Cumberland Valley Coffee Company

As part of this blog, I plan on talking about different people/places/products/whatnot from the Great State of Tennessee. 

Ever since I had my first sip from my daddy's coffee cup I have enjoyed drinking coffee.  I am by no means an expert on coffee, but I do judge on the following scale: Tastes Good, Tastes Okay, Oh No.  For example, growing up I had two ideas of coffee, Folgers and Maxwell House and you had better believe I could tell the difference!  Sidenote: Folgers = Makes me happier than that riverdancing gal on their commercials, Maxwell House = Oh No.

In my wise old age I have made an attempt to branch out into the world of flavored coffees with mixed results.  So, when I came across a coffee roasting company out of Greenbrier, Tennessee I knew I had to give it a try.  Therefore my friends, I give you Cumberland Valley Coffee Company!

The store where I found these goodies only offered a handful of blends (is that the word coffee people use?) and being the indecisive creature that I am, I ended up buying two-- The Tennessee Blend and The Southern Pecan Flavored Coffee. 



Trial One- The Tennessee Blend

The instructions found on the back of the package said to add "One rounded tablespoon for every 8 ounces of water.  Adjust to fit your taste!"  Correct me if I am wrong but isn't 8 oz = 1 cup?  What cowboy came up with this recipe??  Not being one to question the people who designed this blend, I just went for it.  It was strong.  I mean walk-off-of-your-countertop, beat-you-in-an-arm-wrestling-match kind of strong.  But, I channeled my inner John Wayne and tried it anyway (PS did I mention that I was so excited to try this I did so at about 7 pm?  I slept weird and had crazy dreams).  It wasn't bad, just very stout.  I quickly decided that if I was going to give the CVC Co. a fair assessment that I should go the "adjust to your taste" route. 

Second time-much better!  It's got a little kick to it that took me a few sips to figure out, it has an almost smoked flavor to it that's different but interesting!  I threw in a little French Vanilla creamer and was good to go! 



Trial Two- Southern Pecan Flavored Coffee



To my delight, the selection I was offered included the Southern Pecan Flavored Coffee.  Butter Pecan is one of my very favorite flavors of anything.  After learning from my mistake on the first go-round with the Tennessee Blend, I eyeballed the normal amount of coffee I typically use, started the coffee maker and then waited as patiently as I could until it was an acceptable temperature to drink.  The verdict: Tastes Good!

It's not an overwhelming taste of pecan but that is probably a good thing.  I'm sure you can add some flavored creamer/sugar if you aren't into drinking it black and/or want a little more sweetness.  I give this a thumbs up!  Sidenote: I have had more caffeine in this one day than I typically drink in a week and I fear I will never sleep again.

After visiting the Cumberland Valley Coffee Company's website (here) I saw that I had just seen the tip of the coffee iceberg as far as their varieties.  They have several different "Blended Coffees" as well as "Single Origin Coffees" with beans from several South American and African countries.  CVC also offers 23 flavors of "Flavored Coffees" including seasonal roasts like Pumpkin Spice and Gingerbread as well traditional flavors like French Vanilla and Hazelnut.  I'm pretty intrigued by the Mountain Blueberry and Coconut Cake flavors.

If you are a coffee drinker be sure and check out Cumberland Valley Coffee Company and tell them I sent you....they will have no idea who you are talking about.