About five years ago, I stumbled upon something that altered my perception of coffee forever.

Eight O’Clock Coffee – Columbia – Whole Bean.

I say stumbled because honestly, I would never have looked at this little, unassuming bag of coffee beans and thought, “That looks like a great coffee.”

It doesn’t.  It’s maroon (I think…I’m color-blind, so I’m not so sure) and has the company’s logo on the front.  That’s about it.  There are no flashy designs.  No “Best Coffee You’ve Ever Had!” stickers or signs on it.  It pretty much looks like it has for the past 150 years (though I hear they are looking at making a “new look” for their 150th anniversary).  And I think I just picked it up on a frugal whim because it was recommended by a friend.

You see, this particular brand of coffee has a great selling point…it’s ridiculously cheap!  As a matter of fact, I picked up a 12oz. bag last week for a whopping $4.24at Wal-Mart.

Yes, I said $4.24!

You pay at least that for the decrepit awfulness we all know as Taster’s Choice.  I cringe at the thought of “crystals” you mix into water to create a more dirty water that masquerades as coffee.  It’s also cheaper than the sadly-roasted and poor-tasting Folgers and Maxwell House coffees that so many are fooled into thinking are the benchmarks for “good coffee.”  But that is altogether beside the point, so I’ll move on.  Read More→