First of all, I think that Boca Java coffees are good, but not over the top. As for the flavorings, I think they are very imaginative but for my money Kaffe Magnum Opus takes first place in flavored coffees, other than a local roaster that I use. Boca Java flavors just don’t have the intensity that I am looking for. And…you can’t smell them when they are brewing.

Now, Marc says that is because we have a 600 square foot kitchen. Given. It has 11 foot ceilings and that may have something to do with it. But other flavored coffees have filled the kitchen with scent and wafted up the stairs. This one just doesn’t.

Saying that, the Surfin’ Safari is good. First flavor is sort of a nutty buttery caramel followed by the Kalhua and finishing with delicate vanilla notes. The coffee is somewhat rich in the mouth and without bitterness in the aftertaste.

This is a nice afternoon coffee. It would pair well with shortbread cookies or plain biscotti.

image:Boca Java

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Light Up Las Olas is a dark roast, blended from Columbian and Brazillian coffees. The aroma of the beans is spicy and licorice-y.  Nice.

The flavor is described on the site as having notes of cocoa. Eh. Maybe.

The flavor is warm and smoky, a bit too acidic at the end for my tastes. Slight nuances of marshmallow on the intake, makes you think you are going to have a toasted marshmallow flavor but at the last minute it morphs into almost an amaretto-pecan.

Oddly, with the flavors invoked this is not a smooth coffee. After the first few sips you lose track of the flavor of it and it becomes just coffee.

On a scale of 1-5 it gets a 3. There is nothing outstanding about it and yet it isn’t bad. I liked it much better sweetened and cream added.

By the way? If you are interested, you can follow me on Twitter… never a dull moment I promise.

Image:Boca Java

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I still don’t know how they did it but I can tell you that the flavor is reminiscent of the way your mouth tastes after you have eaten pancakes and bacon, and are washing them down with copious amounts of coffee.

One thing I do not like about Boca Java is that their coffees are very delicately flavored. It is easy to miss some of the nuances of flavor, and I would like to seem them intensify the flavor a bit. However, saying that, I liked this coffee a lot. It was a nice melding of maple and bacon held together with coffee like duct tape. I think it needs to have sweetener and cream to get the best flavor, and you need to keep that in mind.

This isn’t going to be your every day coffee, this is one of those that you have to pull out for friends just to freak them out with your uniqueness, or buy for a coffee freak that has tried everything.

Image:Boca Java

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Inspired by the international favorite and original New Orleans dessert, this is a triple-treat pleasure! Bananas Foster Float mixes banana, cinnamon, brandy and brown sugar into a base that’s full-bodied and complex. It offers an outrageously delicious taste sensation.

The flavor is somewhat subtle, lingering in the aftertaste rather than identifying itself in the fore-taste.  This was somewhat disconcerting to me…I am not sure why.  There was the sip of a medium to light roast coffee, bright and with moderate acidity and then after the swallow the banana flavors wafted back around my mouth reminding me that the coffee had been flavored.  It was a unique experience.

I have had coffees that have more intense flavor, but none that had the subtlety of this coffee.  I am not saying that I liked it better or worse than other brands I have had…just that it was unique in the way the flavor presented itself.

I did not taste brandy, brown sugar, nor cinnamon.  I have rather a sensitive sense of taste, I am generally able to recreate a recipe after having eaten it one time, but this coffee did not bring any of those flavors to mind.  I would drink this again, but I don’t know that I would buy it again.

The coffee I liked best from Boca Java was the first one I reviewed, South Beach Rhythm.  The two flavored coffees I tried came next, with the Tropical Kiss coming slightly ahead of the Banana Foster Float.  The Boca Villa was last on my list, and my least recommended.  I have ordered 4 more coffees from Boca Java, and will be reviewing these in about a month.

image: Boca Java

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Boca Java Tropical Kiss has an intense coconut flavor that fades out into lingering Belgian chocolate euphoria.  Usually with black coffee the flavor is not apparant.  This is not true with the Tropical Kiss.  The flavor is a bit more adult, a bit less sweet, maybe somewhat more subtle but it is there in the black coffee.  Add a few tablespoons of cream and sugar and you are back to drinking an Almond Joy bar.

This is a great afternoon coffee with a light snack of carrot cake, white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, or coconut macaroons.  It is not  rich enough to be an after dinner coffee, in my opinion.  Not enough richness in the mouth…but as an afternoon pick me up? Perfect.

Give it a try, and let me know what you think.

image:Boca Java

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The company describes it this way:

Reminiscent of the rich, darker coffees in Europe, Boca Villa has a heavy body that finishes with a hint of spiciness. Its robust, intensely satisfying flavor evokes memories of coffee served at the finest cafés in Paris.

Here is my take on it:

Beans are, as I said, oily and beautiful.

The aroma from the bag is slightly spicy, with definite herbal notes.  These coffees are somewhat lacking in intensity when it comes to aroma, They smell great but they don’t fill the room with their scent.

The flavor is perfumy and quite astringent.  I would say that there are serious herbal notes here, somewhat like brewing dried alfalfa.  It isn’t unpleasant exactly, but not my favorite.

I found that the astringency covered up any layers that might have come up after the initial taste.  I would say that this is a masculine coffee, suited for camping trips and hunting lodges.  It is as up-front as a used car salesman, with about as much complexity, in my opinion.

Should you try it? Eh. I am not going to say don’t.  But if you are trying to decide between this and the South Beach Rhythm then go with the South Beach.  Much better stuff.

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Then I read about Mike having the Maple Bacon coffee and I was intrigued..still waiting to get it but intrigued.  THEN I discovered the Farm Town Ap on Facebook and found out if I ordered a trial amount of their coffee I  got 20,000 or so points fo buy farm animals with.  Who can resist a deal like that?

I now have replace my horses that I had to give away last summer with cyber horses.

My experience was not as quick as Mikes.  It took almost a week for the coffee to arrive, although I was contacted and told that it was shipped the day after I ordered.  I ordered four 1/2 lbs.

The first that I tried is the South Beach Rhythm.  It is described by the company as:

Exotic and smoky, this very full bodied dark roast is made from premium Colombian and Panamanian beans.

O.k.  That isn’t helpful.  I mean really.  Yes that sounds wonderful but it tells me nothing about how the coffee tastes. Not really.  It is like sauying a wine is fruity and full bodied.   These companies should stop hiring writers to write descriptions and start hiring coffee writers..right Mike? Oh, and the words chocolate, nutty, and smoky can’t be used. Ever.

Here are my thoughts.

The beans are very dark and coated with a nice layer of oil.  The sheen is incredible.  They are plump and perfect, not broken or fragmented.  They are on the small side. I don’t know if this really matters but I have noticed that the flavor of the smaller beans seems to be better.

The beans smell spicy. They remind me of something …I can’t quite identify.  There is almost a marzipan scent and an underlying sassafras soda smell.  O.k.  Yes, I am sitting here huffing a bag of coffee beans, and your point is? If you ever had a real A &W Root Beer from the real drive in….you are old…but you will also recognize some of the intriguing scent in this coffee.

The coffee is very dark and glossy.  The fresh brewed aroma is less intense than I would have expected and has a slight herbal scent.  The flavor is smooth with a subtle winey note and a pleasant acidity left on the tongue.  If there are chocolate notes they would be chocolate fudge and not anything less rich.  This is a rich and satisfying cup, aptly named.  It brings to mind the velvet and sensual darkness of a tropical night.  The company says that there are notes of caramel but I did not find them.  I think they are just not experienced enough foodies to know the difference between caramel and marzipan.

I wish it had more aroma while it was being brewed but other than that I can’t fault it. It is definitely a complex brew, revealing layers of flavor as you sip, like an exotic dancer taking off veils.

I could not find answers to my questions on the website so I called.  Their customer service is quite good.  My question was whether or not the coffee was organic/Fair Trade/Rainforest Alliance.  The answer? SOME of the coffee is.  If this is important to you, then read carefully.  The majority of the coffee is not.  So, that is my second disappointment with the coffee.

Now, I have to apologize for my images.  I had a decent camera.  My five year old was carefully bringing it to me when she tripped.  Camera case broke.  Had to buy another.  Sadly, I had only the money for a rather (very) cheap camera that does not do closeups.  Since I primarily do close ups this really stinks.   Even photo editing only helps a little.  Bear with me while I save up. :/

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Quick! What is better than getting an awesome cup of coffee?

Getting an awesome cup of coffee cheap, of course!

As I was browsing I came upon Retail Me Not, a site that has links coupons, and this area was nothing but coffee coupons.

PARTY TIME!

So I wondered if that was all and did a net search….

Bingo!

1. Scroll down the page, there are Peets, Starbucks, and other coffee coupon codes here.
2.  Free shipping codes on various coffees and teas.
3. WebbyPlanet has several coupons and codes.
4. Any Coupons has a bunch but you will have to scroll through.
5.  Free Coffee Samples from various places.
6. Rogers Coffee and Tea
7. Boca Java
8. Carolina Coffee and Tea scroll to the bottom for coupon offers
9. Coffee for less
10. Mighty Leaf Tea

There ya go…have a great time!

Image:Morguefile 

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