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How do they get those in there? Photo: Erin Meister.
There are some things in this world that were meant to taste like hazelnut. Actual hazelnuts, for instance, and also Aunt Sylvia's famous holiday pralines. Maybe even a hot cocoa or a cookie batter that has a dash of extract in it.
But what about coffee beans?
Flavored coffee is and will likely always be a loaded topic; It's often considered the final qualifier when separating the proverbial men from the boys of caffeinated beverages. "Is it really so bad?," you might ask yourself. "What's all the hubbub?"
Read on after the jump to find out.
Think of it this way: Does a quality butcher marinate his best cuts of meat in soy sauce before laying them out for sale? Do any world-class vintners reserve their best grapes for wine coolers? So too are the finest coffee beans kept out of the reaches of any chemical flavoring process. If there's nothing to hide, why bother disguising them with a flavor additive?
So what's in that cup of Snickerdoodle Explosion? (This is actually a flavor of coffee I have seen, sold at a convenience store in Oklahoma City.) Possibly cheaper, lower-grown and lesser-quality beans, maybe even robusta, roasted and coated in any number of chemical flavoring agents (some of which may be natural, others not so much). It's pretty common for the chemicals to actually not taste like much of anything, though they might smell like bananas or Irish cream. Because our senses of smell and taste are so linked, your schnoz could be telling your brain it's tasting something that's not really there.
If you still need a dose of vanilla bean in that morning cup of joe, try adding it to the finished drink instead of the raw materials -- many companies offer organic, kosher and/or sugar-free flavored syrups to squirt into that eye-opener. Better yet, make your own infused simple syrup, and you'll soon be enjoying a homemade Snickerdoodle Explosion, which we all know is the best kind.
What do you think of the flavored-coffee debate? Tell us in the comments.
Erin Meister trains baristas for North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee and sporadically maintains the blog Meet the Press Pot from her home in New York City. This is part of a series for the caffeine-addicted.
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1-12-2010 @3:55PM Baron said... I have no doubt that you are 100% correct about many of the coffee chemicals they had doing nothing more than imparting a smell as I have had some like that. I, sometimes, like them for just that reason. I feel that I still get, assuming it was a quality coffee to begin with, the nice coffee flavor I am looking for w/o being over powered by the flavor I tend to get with even a high quality flavored syrup. I suppose I could just put the ever so slightest dash of the syrup into the cup, but then I miss that smell. It is a bit of a conundrum. There is a local shop here that flavors their own beans and, while I can't say that I know for certain they stay away from unnatural substances (for a few of their flavors, I can't imagine they do), I do know that they always start out with quality beans. It makes a huge difference. I've always disliked coffee that was flavored while roasting, until I had the stuff they make, even if the chocolate creme brulee has a smidge of unnatural chems (it is such a rare time that I get it, but I think if I had it every day, it would be a no go). I like to think that their hazelnut comes from roasting hazelnuts with the beans and the vanilla is from adding vanilla beans to the roast, but I am always forgetting to speak to the owner about it.
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1-13-2010 @3:53AM Daniel F. said... Considering how many "coffee lovers" I've seen turn up their nose to a top quality, peak roasted, and perfectly prepared press pot or espresso, it does not surprise me at all how prevalent "flavored"(or as you said, scented) joe is in mainstream coffee culture.
As for me and my house, we will serve the good stuff.
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1-13-2010 @5:29PM slinky said... Can I stop by and grab a cup on the way to work? Coffee should taste like coffee.
1-13-2010 @3:32PM maddog said... Unlike the customers of Charbucks etc, I actually enjoy the taste of coffee. A local company in CT called Wiloughby's buys and roasts their own beans and gets them in the bins immediately after degassing. You can get the coffee made in Lattes etc, but why?
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1-13-2010 @2:20PM Brewme said... Pre-flavored coffee tastes like chemicals. I sometimes add a shake of cinnamon and a dash of pure vanilla to a basket of ground coffee right before I brew it and it tastes great- just like french vanilla.
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1-13-2010 @11:59PM Linja said... Many flavored coffees contain propylene glycol, a form of antifreeze that is regarded as "safe" enough to consume in small quantities. You can find this on ingredient lists on some company websites. On the other hand, if you look up propylene glycol on the manufacturer's product safety data pages, you see that the manufacturer does not claim it is safe to drink. Look up the possible side effects and you will stay away from it. (P.S. It's in fast food cocoa and many salad dressings too.)
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1-13-2010 @2:49PM Bill said... Some added flavors are a little too strong and distract from the "coffee" experience - but I think some of the milder additives actually enhace the coffee flavor and make for a good cup of coffee. Some places, like Starbucks for example, really need to cover up up some of their bad coffee with another flavor. Half the the time those places serve coffee that tastes like if was something they scraped off the bottom of their shoes or they brewed it in an old boot.
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1-13-2010 @2:53PM Biotrex said... Cinnamon sticks hammered and chopped into bits inside the filter with the ground coffee is great. So are a few fresh cardamom seeds squashed and put into the filter with the coffee. So great and it is natural. I don't trust 'flavored' coffee beans either ...
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1-13-2010 @3:18PM Joe Bloomberg said... I agree with this article. Flavored coffee is flavored low quality beans. $tarbucks is alright, but so expensive. Cuda Coffee is my favorite!!!
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1-13-2010 @3:11PM TropicLuv said... I think it is as with everything - a matter of personal preference. I like both - sometimes I'm in the mood for a straight shot of java, other times I like the flavored. I have found several flavored coffees that I find delicious; cream brulet, and recently one called kahlua cream.
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2-03-2010 @3:53PM Emily said... A benefit I saw to flavored beans when I sold coffee was that they offer a flavor without sweetness. While the syrups are a good idea, what is a person supposed to do that doesn't take any sugar in their coffee? Even the flavored creamers are all sweetened now. I know I can't be the only person that doesn't enjoy sweet coffee. If anyone has a source for an added flavoring for coffee (other than a few cinnamon sticks added before brewing) without sweetness, could you post a source here?
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1-13-2010 @3:28PM raggedyman said... Very good coffee needs nothing in it. If it's bitter, than it's not good coffee, it's gone stale, or it's been under or over-roasted. You should only buy as much coffee as you can drink in a couple of weeks. Always buy whole bean and grind as needed. NEVER refrigerate or freeze your coffee. Just keep it in a sealed CERAMIC or GLASS jar in your cupboard. Refrigerating coffee causes the natural oils to seperate and will basically suck the life out of the beans and they will never taste the same. If you don't believe me, than put some in the freezer and some in a sealed jar in your pantry. After a few days, try both and you will see what I mean. Good coffee will taste good even when it's cold. People tend to always use sugar or cream because we were brought up on junk coffee like Maxwell House and other warehouse type coffees which need cream and sugar to be palatable. Even the whole bean coffees you buy at the grocery stores are already pretty stale buy the time you buy them. Want fresh coffee? Look in the yellow pages under coffee roasters and go to the source. By the way, I roast coffee for a living. WWW.GreatAmericanCoffee.net
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1-13-2010 @3:42PM Luvz said... I love flavored coffee......my favorites are creme brulee and chocolate raspberry...
Maybe because I am not addicted to coffee...don't HAVE to have a cup first thing...can do without it..and just drink ONE cup a day....I use Melitta...from Shop Rite..beans that I grind when I buy them...
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1-13-2010 @3:42PM Bookworm said... My feeling about flavored coffee goes something like this: vanilla, OK. French vanilla, OK. Hazelnut, blueberry, or anything that isn't VANILLA - not so much.
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1-13-2010 @4:02PM atp2007 said... I'm not a coffee snob so it's not pure ego that makes me say this, but nothing ruins a dinner party for me more than the hosts putting on a pot of flavored coffee. The artifical smell of the chemical flavoring gives me a very bad headache and makes me feel ill. It's hard to even pretend that I'm drinking it. It's gt to be the chemicals because I have no problem with coffee that has a REAL liquor added to it, like Amoretto, Cointreu, Drambuie, etc.....
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1-13-2010 @4:01PM ZZ said... YOUR OPINION IS TASTELESS: I REALLY ENJOY MY FLAVORED COFFEE.
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1-14-2010 @12:30PM TIZZLE said... Leave my hazelnut alone! Good grief, you can't have S*%#!!!!!!
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1-13-2010 @4:20PM Terry said... Ninety percent of taste is the sense of smell (a neurologic fact). Most 'flavored' coffees don't have much in the way of actual taste, it's the aroma of the coffee as you drink it that gives you that 'flavored coffee taste'. Just ask any anosmic person....flavor is nothing without the aroma.
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1-13-2010 @4:28PM Coffeedrunk said... Stupid is as stupid does. Good, quality coffee needs no artificial flavors so it is stupid to put them in. Only an ignoramus would put A-1 steak sauce on a fine filet....and the same goes for good coffee. If you're drinking crap cofee, then by all means, put your low-brow, disgusting flavors in there....EXCEPT FOR HAZLENUT. That putrid hazlenut smell is like having a smoker in the place. It affects and ruins the smell of everything and destroys everyone elses' experience. Hazlenut should be banned from coffee shops.
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1-14-2010 @11:22AM AK said... There's no right or wrong when it comes to individual preferences. What IS stupid is expecting everyone to share your own preference. I understand why some people abhor flavored coffee, but I'm not one of them.
I don't like my coffee sweetened, but I equally dislike very strong, bold coffee (believe it or not, my coworkers' strong coffee breath has given me a migraine a couple of times!). So, a mild vanilla or hazelnut flavor suits me perfectly.
Additionally, I know several people with VERY strong aversions to hazelnuts. I think roasted hazelnuts are comparable to cilantro; for some people the small and flavor is chemically different and highly offensive. For most of us, though, they aren't so very different from any roasted nut.