by Nigel Ong
Looking at grocery shelves, it can be hard to miss out on Green Mountain Coffee. With its bright green packaging and competitive pricing, it is probably the go-to coffee for many people.
Reviews indicated many enjoyed the coffee for its low acid and soft flavors. Curious, I picked up a bag from the grocery shelves to try and review it myself.
In this post, I brew the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend in three ways before sampling the coffee black and with flavorings. I will also compare it with other relevant coffee in my collection before deciding if you should try this coffee.
About Green Mountain Breakfast Blend
You may have seen or drank Green Mountain coffee before, but have you ever wondered about its story?
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters was founded by Bob Stiller in 1981 in Vermont, MA. It initially started a business as a small café up a ski resort before becoming a major player in the specialty coffee market.
In 2006, it acquired Keurig, leading to a revolution in single-serve coffee with the Keurig brewing system – K-cups especially. This partnership significantly boosted its popularity, making it a household name.
Green Mountain is part of a conglomerate today, with other beverage brands such as Dr. Pepper, 7Up, and Schweppes as part of its sister brands.
Green Mountain Coffee offers diverse coffee, including various blends and single-origin coffees. Its flavors cater to various preferences, from light, fruity notes to deep, dark roasts. Green Mountain coffees are Fair Trade Certified, with some organic as well.
First Impression
My Green Mountain Breakfast Blend bag comes in ground coffee in its recognizable, bright green packaging.
The coffee bag comes with what you expect from a proper coffee roaster. There are foldable tabs to help seal the coffee once you open it and a one-way valve to allow carbon dioxide to escape without letting outside air in.
Once I opened the coffee, my nose was greeted with the fragrant smell of coffee. It is not strong, but it is good enough to signal that the coffee is fresh and well-protected by the packaging.
The coffee smells fresh, with some soft, nutty notes. The coffee also does not seem to have an edgy aroma, which indicates this should be an easy-drinking coffee.
The coffee ground is quite coarse. They should work immediately with a French press, pour-over, and good old drip machine. You do need to grind them down a bit if you want to make Espresso.
How Does Green Mountain Breakfast Blend Taste?
For brewing, I will brew the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend in three ways:
French Press: This brewing style makes a murky, full-flavored coffee with floating particles. This should allow me to sample the coffee in its full flavor.
Pour Over With Filter Paper: This method produces a ‘cleaner’ version of the coffee without too much oil and particles floating about. This should help me to sample more of the subtle notes.
Espresso: Espresso is coffee in one of its most concentrated forms. I look forward to tasting new flavors I could not detect in regular brewing forms.
French Press
For French press, I turn to my Bodum Caffettiera French press. My brewing style is based on the recommendations by Illy Coffee.
I use my regular 1:12 ratio, using 15 grams of coffee and 180ml of hot water at around 185°F (about 85°C). I will then stir the ground coffee and let the concoction brew for 4 minutes before pouring.
True to its aroma, the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend is an easy-to-sip coffee. As a start, it does not smash my palate. There was some smoke, but only to signal that you were drinking roasted coffee beans.
The coffee is also smooth and has a good texture. It glides easily in the mouth and does not make you want to swallow it quickly. There is also very little acid, making it comfortable for sensitive tummies.
As I continued to sip, I also drew some air in to release the fragrance of the coffee. I can pick up some nutty notes, which add a bit of flavor to the coffee. The coffee also has a clean finish, meaning after I swallow it, my palate feels clean, and I am not in a rush for another sip.
True to its name as a Breakfast Blend, I also found myself craving something savory to bite into. Perhaps something with lots of cheese and some tang. A fish sandwich with cheese slices, perhaps?
Pour Over With Filter Paper
For pour over method, I will be using this set of gear to make my pour-over coffee:
My pour-over brewing steps are taken from Starbucks. I kept to a 1:18 ratio to simplify the process and used hot, off-boiling water for my pourings.
The brew comes out looking slightly lighter in color. The filter paper again does its job, removing some of the coffee oil and finer coffee particles. There is also less sediment at the bottom of the cup compared to the French press.
The coffee also tastes much cleaner. I could detect more nutty notes with even less smoky taste. I also seem to pick up a bit of cherry tomato notes in the coffee, although it’s probably very faint. The whole coffee is light and easy to enjoy.
For some reason, I think the pour-over version of the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend with lightly flavored food may be more enjoyable. I’m thinking of something like a regular bagel with sesame seeds and maybe some cream cheese.
Espresso
With Espresso, I started by grinding the coffee further down to make it workable with an Espresso machine.
Once done, I packed the coffee grounds into the filter basket and loaded it into my Wacaco Minipresso GR. This is a hand-held, manually-operated espresso maker. Then I add in hot water and pump out my Espresso.
The result is a great espresso with rich, thick crema. When I smell the crema, it is lighter, without the charred, smoky smell most dark roast Espresso has. The toasty and slightly fresh-like smell is also quite prominent.
The Espresso is extremely nice to sip, with a very light flavor. It lacks the punch typical espresso drinkers want. In fact, a dark roast Americano may even taste smokier than this.
I can quickly see this, but this can easily become a casual espresso you sip if you prefer something lighter. The espresso form of Green Mountain Breakfast Blend should go very well as a macchiato or as an affogato.
With Sugar & Sweetener
I prepped two types of sweetener here for my review:
- Regular brown granulated sugar
- Equal artificial sweetener (Aspartame)
I made two cups of black Green Mountain Breakfast Blend. I emptied a sugar stick into a cup and two drops of Equal to the other.
I think sugar adds a bit of shine to the coffee. I also can feel the coffee having a more ‘playful’ texture with a bit of viscosity. The coffee also becomes sweeter, making it even easier to drink. The coffee also looks a little silkier and shinier.
The Green Mountain Breakfast Blend’s lack of smoke allows the sweetness to shine without competing with the smoky notes, making me enjoy the coffee sweetened.
If I need to choose from the two, I will pick sugar. The reason is that artificial sweetener seems to taste unnatural – the sweetness seems to linger much longer in my palate, to the point of it feeling unnatural.
With Milk & Creamer
I also tried out the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend with some fat:
- Whole, fresh, UHT cow’s milk
- Coffee-Mate coffee creamer
Both milk and creamer turn the coffee brownish, making it look appetizing. I was tempted to add more milk and creamer but stopped to ensure I used the same amount as my other coffee recipes.
Both milk and creamer made the coffee a little silkier and thicker. The texture made the coffee glide in my mouth with some play. I actually enjoyed playing and moving the coffee in my mouth. Cheeky me.
Taste-wise, both made the coffee softer, and the milk made the coffee more enjoyable.
My issue with the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend is its weak taste. Milk and creamer may drown out the coffee if you add in too much of them. This is something you want to be careful about.
Ice
Lastly, I thought I’d experiment with the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend chilled. I poured a cup of fresh, concentrated French press brew into a glass filled to the brim with ice.
First impression? Decent. I do not seem to be able to pinpoint anything exciting with the coffee iced. There is more bitterness, and the nutty notes may be slightly elevated.
I usually like iced coffee with deep bitterness and a bit of sweetness. For me, the iced version of Green Mountain Breakfast Blend is not as nice to drink. There are better options for iced coffee here, for sure.
Green Mountain Breakfast Blend vs Popular Breakfast Blends
Since Green Mountain Breakfast Blend is a breakfast blend, I thought I’d compare it with other breakfast blends in my collection. These are all grocery store, popular medium roast blends, making them an apples-to-apples comparison.
I brewed black coffee out of these blends and sipped them side by side with my Green Mountain Breakfast Blend:
- Starbucks Breakfast Blend
- New England Coffee Breakfast Blend
- McCafe Breakfast Blend
- Community Coffee Breakfast Blend
I think the Community Coffee Breakfast Blend tastes the best from this list. It is a medium roast, slightly smoky with peanut flavors, that I enjoy a lot. It also has a richness in flavor, complemented with notes of flavor that other roasts cannot match.
I would place the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend third, closely behind the McCafe Breakfast Blend.
Green Mountain Breakfast Blend vs. Light Roasts
Next, I pitched Green Mountain Breakfast Blend with my other light roasts in my stash. Again, I made coffee with these blends and then drank them side by side:
- AmazonFresh Just Bright Light Roast
- Starbucks Veranda Blend
I would place the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend as the best-tasting coffee on this list, perhaps only slightly ahead of the Veranda Blend.
The Veranda Blend has a bit of floral and fruity note that some may like. However, my palate prefers less of that, and the nutty notes of the Green Mountain Breakfast Blend win out.
Green Mountain Breakfast Blend vs Regular Coffee
Finally, I picked up a regular Americano from 7-Eleven and drank it alongside my Green Mountain Breakfast Blend. The idea here is to compare it against regular $1 coffee from gas stations and convenience stores.
It goes without saying here, but the Green Mountain coffee wins hands down. The Green Mountain Breakfast Blend has much more quality and aroma. It is smoother and has more depth in flavor and taste.
The coffee leaves me much more satisfied, too.
The regular coffee tastes flat, and the bitterness lacks character. The coffee also has a bit of water taste, suggesting underbrewing. It could also be too much water and not enough coffee.
Is Green Mountain Breakfast Blend For You?
To me, Green Mountain Breakfast Blend is a great, regular coffee. It should be a great daily coffee that you can sip almost any time of the day.
I may not drink this coffee to try to beat the after-lunch slump since it’s not strong enough. But it’s good for everything else.
It has soft, nutty notes, so the coffee is easy to drink for many. However, I can also imagine some dark roast drinkers thinking it’s tasteless. Aside from that, there is nothing much to worry about.I am reviewing this coffee from my palate, so my preferences may differ. Sample your own coffee, and decide if you like it or not. You can find Green Mountain Breakfast Blend here.