Coffee Bags?????? (Lyons One Cup Fresh Ground Coffee)

Member Name: cmh4135

Product:	Lyons One Cup Fresh Ground Coffee
Date:	19/09/08 (170 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: One cup, reasonable taste

Disadvantages: Fiddly and over-packaged

I'm always more than happy to try out new products, especially when they're on offer and all the more so if I was going to buy a similar product in the first place. That's how I came to buy Lyon's coffee bags; a need for coffee and a special offer sealed my fate.

I'd heard of coffee bags before and reaction to them had been positive but I'd not actually tried them. They seemed like a very good idea though.

The coffee bags look rather like over-sized tea bags. To give you an idea of size they are about the diameter of the kind of mugs that are given away free in promotions. According to the packaging they are ideal for individual use whether at home or on the go and when you don't have a coffee maker to hand. All you need is a cup and a kettle! Well, that's the theory.

Certainly, the fact that the bags are individually wrapped in foil bags makes them ideal for transporting and keeps the coffee fresh. I'm not happy about the packaging though - it's not recyclable and, quite frankly, I can think of better, less environmentally harming ways of keeping small amounts of coffee fresh and easy to transport.

Preparation of your coffee is simple - add bag to mug, add water and wait. Ideal brewing time is around 3-5 minutes. Personally I've found that 5 is about the minimum though to achieve a well-rounded flavour. I think that part of the issue is that the coffee bags are so big they are unable to move in the cup and so the coffee brewing gets "stuck". I guess it's rather like making tea in a mug compared to a pot - the pot will always be preferable.

When you've reached the ideal strength you simply remove the bag, adulterate your coffee as desired and drink. Removing the bag isn't that straightforward in reality. Again, the size of the bag gets in the way. It flops over a teaspoon and is awkward to squeeze out. Too much squeezing will introduce fine grounds into your coffee too.

One big plus of these bags is the aroma - if you didn't know better you'd be looking round the kitchen for the coffee percolator! The aroma is rich and well-rounded and leads you to believe that you have a taste delight awaiting you. For a one-cup product the aroma is fantastic and far above expectations. I could see a use for these if you are selling a house!

Lyons sell this coffee as an alternative to "proper" coffee (as opposed to instants). Undoubtedly the taste tends more to the fresh than the instant with a smooth, well rounded flavour. Brewing times really do matter here though. Left in the cup for too short a time will leave you with a thin, insubstantial flavour. Thankfully, leaving in the cup for too long doesn't produce an over-baked, bitter taste but it will alter the texture of the coffee giving a grittier feel. Personally, to achieve the depth of flavour I'm looking for I do end up with a slightly gritty, dry coffee that, although tasting good on drinking, leaves one with a particularly dry finish. Thankfully there's no bitter taste, no matter how long you leave the coffee to brew and, remarkably, as the coffee cools (something it often does when there's a toddler in the house) the taste remains smooth. You will notice, however, that if you leave a cup to stand, fine grounds will collect in quite a quantity at the bottom of the mug necessitating the last bit of coffee to be left undrunk.

If I were to liken the coffee flavour to something I'd say it was rather like a mild Italian blend comprising arabica beans, smooth and lacking in nuttiness. The blend used also uses robusta beans but the taste from these is less evident. Adding milk and sugar enhances the favour in my opinion and brings out a chocolatey finish. This is not a coffee I like to drink black (unlike my favourite - Jamaican Blue Mountain).

If I were to express a preference then I prefer the bags to most instants as they do produce a far more authentic drink. However, I'm not convinced that the faff of making the coffee (which on paper should be simple but takes time and a cloth to wipe up the drips from the bag) is worth the inconvenience when compared to a good instant. If I want proper coffee I'll wait till I have the tools to do it and then I'm more than capable of making a one cup serving!

I think these are a good idea but unfortunately the execution isn't perfect. I imagine that these might be good for hotels where, traditionally, you are able to select a teabag with which to make your tea as it gives a good coffee alternative. I don't see them catching on in the domestic market though as they're too fussy for non-coffee aficionados and not good enough for coffee lovers.

For those who care, the coffee is ethically sourced under the Rainforest Alliance scheme (Lyons being the first company to bring this Alliance to market), however, in my mind, their green credentials fall straight away with the excess packaging for a domestic market - why not just have a resealable bag?

If you're after a one-cup product then personally I'd opt for a one-cup filter like Rombouts where you'll get a choice of blends and there's less fuss to make the drink!


If you want to give them a try before you buy then a trip to their website www.coffeeperfection.com will see a free sample winging its way to you.

Summary: A great idea poorly executed