I’m trying to remember exactly when my friends at Keurig sent me some samples of Van Houtte’s Raspberry Chocolate Truffle.  To be sure, it was last year, and I’m fairly certain it was before the snow began to fall.  I’m not proud, as I’ve clearly been slacking a bit on this K-Cup Challenge thing.

In my defense, we’ve launched a handful of pretty significant projects over the last few months.  We’ve had 3 weeks straight devoted to scrapbooking, and another 3 weeks devoted to golf.  We’ve launched Qwowi Golf, Qwowi Coffee, and we’ve got a couple more similar sites in the pipeline.  In short, I’ve been busy, but it doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten about the K-Cup Challenge.  While the reviews have slowed to a trickle, it’s about time to fire up the B70 Platinum & B30 Mini brewers and get back to the business of writing K-Cup reviews.

I’m a guy who keeps a fairly close eye on my traffic logs.  I see the occasional visit from my afore mentioned friends at Keurig.  And while I’d like to think they’re just checking in on me, making sure things are good, and that their brewers are treating me well (they most definitely are), there’s a part of my that wonders if maybe they’re just trying to figure out where the heck the review I was supposed to write…let’s call it 4 months ago (and that’s being plenty generous) is.  So with that in mind, let’s wrap of the last of the samples I received back in December.

The Description

Rich coffee enhanced with chocolate and juicy raspberry flavors.

The Aroma

No big surprises here.  It smells like raspberries, and dark chocolate, with the raspberry sweetness being most prevalent.

Drinking It Black

While the flavor is excellent – well – excellent if you like chocolate and raspberries, there is a slight aftertaste that sets up camp in the back of the throat.  It’s not horrible, and it doesn’t necessarily ruin the coffee, but, well, I’d be a bit happier if it wasn’t there.

With Cream and Sugar

It should go without saying that cream and sugar give Van Houtte’s Raspberry Chocolate Truffle a lighter, sweeter feel.  When taken black, I think of this blend as a night time only coffee.  Cream and sugar makes it more suitable for the daylight, although my take as that Raspberry Chocolate Truffle is much more of a dessert coffee than it is your morning kick start.

Final Thoughts

I feel almost obligated to use this space to provide a quick comparison of Van Houtte’s Raspberry Chocolate Truffle with Green Mountain’s Raspberry Rhapsody.  Let me start by saying they’re both very good, and that’s coming from a guy who doesn’t always think highly of flavored coffee.  Remember, Green Mountain’s is a Summer seasonal, which is no doubt why it feels more like breakfast on a screened in porch.  My brother’s in-law’s house borders the Oklahoma track at Saratoga.  Raspberry Rhapsody would be an excellent choice for those mornings when we sit and watch the ponies gallop by – or no doubt later in the day, at the track, served over ice.  In contrast Van Houtte’s Chocolate Raspberry Truffle is darker, richer, and perhaps a bit more sophisticated.  It definitely doesn’t have the light summertime feel of the Green Mountain.  Instead it feels more like a dessert espresso; the perfect complement to a rich chocolate dessert, perhaps after the perfect steak dinner.  My point is that, although you can’t go wrong with either, each has a unique “feel” and its own place.

Shameless Plug

By now I probably don’t even need to tell you about Keurig Brewers.  They’re pretty much everywhere these days – the office, the car dealership, the doctor’s office, and of course on the shelves of pretty much any major department store on the planet.  Unless you’re like my buddy Ben, and actually have the desire, knowledge, and equipment to actually roast and blend your own coffee, there is simply no better way to get your hands on a bigger, tastier collection of coffee than with the Keurig Brewing system.  They Keurig lineup includes brewers to fit every space and budget, so really, short of “I like waiting 5 minutes for a cup of coffee” (which is 4 minutes and 40 seconds longer than you’ll wait with a Keurig), there’s no reason (good, bad, or otherwise) not to own a Keurig brewer.  Even my mother’s on board with Keurig, and we’re talking about a woman who longs for the good ol days when Grover Cleveland was President.  You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t at least a little curious.  Get yourself a Keurig Brewer and a few boxes of Van Houtte Coffee and start enjoying your mornings.

While you’re here, check out the growing list of reviews in the K-Cup Challenge.