Fat City predicts the future

Not really. It’s just that yesterday, Fat City mentioned what every coffee connoisseur on a budget already knows: Eight O’Clock Coffee is the best in the six-dollars-and-under range.

Today Consumer Reports decided to confirm that, and throw in a dis or two at Starbucks as well.

Consumer Reports tested 19 popular store-brand ground coffees, including the usual suspects like Folgers and Maxwell House but also premiums such as Starbucks and Peet’s Coffee.

In a blow to snobby coffee drinkers everyone, Eight O’Clock Coffee beat the rest. “At $6.28 per lb, it topped the taste tests and cost less than half the price of brands including Gloria Jean’s and Peet’s.”

I’ve never really thought that much about Eight O’Clock’s flavor, but Consumer Reports’ researchers did. They describe it as a “complex blend of earthy and fruity, with a bright, pleasing sourness.”

There is a flaw with the study. It only tested Colombian blends, and Colombian blends never have the flavor differences you get with French roasts. The stronger the roast, the bigger the difference between good and bad beans and frankly, Colombian is a weak roast. 

Starbucks finished fourth but that’s the least of the its worries. Things have gotten so bad that the company is turning to value meals. [Me faking shock by putting hand over mouth.]

Not only that but now Perez Hilton is the one breaking Starbucks news. Things have really gotten out of whack. Maybe the the chain should switch to Eight O’Clock Coffee.