Coffee as part of its Reserve line of specialty coffees. I know that I hadn’t heard of it. The thing that makes the Oahu coffee so special is that it is very rare. The first coffee beans planted in Hawaii were brought to Oahu around the beginning of the 19th century. Coffee grew well there, but the demand for other crops was higher and soon things like sugar cane replaced coffee. It grew so well that the Waialua Sugar Company on the Waialua Estate on the North Shore of Oahu eventually became one of the largest sugar cane plantations in the state. After decades of success, the sugar cane plantation eventually closed in 1996 and opened the door for other specialty crops to grow on that same land. Coffee and cocoa were planted, as well as tropical fruits. The Waialua Estate is the only coffee plantation on Oahu and that is exactly where this coffee comes from.

If you like Kona coffee, there is no question that you will fall for the Oahu coffee on your first sip. The coffee is velvety smooth, with a slight fruitiness and a marked taste of unsweetened chocolate. The cocoa notes really have a strong presence in the aroma of the coffee, as well. Much like Kona coffee, this dark roasted coffee has very low acididy, so it makes an exceptionally smooth cup of coffee that even those who don’t normally drink dark coffee like. I definitely like this coffee hot, but it is excellent over ice, where the chocolate flavors still come through and make for a surprisingly rich, yet refreshing, drink.

Starbucks Reserve Malawi Lake of Stars, reviewed

African coffees are not usually my favorites, but I can never resist trying a new offering from the Starbucks Reserve line, so I eventually gave in to trying the Malawi Lake of Stars coffee a try on a recent visit. I have to admit that I did wait until my store was sold out of the Galapagos coffee before making the switch, which is what took me so long to getting around to this post!

I am willing to admit when I was wrong, and I was definitely wrong to put off trying this particular coffee for so long. The coffee is rich and incredibly smooth, with none of the citrusy acidity that I often find in African coffees. It did, however, have a trace of citrus flavor to it, but that was subtle and came only after a long, lingering chocolatiness that really dominated this coffee. The finish was clean and smooth, too. I like mine hot, but have since gone back and tried this iced and found it to be very refreshing, with the same flavors coming through and without any bitterness.

It almost makes me glad that my Clover store is out of the Galapagos, because now nothing stands in the way of me getting the Malawi reserve.

Starbucks Reserve Organic Galapagos San Cristobal, reviewed

I was fortunate enough to visit the Galapagos a few years ago, and I did see locally grown coffee for sale on San Cristobal while I was there. I don’t remember it making as big an impression on me as this Reserve coffee did, although I do remember being pretty satisfied (and surprisingly so, since when you travel coffee can be a crap shoot) with all the coffee I had. Needless to say, I was excited to see that Organic Galapagos San Cristobal was one of the newest Starbucks Reserve offerings this month. Galapagos has some very interesting microclimates and can be a great place for growing coffee, although you wouldn’t necessarily expect that to be the case.

This coffee is produced in very small quantities by a single farm, Hacienda “El Cafetal.” It is a medium bodied coffee, with a wide range of interesting herbal notes to it and a very clean finish. I didn’t get as much citrus as I find in many other coffees from nearby regions, and that plus the herbaciousness of the coffee made it very unique. It is very refreshing and fantastic iced, although I definitely like it hot as well. This is probably one of my favorite Reserve coffees to date, and it is at a good price point (for such a rare coffee) that this is one I’m taking home with me and not just having from the Clover.

Starbucks Reserve 100% Kona Coffee, reviewed

Kona coffee, from the eastern coast of the Big Island of Hawaii, is one of the most prized coffees in the world and demans a high price tag. The region’s rich, volcanic soil, shaded hillsides and lovely weather produce consistently excellent coffee with a distinctly smooth flavor profile. Unless you’re in Hawaii, it’s not common to see Kona on coffee shop menu boards and it was definitely exciting to see 100% Kona Coffee enter the Starbucks Reserve lineup this month. I jumped at the chance to have a cup from the Clover machine at my local store when they started stocking it.

The coffee is dark and very smooth, with an almost velvety finish. It is fruity and sweet, with a floral hibiscus note to it and a smooth, citrusy aroma. It’s billed as a medium bodied coffee but seems darker, although it doesn’t quite have the earthiness of some dark roast coffees. It’s smooth enjoy that just about anyone would enjoy drinking it.

I’ve seen this sold at several other Starbucks in my area, even those that don’t have Clover machines (unlike some of the other reserve coffees), so it is one that you might want to keep an eye out for and bring home to brew. It goes without saying that it’s well worth indulging in a cup if you’re at a store with a Clover, too.

Starbucks Reserve Blue Java Indonesia, reviewed

Coffees from the Pacific tend to be some of my favorites, as they tend to make wonderfully complex and smooth dark roast coffees. I didn’t hesitate to try the Starbucks Reserve Blue Java Indonesia when my store got it in – but I did wait until I had tried it a few times before giving it a review here. The reason is that I was actually quite surprised by this coffee and it took a little bit of time for it to grow on me. This isn’t because I didn’t care for it, but because I found it to be a little unusual for a coffee from the South Pacific. While you definitely get some of the richness that I expect to find in a coffee from, say Sumatra, this particular coffee is a little lighter in flavor and quite complex. It didn’t have any of the red berry notes that I look for in Sumatran coffees. Instead, I got a lot of herb flavors from this coffee, including fresh sage and juniper, as well as a little cedar and some dry earth tones (which I usually just call “dirt,” though I certainly don’t mean that in a negative way!).

I liked it from the start, but I liked it even more once I had had it a few times. Those sage notes make this a brilliant coffee to pair with savory breakfast foods (and snacks, if you indulge in a second cup of coffee in the afternoons) and it is complex enough to keep it interesting. I also found that this made a surprisingly good iced coffee, since its lighter feel made it very refreshing when brewed cold.