Black Rifle Coffee Company Review - The Pros, Cons & Overview

Sean Gregory All About Coffee | Coffee Reviews
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Black Rifle Coffee Company Review

Black Rifle Coffee Company was founded in 2014 by former U.S. Army Green Beret Evan Hafer and advertised as a pro American coffee company with the goal of giving back and supporting fellow veterans.

Overall we are a fan of this coffee company due to their support of our veterans and their unique and cool packaging designs. They also have a great subscription option and tons of branded gear.

While sampling several different coffee options we found their coffee landed more on the dark roast side, even when listed as a medium or lighter roast so keep this in mind. You will find most of their options mimic the flavor profile of Starbucks Coffee. Some of their roast land slightly on the bitter side.

The only negatives we found is their price points are high and they have very limited options for organic coffee lovers.

Pros

Supports LEO, First Responders and of course Veterans with donations, awareness and other support.
All packaging is military themed for a cool look
Offer a wide variety roast types
Available in ground, whole bean, K-Cups and Ready to Drink Cold Brew
Their bags are easy to open and reseal after use
Subscription savings and special perks available
Available on Amazon Prime 2 Day Shipping

Cons

Coffee is a little on the expensive side
Even their medium roast have more of a dark roast flavor
Not many options for those who like organic coffee
No free shipping on standard orders
Shipping is a little slow but still faster than many

Black Rifle Coffee - Company Profile

Started as a veteran owned and operated company based out of Salt Lake City Utah, Black Rifle has grown into a household name. They now roast in both Utah and Tennessee and are opening several walk in coffee shops across the country.

Black Rifle is very selective in who can sell their coffee and limit their retail options to mostly gun ranges, tractor supply style stores and other small businesses.

Most of their coffee is sourced from Brazil and Guatemala which are known for rich and robust flavor profiles and then thrown into a drum roaster.

Black Rifle has grown quickly and can now be found on tv commercials and their logo is now on a NASCAR hood.

The Actual Coffee Review

We tasted their Just Black ground coffee and both the CAF and AK-47 K Cups which Black Rifle accurately refers to as rounds.

For the Just Black Ground coffee we used both a standard drip brewer and an AeroPress style french press. We found that although this is their medium roast the end cup of coffee was more on the dark roast side. Still a very enjoyable coffee with a lot of robust flavor. For some you may find their coffee has a slight hint of bitterness.

The CAF rounds (CAF is their extreme caffeinated coffee so you can figure out what CAF is short for) did have a slight caffeine kick although not as strong as some of the true highly caffeinated brands out there. Still a bold flavor and more of a dark roast.

The AK-47 rounds are Black Rifle's espresso blend and had a slight hint of dark chocolate flavoring. Espresso blends typically have a bitterness them and we found this roast fits that description. The bitterness was not overpowering at least.

Online Ordering & Shipping

Most, if not all, of their coffee options can be ordered directly from Amazon. You can of course find everything they offer on their website but you will pay shipping unless you sign up for their coffee club.

We did find their basic shipping is slower then a lot of other brands and took about 7 business days to arrive. So if you need coffee quickly head on over to Amazon and use your prime membership for free two day shipping.

A cool feature on their website is their coffee quiz which aims to help you find the right coffee for your taste.

Does Black Rifle Have A Subscription

Black Rifle offers a great coffee club subscription for automatic shipments, free shipping and other special goodies including early access to new roast and flavors. You will also get a discount on every shipment.

To add to their coffee club perks, Black Rifle has partnered with select retailers for exclusive discounts for their coffee club members.

Black Rifle Coffee Packaging

One of our favorite brands due to their commitment to cool and unique packaging designs. As a veteran owned company their bags are all military or first responder themed. Its not wonder they have created such a loyal following.

Their single serve K-Cups are actually called rounds and are shipped in a box which resembles a military style bullet case.

While a lot of companies ship their coffee in bags which once opened can not be easily sealed or feature a cheap twist tie, Black Rifle offers resealable bags.

If you want even more freshness and long lasting flavor grab yourself an airtight coffee cannister on amazon for under $50.

What Else Does Black Rifle Offer

Their website is loaded with Black Rifle branded gear. Everything from coffee mugs to clothing and coffee brewing equipment.

Black Rifle now offers ready to drink cans, hot chocolate and decaffeinated coffee.

Our Final Thoughts On Black Rifle

So how do we rate Black Rifle Coffee? Overall we are a fan of this brand. While their coffee is a little pricey you also get the good feeling of knowing they donate to veterans, send free coffee to first responders and raise awareness for many of the post service time mental issues our troops suffer from.

Their coffee is a little more on the bold dark roast side but we found it is still enjoyable. Some brands taste like coffee flavored water and Black Rifle is far from that. Just expect a little kick to their coffee.

The only real negatives we could find aside from the pricing is the lack of low acid, acid free and organic options. However these options are only important to a portion of the coffee drinking worlds so we rank them more as selective negatives.

If you want more head over to Amazon as they have over 17k reviews.

Have you tried any Black Rifle Coffee yet? Leave your review in the comments below!

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