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If you’re a coffee enthusiast, you might have heard of this brand, Black Rifle Coffee Company [BRCC], before.
As its name suggests, this brand follows an overarching military theme as it was established to support veterans, law enforcement, and first responders.
In this Black Rifle Coffee review article, I will show you what you can learn more about the company, the community, and most importantly, the coffee.
What kind of coffee does Black Rifle Coffee use? How’s the taste? Is the price worth it? All will be answered below.
Black Rifle Coffee Company – At a Glance
The Back Story
As I’ve briefly mentioned in the introduction, Black Rifle Coffee Company is largely influenced by the military forces.
This is because the company is veteran-owned and operated that aims to serve premium coffee to patriotic coffee lovers in America. In fact, the whole team is former members of the armed forces.
BRCC was founded in late 2014 by Evan Hafer, a former Green Beret AKA officer of the United States Army Special Forces, with the finest team, as it’s a combination of his 2 favorite passions.
He started by selling coffee in a small batch called “Freedom Roast” through his friend’s apparel brand, Nine Line Apparel.
As the coffee started to take off, Hafer decided to launch his own brand specializing in selling coffee and branded merchandise including apparel like T-shirts and gear.
BRCC markets itself as a premier coffee company to the conservative customer as it actively promotes itself as being pro-America and pro-law enforcement, as opposed to commercial and corporate coffee.
How It’s Going
Other than offering a variety of coffee bag selections directly to consumers with a guaranteed highest-quality customer experience, coffee lovers who enjoy the brand’s premium products may become a part of the Black Rifle Coffee Club. This is a subscription service that brings freshly roasted high-quality coffee to your doorstep per periodic agreement.
The company has also recently opened a brick-and-mortar BRC coffee shop in San Antonio and has plans for over 30 future physical stores to be opened in the U.S. by the end of 2022.
If you’re in Canada, try visiting Black Rifle Coffee Company’s shop in St. Albert.
The coffee company also partners with some firing ranges, apparel brands, and outdoor gear shops, such as Bass Pro Shops, to distribute its beans, coffee, and branded apparel.
What Makes Black Rifle Coffee Special
Coffee Roasting Skills – Fresh Roast Coffee
BRCC roasts premium coffee imported from coffee-growing regions around the world in small batches 5 days a week. So customers can rest assured that their bean shipments are as fresh as can be.
Other than mastering his firearms skills, the founder spent a decade researching coffee and learn and improve his coffee roasting skills while being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.
And the success both at his friend’s apparel shop and his own branded online and physical shops prove the appeal of the BRCC’s roasts.
The brand roasts them in two main locations, Salt Lake City in Utah and Manchester in Tennessee.
Most of the coffee beans BRCC uses are sourced from South America, mainly Colombia and Brazil, some of the biggest coffee regions in the world.
You can enjoy a variety of roast profiles, ranging from light to extra dark. However, generally, BRCC’s darker roasts are much more popular. So, if you’re a fan of really bright coffee flavor compounds, BRCC’s coffee may be too bold and strong for your taste.
Decaf options are also available for those looking to lower their caffeine intake as well.
You can find both ground and whole beans single-origin and blends in the brand’s selections. For busy coffee drinkers seeking more convenience, they can also find their favorites among BRCC’s array of coffee pods compatible with Keurig machines as well.
While the coffee brand is a relatively new name in the market, Black Rifle Coffee Company has made sure to provide as many premium coffee options as possible to fuel our coffee addiction.
Give Back Campaigns
BRCC also uses part of the profit to give back and support the system and the background that the founder came from, including law enforcement officers, and first responders, and the veteran communities.
Currently, BRCC is backing the “Buy a bag, give a bag” campaign, which was established to donate and send coffee to American officers in action everywhere.
Whenever a limited bag of Liberty Roast is bought in July, a bag of fresh coffee is sent to active military personnel and first responders working and fighting to keep the communities safe.
The Black Rifle Coffee Collection
|
Roast Type |
Bean Name |
Flavor Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
|
Light |
Nutty and sweet aroma and bright and chocolaty coffee with hints of almond and brown sugar | |
|
Light |
Easy to drink and smooth with subtle hints of citrus and a sweet scent | |
|
Light |
Bold coffee flavors heightened by gentle caramel and floral notes and a silky smooth finish | |
|
Medium |
Balanced with the signature chocolaty coffee taste and some hints of cocoa and vanilla in the aroma | |
|
Medium |
Robust taste and a smooth as butter finish | |
|
Medium |
Dark chocolate undertones and nutty and citrusy aromatic hints | |
|
Dark |
Very dark and bold flavor profile | |
|
Dark |
Smokier and deeper flavor tones with subtle hints of nuts and chocolate and a mildly fruity finish | |
|
Dark |
Robust flavors with signature earthy tones, dark chocolate tasting notes, a spicy aroma, and a smoky finish | |
|
Extra Dark |
Smooth and smoky flavor | |
| Pods | Coffee Rounds | Assortment of all different coffee pods |
| Pods | CAF | Balanced body and flavor with double the caffeine |
So, is Black Rifle coffee actually good?
You’ll soon find out from my review of some of the most popular products in different roast profiles that BRCC offers.
Light Roast
When filtering BRCC’s coffee list by Best Selling, light roasts aren’t really the brand’s strength as medium and darker roasts dominate the lineup.
Nevertheless, the brand still has some really great light roast blends that are worth a try.
Flying Elk
This actually belongs to an exclusive subscription service offered by the brand back in 2019.
But, since the demand for this good coffee is so big, BRCC decided to bring it back to the table.
As a fellow coffee lover who enjoys great coffee, Flying Elk is remarkable with its single-origin Arabica beans sourced from the world-renowned high-quality coffee cultivating region, Tarrazu, Costa Rica.
Expect your palate to be embraced by the nutty and sweet aroma of the bright and chocolaty coffee with hints of almond and brown sugar.
Silencer Smooth
Just like its name, this Colombia Arabica blend is incredibly easy to drink and smooth, almost like a “quiet professional” silencer, which conveniently explains its name.
The light roast profile makes it possible to draw out all of the layers of flavor complexities hidden in the best coffee. This explains why you can taste the subtle hints of citrus and a sweet scent from a cup of brewed Silencer Smooth.
Gunship
Gunship is another light roast fan favorite. The coffee is just what you expect from a coffee company with a heavy military heritage.
Grind your own beans and brew a simple Pour-Over cup with this whole bean bag to fully enjoy the bold coffee flavors heightened by gentle caramel and floral notes and a silky smooth finish.
Medium Roast
The medium roast profile is definitely in the top-selling chart of BRCC, and there are perfectly good reasons why that’s the case.
Just Black
Just Black is excellent for brewing just black drip coffee. If you’re looking for the perfect balanced extraction, this medium roast can be the answer. Just enough brightness and boldness, fuller-bodied than light roast, yet not as intense as darker roasts.
Aside from the signature chocolaty coffee taste, expect some hints of cocoa and vanilla in the aroma. And feel free to pair sugar and cream with Just Black.
Freedom Roast
This isn’t just coffee. This blend comes with the American spirits that fuel freedom-loving Americans, the central theme throughout this veteran-owned coffee company.
It’s freshly roasted coffee with a robust taste and a smooth as butter finish. And a bitter aftertaste is the least of your concern here.
You can taste Freedom by pulling an espresso shot, making French Press coffee, or march out with new brewing methods. Don’t worry, this is one of the medium roasts. You’ll be safe.
AK-47 Espresso Blend
This isn’t your average coffee either. This bag contains a blend of light Colombian and dark Brazillian coffees, specifically curated to deliver high-quality coffee made with drip or espresso machines.
AK-47 Espresso Blend offers a pleasant explosion of flavors with dark chocolate undertones and nutty and citrusy aromatic hints.
Dark Roast
Are you a fan of espresso and similar full-bodied and strong coffee taste? Then come and join the dark side.
BRCC also has an extended collection of dark roasts. Perhaps you can say hello to your old friend here.
Freedom Fuel
Freedom Fuel contains 100% Excelso coffee beans. Excelso is a coffee grading term for rather large coffee beans, especially for those exported from Colombia. This quality is based on the rough correlation between the bean size and the taste.
On the roast scale of 1 – 10 with 10 being the darkest, this blend comes in at number 8, which explains its very dark and bold flavor profile.
Blackbeard’s Delight
Other than this blend’s eccentric pirate-themed packaging, its aroma and flavor is also a pleasant surprise for a dark profile.
100% Brazillian Arabica beans are darkly roasted to unravel the smokier and deeper flavor tones. Usually, the longer you roast it, the more coffee compounds are broken down.
Yet, with Blackbeard’s Delight, you can still clearly notice the subtle hints of nuts and chocolate. A sip of the brew also ends on a good note with a mildly fruity finish.
Beyond Black
A dark roast coffee enthusiast will not miss this. Beyond Black opens the door to a deeper layer of complexities in the dark.
You can enjoy robust flavors with signature earthy tones, dark chocolate tasting notes, a spicy aroma, and a smoky finish.
Extra Dark Roast
If that weren’t enough options for those looking for a great-tasting dark roast profile, try the brand’s selections of extra dark roasts.
Murdered Out
This is another blend that sources gourmet beans from Colombia. But this time, baby it’s extra dark outside.
While you won’t drop dead from drinking a cup of Murdered Out, the smooth and smoky flavor of BRCC’s darkest roast can help you get through the murderous to-do list of the day.
And who knows? It’ll start growing on you and, before you know it, you’ll murder for a cup of Murdered Out.
Coffee Rounds
If you have a Keurig machine lying around at home, why not test out some of BRCC’s K-Cups?
Their coffee rounds are compatible with both Keurig 2.0 and 1.0.
CAF
CAF coffee pods contain 100% medium-roasted Colombian Excelso beans.
Aside from its balanced body and flavor, what’s special about this blend is the fact that it contains twice as much caffeine in an average cup of Joe.
If you feel like normal coffee doesn’t do it for you, go for this to cope with drowsy mornings or whenever you feel like you need an extra dose of energy.
Black Rifle Coffee Review For 2021
To sum up, what can you expect from this veteran-owned brand?
Pros
- Support for the law enforcement and veteran community
- Variety in roasts (light to extra dark)
- Variety in types (whole bean, ground, decaf, pods)
- Interesting packaging designs
- Discounted subscription
- Apparels and gear
Cons
- Lack of variety in origins
- Most may not be organic
- Cater more to darker roast drinkers
- Pretty expensive
To Wrap Up
Black Rifle Coffee Company is definitely worth a shot if you’re a frequent medium and darker roast coffee buyer, as that’s the range the brand goes all out for.
Though the price can be higher than the typical Peets bags bought from the grocery store, expect the quality and customer service to cover that gap.