Costco Coffee gotten worse over the past few years?

[mushroomaffairs]

My work buys Costco (regular in the large brown can)) Colombian and everyone has noticed that it has gotten worse over the years. Flavor wise it was always solid but over the past year especially it has gotten pretty bad. We are a small office of thirteen people and every single one of us has noticed.

I searched past posts for complaints about change in flavor but haven't found any oddly. Has any one noticed this? Today is our weekly field trip for office supplies :). We don't necessarily have a budget but the coffee was one of the great bargains there. Currently we buy Dunkin Donuts but the flavor has gotten noticeably off too.

What about supermarket brands? Prefer bulk supply if possible. We have Illy at our local grocery but its $12/ for small cans.

[sueatmo]

We buy bagged coffee at Costco and I think it is good. I buy Kirkland Colombian Supremo beans. There are several sorts there, but I am not familiar with the pre ground stuff. But if you want to continue to buy coffee there, surely there is a different brand to try.

[crewsweeper]

I'm currently using the "Don Jose"(?) coffee from Costco. Whole beans. It tastes okay to me, good enough for everyday use. Nothing special. I'll be looking at picking up *$ Christmas Blend next, as that's usually less overroasted than most of *$ bolder coffees. I prefer Peet's Cafe Solano when available.

[annagranfors]

Slightly OT...since I'm not a Costco member, I can't comment on them. But I've stopped buying Trader Joe's coffee. I used to be a big fan of their Ultra Dark Roast Dark Sumatra, but it began tasting more and more like Maxwell House over the last few years.

They have Peet's on sale (French Roast) at my local Vons often enough, so I'm paying a little more, but liking it MUCH more.

[biondanonima]

We just bought a Kirkland brand Guatemalan whole bean coffee that is really, really tasty. We love the Mayorga brand that they carry too, but it's not available everywhere - I stocked up when we were in NJ recently because they don't seem to have it in NY.

I also have a bag of the Kirkland brand "roasted by Starbucks" whole bean decaf in the house - it's drinkable, but it has that burnt acidity that I dislike about Starbucks, so I usually cut it half and half with something else. I wish they would carry a better selection of whole bean decaf.

[mushroomaffairs]

No coffee grinder at work. I can't picture any of my work colleagues grinding 2 lbs. of coffee every morning, although it would be an awesome sight to see, lol.

We just need ground coffee that doesn't cost an arm and a leg since we go through so much per week.

I'm surprised no one on this board has noticed the worse flavor though.. Costco is not the only brand that has gotten worse tasting.

[biondanonima]

I don't know if this is true of all Costco locations, but the one I frequent has a large industrial coffee grinder at the front, so that you can grind what you buy on the way out.

As for flavor, I rarely buy ground "branded" coffee so I can't comment. I have noticed, however, that bulk beans have gotten way more expensive for the same quality, so it could be that manufacturers of canned ground coffee have to use lower quality beans to keep their prices low.

[Cathy]

I really think you've never cleaned the coffee maker.

Folgers has never tasted good to me, but we have purchased the Kirkland brand in cans for my neighbor and it tastes good when we go over her house. Sometimes I've purchased Yuban in cans and that is good also.

[treb]

I have to agree, based on the OP's comments of the volume of coffee they make each week. If that machine has never been cleaned, it's got to have build up from the funk. Also, maybe the OP should take a small sample of the coffee and brew it at home.

[mcf]

I never buy coffee in cans, but I loved the gold foil bag of Costco's organic house blend that they discontinued. The Gevalia, World Blend and Starbucks crud they have instead don't come close and I'm back to paying a lot for coffee elswhere again. Dunkin Donuts coffee has used the worst quality beans for years, so if you're just noticing how bad it is lately, you might try a strong flushing out of your coffee maker and filtering your water.

[treb]

I find DD coffee too mild for me. i like a full bodied brew, I usually get the Kirkland whole roasted beans by Starbucks.

[mushroomaffairs]

Dunkin Donuts used to have a nice albeit light flavor. Best quality? No, but for an office it worked well but it's changed in flavor the same way as the Costco brand. I don't know how to describe it but it has a wet cardboard flavor that's bad. It's just a weird awful flavor.

[mcf]

Hey, tastes differ. I'd go without before drinking a cup of it. My last one was about a decade ago.

[cstr]

Sure it's not your coffee maker?? I haven't found any difference in the coffee.

[mushroomaffairs]

No, def. not the coffee maker. :/. It gets cleaned every evening by housekeeping. It's definitely the grounds that have a terrible off taste.

[Cathy]

Not wiping clean-demineralizing. To remove mineral/scale/hard water deposits that are probably stuck in the internal components.

One part vinegar to two parts water through the coffee maker. Then run pots of plain water through the system. Three times. I doubt that is what housekeeping does every evening.

[mcf]

Yes, that's what I meant, too.

[biondanonima]

Another issue with the coffeemaker itself could be the temperature of the water. If the maker is old or wearing out, the water may not be reaching the correct temperature. Coffee brewed with water that's not hot enough can taste thin and sour. Too-hot water has its own set of issues, too.