Trader Joe’s Blue Bali Moon, reviewed

The Blue Bali Moon coffee, which is new at Trader Joe’s this month, has a great, eyecatching look to the packaging. The coffee is from Bali, which is known for mild, yet fairly complex, blends. There isn’t enough land on Bali to really have big coffee estates, and instead the beans tend to come from multiple growers for every batch of Bali-grown coffee.

This particular coffee is a medium-roast. It has a great roasty aroma to it, with hints of a smoky earthiness and a touch of sweetness. In other words, it smells delicious and offers a good, full-bodied flavor that is neither too dark nor too light. This is my current “everyday” coffee to brew in the mornings, as it’s inexpensive and goes well with just about everything.

Zhena’s Gypsy Tea Caramel Apple Tea, reviewed

I love the smell of fresh tea and coffee – and, of course, it can also be a good indicator of flavor – but it’s difficult to get a good whiff when the package you’re looking at is wrapped up tightly. It doesn’t stop me from trying, however, and sometimes the effort pays off. The tiniest hint of scent of the Caramel Apple Tea from Zhena’s Gypsy Tea sold me immediately. The tea, which is sold in stores like Whole Foods and Cost Plus, as well as online, is a blend of rooibos and honeybush, flavored with apples, licorice, cloves and cinnamon. The apples, cinnamon and honey-caramel flavor are the three most dominant elements of this tea, but they’re not aggressive. It smells and tastes like a mild, sweet glass of hot apple cider – perfect for any cold winter night.

Trader Joe’s Gingerbread Coffee, reviewed

You know it’s really fall and that we’re headed for the holiday season when Trader Joe’s rolls out its flavored coffee blends. Unlike most “flavored coffees”, TJs mixes whole beans with pieces of real spices that get ground up alongside the beans and actually flavor the coffee. not just scent it. Their newest addition is Trader Joe’s Gingerbread Coffee, “coffee spiked with real ginger, cinnamon and gloves.”

When you open the can, it smells just like gingersnap cookies: sweet and spicy.

Brewed, the coffee is very good. It has a mild scent and flavor of cloves, which gives it a very gingerbready feel. The beans are a medium roast and the coffee overall is smooth and rich tasting, with no bitterness to it. This is definitely an excellent choice for fall and is perfect for serving with cookies – especially gingersnaps or molasses cookies, as well as with anything chocolate.

Starbucks Toasted Marshmallow Mocha, reviewed

I spotted a new addition to the Starbucks syrup menu when I was visiting a licensed store at a local Barnes and Noble: Toasted Marshmallow. The syrup is included in drinks where it is the featured flavor on its own – i.e. Toasted Marshmallow Latte – and as an add-on to mocha drinks. I’m a sucker for s’mores and couldn’t want to taste it.

After trying both a hot Toasted Marshmallow Mocha and a Toasted Marshmallow Mocha Frappuccino, I’d say that the syrup is a bullseye for the flavor of real toasted marshmallows. It has a toffee flavor to it, and an aftertaste that is tastes like very caramelized sugar, verging on slightly burnt – just like a toasted marshmallow or a creme brulee. I think that this was more satisfying as a hot drink than as a cold one, but wasn’t bad either way. The syrup is not too sweet, thanks to the toasted finish, and I’d try adding a couple of pumps to a vanilla latte to try and come up with a creme brulee flavored drink next time.