Let’s talk Flavored Coffee Beans
Did you know there are hundreds of different flavored coffee bean profiles?
Any purist will say the only way to drink coffee is straight. It is just unthinkable to flavor coffee. What? No cream, no sugar, and no flavoring. Not everyone has the same tastes. I can tell you that I myself like to venture over to the flavored side of coffee. I switch up my coffees often and I think flavored coffee beans are the best. I guess you could say that I’m not a purist. Oh NO! To have the same thing day after day gets old.
Colombian specialty coffee is great at its purest, even one of my favorites, somehow, to think that it is the only specialty coffee out there. It would be like me telling you that you had to eat a tuna sandwich for every meal. BORING! Yep, give me a Vanilla Mocha, or some Highlander Grogg lingering in the mix. I just have to have the variety, the spice, if you will. There is just something about the aroma and flavors that engage my sense of smell and warm my heart.
So how are the flavored coffee beans made?
First you have to find the finest blends of beans (this makes a huge difference) and then roast them to perfection. Once the coffee 
beans are roasted, the flavored syrups are hand poured onto the coffee beans then agitated either by machine or in a bag, mixing it to provide an even distribution or coating.
You want to allow the flavored coffee beans to sit for a period. Depending on who you ask, some say for fifteen minutes, I like mine to sit a twenty four hour period so that the flavors can marry with the bean. Coffee beans are like little sponges so the longer you let the beans sit the more flavoring they can soak up. Note, flavored syrups are a strong concentration and are geared to your sense of smell as much as towards your taste.
Honestly, there is nothing like smelling the Pumpkin Spice or an Irish Cream for the holidays. Different artisans will have different profiles. Making up different holiday blends, or using different beans to add to the flavors. No two are alike.
Flavored Coffee Beans as a Cover Up
Now let’s be honest here. When I talk flavored coffee beans I’m not talking about masking the flavor of bad coffee to make it taste better. There are some out there that flavor their coffee to hide the pour qualities of their coffee. I’m sure you know and have tasted the ones I’m talking about, they just have a stale taste, or maybe you can taste the bitterness.
You end up adding a bit more cream or a lot more sugar, give me extra caramel. By the time you have finished making your coffee taste good enough to drink, you have just added half your calories for the day.
Buy Fresh Quality Coffee Beans
There is something to be said about buying the freshest quality from a specialty coffee roaster. And then try throwing some flavored coffee beans in the mix to put a different twist to your daily treat. Not only will you know the quality you are getting, but your coffee experience is most enjoyable. The possibilities are endless.
