White Coffee??? No thanks

[danek]

Here in the Pacific Northwest, where yuppies crave whatever "coffee" is the fad du jour, it seems the latest is white coffee. All I can figure, is that it's VERY under-roasted, pre-ground, extremely fine beans. The manufacturer says 100% Arabica, but "do not tamp".

SHE loves it, "it tastes like quinoa". Why yes, honey, it does. Would you like to finish mine? 'Nuff said.

Anyone heard or tasted this? How, oh how, did we get to something as wretched as this?

 

[Lightcs1776]

Ha ha ha. Yeah, I like a solid medium roast. Thanks for the warning.

Sent from my DROID Turbo using Tapatalk

 

[Mick]

I don't get out much.

When I do I'm not buying brewed coffee.

Remember, I'm the guy who orders water at the doughnut shop instead of coffee.

.

 

[danek]

Remember, I'm the guy who orders water at the doughnut shop instead of coffee.

Does your doughnut shop charge a corkage fee on your Thermos?

 

[Mick]

Does your doughnut shop charge a corkage fee on your Thermos?

It was dunk'n.

I don't bring my coffee out except as ground to friend's house for after dinner.

.

 

[ajkel64]

They don't just mean White Coffee as in Coffee with milk or cream, do they?

 

[TexLaw]

Ugh. I'll just steep my grass clippings and save five bucks.

 

[danek]

They don't just mean White Coffee as in Coffee with milk or cream, do they?

That's what I thought. Maybe even brewed with milk and cream then dehydrated, for an 'instant' type of beverage. So I googled it, and several people making this: they all claim 100% arabica and roasted using a "special process"; whatever that means.

 

[davent]

Something for everyone.

dave

 

[Alum of Potash]

I thought "white coffee" was a British term for coffee with milk or cream. For example, "café au lait" is often translated as "white coffee" in bilingual French-English dictionaries (which default to British usage).

 

[StuMcB]

Yep can confirm that in general a white coffee is with milk, not cream. Mind saying that most folk drink instant any ways over here. Unless you've got time to pick one up or grind ya own. Last thing I want to do at 5am.

 

[MntnMan62]

Here is what I found from a purveyor’s site explaining their view of what White Coffee is. I deleted any reference to the seller so as not to run afoul of the diligent B&B moderators.

First and foremost White Coffee comes from the same hard green coffee beans that regular coffee comes from. It can be Robusta or Arabica depending on the blend being used. Our White Coffee is 100% Arabica beans and is also Shade Grown, Direct Trade and Sustainable.

White Coffee is roasted to around 325 Degrees whereas fully roasted coffee is roasted to anywhere from 450 Degrees to 480 Degrees. Think of it as a really, really rare steak. It is still a steak it is just a half-baked steak.

White Coffee comes out of the roaster much denser and harder than fully roasted coffee. For this reason it requires a much more powerful grinder than any home model. It comes in one grind that is suited for home espresso machines, home brewers and Keurig brewers.

White Coffee has up 50% more caffeine than fully roasted coffee. It has a very nutty flavor that blends well with all of the same creamers and flavors that fully roasted coffee does.

 

[August West]

White Coffee has up 50% more caffeine than fully roasted coffee.

Drink for effect.

 

[MntnMan62]

Drink for effect.

I have no interest in trying this stuff but this thread peaked my interest. I have no use for more caffeine beyond what I get from my morning 2 1/2 cups. That’s plenty to get me going. Any more than that and I’ll have to up my blood pressure meds dosages.

 

[August West]

I have no interest in trying this stuff but this thread peaked my interest. I have no use for more caffeine beyond what I get from my morning 2 1/2 cups. That’s plenty to get me going. Any more than that and I’ll have to up my blood pressure meds dosages.

Watch that blood pressure.

 

[MntnMan62]

Watch that blood pressure.

Always

 

[Whiskey Badger]

I poked in thinking that someone had strong feelings against the nomenclature assumption that I had (seems I am not the only one) and learned something new.

That being said, I can't say that I am going to run out and try this stuff.

 

[TexLaw]

I found a brief review by an apparently avid coffee fan: "I decided to put it to the test, and although it did have a nice, nutty flavor, it was the saddest cup of coffee that I’ve ever had. The good news is that I didn’t have to finish it to get my normal dose of caffeine." That's hardly a ringing endorsement.

I found that webpage that MntnMan62 quoted from, and it sounds like they stop the roast just before browning begins. That makes sense, as one of the comments says that it "tastes like ground-up dried peas." That fellow did not like it, but others love the stuff. That particular product is $16 for a 1 pound sack, $2-4 more than their other roasted products, so it ain't like you're getting a price break on white coffee.

I also found some other discussions going back as much as 5 years, so this isn't as new a phenomenon as we all might have thought. As already mentioned, it sounds like a lot of this white coffee goes into some manner of latte.

Considering that I actually enjoy coffee from beans roasted to more traditional levels and don't much care for lattes, I doubt I'll go out of my way to find white coffee anytime soon. That said, I'm always up for trying something new.

 

[DCRIII]

I just tried my first cup of white out of the recommendation from a friend.
It's definitely a far cry from good coffee. I'm a dark roast kind of guy, so it's not something I will ever try to drink again!
By the way, for those that haven't seen this stuff, white looks more like a strong brewed tea than coffee.

 

[TexLaw]

I recently messed up a roast in my Behmor (hitting Cool when I wanted to hit P3--I probably needed more coffee). The result was it only starting first crack. I doubt even half the beans got to first crack. Thankfully, it was only a 1/4# roast.

Anyhow, we decided to grind it up and give it a whirl in the French press. I figured this might be a chance to try a "white" or "blonde" coffee. From the descriptions I've heard, I'm pretty sure that's what we did. It did look more like a cloudy black tea than coffee, and both my and Mrs. TL's impression was that it was like "coffee tea." It actually reminded me of a half/half blend of coffee and black tea that I once had at a Hong Kong restaurant, but it had virtually no roasty notes. It also reminded me of unfermented wort.

I wasn't bad, to tell you the truth. I liked it more than I expected, but that's not really saying much, since I expected garbage. Still, it's not quite my "cup of tea."