I’ve been on a Stewarts Coffee kick recently, for obvious reasons. Stewarts Chateau de Loraine coffee, its European Dark Roast, was included in the package and is the subject of my latest coffee review.
Brand: Stewarts
Coffee: Chateau de Loraine (European Dark Roast)
Body: Medium-to-full
Price: $7.24 for a 12-oz can (online)
This coffee has an interesting story, or so says the label on the can: During the 20s, Loraine, the wife of Stewarts Coffee’s founder requested the company make a darker blend. Apparently she was a big entertainer, and many of her European friends were used to bold coffee – something Stewarts had not yet made – and she wanted to impress them. And “Chateau de Loraine” coffee was born.
While it’s certainly much bolder than Stewarts Hawaiian Blend Coffee, it’s not as bold as a more finely-ground espresso blend – Cafe Bustelo, for instance – but still packs a bit of flavor.
It starts out with a very toasty, nutty flavor and evolves to have a slightly sweeter finish. Again, it’s good either black or with a bit of skim milk, but you won’t want to dress up this coffee too much.
Verdict: Again, Stewarts delivers a great coffee for the price. It’s a great alternative to, say, a whole bean, single-source coffee. It might be hard to find in some stores, but is worth ordering from the Stewarts website, or Amazon, when it’s in stock there.