As further proof that marketing departments even in good companies have an unerring inverse Midas Touch, in my email in-box today (while I was enjoying a quite lovely cup of Peet's Kenya, as irony would have it), was a missive announcing the advent of Peet's Single Cup Coffee:
http://www.peets.com/coffee/single-cups.html
Not only is Peet's very late to a really boring (Keurig K Cup) party, but look at the coffees being offered:
House Bland (I mean Blend)
French Roast ("tastes like burnt toast" - Jim Reynolds)
Café Domingo (a "medium roast" that is the antithesis of everything Peet's used to stand for)
Decaf House Blend (yawn)
Major Dickason's (the one selection that might actually be worth drinking)
For those who haven't read it, Ken Davids has an excellent overview of the Keurig K Cup scene on Coffee Review:
http://www.coffeereview.com/article.cfm?ID=206
Towards the end of this article Davids points out that only the new Keurig Vue system gets the water hot enough to brew a cup that meets professional standards. Getting the temperature right is important for any coffee, but the darker the roast the higher the temperature needed for optimum extraction. The introductory letter for the Peet's K Cups makes it clear that a heavier dose and a filter designed to let some sediment through are part of their package, but water that's ~20 degrees too cold is certainly not going to yield optimum results.
Imagine if the initial offerings had at least been coffees a Peet's fan could actually get excited about: Sumatra, Guatemala, Ethiopian Fancy, Arabian Mocha Sanani (or even Mocha Java), Ethiopian Super Natural (the best Peet's coffee of all time, IMHO), etc. Instead you have a lineup that is guaranteed to yield no coffees that rate any higher than the dark-roasted Green Mountain Sumatra and Starbucks Tribute Blend in the Coffee Review tastings.
I had hoped that Peet's reverting to private ownership after their disastrously un-strategic expansion during their years as a public company might mean a renewed focus on quality and a clearly articulated leadership position in the marketplace. It's really a shame because the green coffee buying, roasting and in-store brewing at Peet's are still first rate. How sad then that now one can buy Peet's in K Cups but you still can't purchase an electric drip brewer that meets standards or even a fricking Aeropress or Clever Dripper in their stores. If Starbucks is the Hertz (market leader) and Green Mountain is Avis (trying harder), what is Peet's position ("we imitate the rest after long after the ship has sailed?"). That's a sad role for the company that started the specialty coffee revolution.
Very timely as I am just looking into Keurig vs Keurig Vue. I used to frequent the Peets in Lexington, MA. I used to use Major Dickinsons happily but like even better the Italian Roast.
ReplyDeleteYour comments about water temperature are the first enlightenment I have had as to why the Vue might be a better purchase for us as I suspected.
I have one friend who has a Keurig but her adult married child bought the Vue. My friend says the coffee is much better with the Vue.
Just bear in mind that the new Peet's K Cups won't work in the Vue. You can go to Keurig.com and look under Vue coffees to see what's available. I did see dark roasts from several roasters, and you might find the Green Mountain Sumatra to your liking as well.
ReplyDeleteJust got a new Vue 500. I was on the fence about getting single serve, I'd heard the Vue machines were better, but that there was a limited supply of coffees available (as compared to the K-Cups). Well, I came across an adapter that converts K-Cups into Vue Cups. It's called the Solofill V2 (like the V1 only it has a special option specifically for K-Cups) and I picked one up at my local BBB for about $20-. Works like a charm!!! I can now drink my Peet's (House Blend) every morning from my Vue machine. My setting 12 oz (Bold) brewing setting. Here is the link to the adaptor: http://www.amazon.com/Solofill-V2-GOLD-CUP-Gold/dp/B00DU1ATCU
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