My Peet's Coffee Review
Freshly Roasted Beans Direct to Your Door
There's a special place in my heart for Peet's Coffee. I used to live right around the corner from one of their shops, and I have fond memories of long days working from a back corner table while sipping giant iced coffees. I've been reviewing Peet's Single Origin Coffee Subscription for quite a few months, and there's something utterly nostalgic for me about opening up each box and taking a big sniff— it brings me right back to that corner table! But even if you don't share my emotional connection to Peet's, it's a great way to keep your kitchen stocked with super fresh coffee. They roast their beans to order and ship out the same day, so even if you can buy Peet's in your local grocery store, the beans are unlikely to be as fresh as the ones you'll get through the mail.
Want to know if a subscription to Peet's is right for you? Read on to learn more about Peet's Coffee, their roasting style, and what you can expect from a subscription.
Pros & Cons
The Pros
- Peet's Coffee offers several different subscriptions to choose from: The Signature Blend Series, the Single Origin Series, and the Small Batch Series.
- Regardless of which one you choose, beans are freshly roasted and delivered to your front door.
- You can indicate your desired grind style and choose your delivery frequency. Prefer ground coffee? No problem. Would you rather receive whole bean coffee you can grind yourself? They can do that too.
- Peet's has had a long time to hone their craft: they've been roasting since 1966. The first Peet's Coffee & Tea was opened in Berkeley by Alfred Peet, and the company has been making great coffee ever since.
- Peet's arabica beans are sourced responsibly and ethically, and only coffee beans from the top 1% of farmers make the cut.
- Want to try Peet's coffee before committing to a subscription? No problem. You can place a one-time order in the online store.
- It's easy to cancel your subscription online.
The Cons
- If you prefer light roast beans, you might find Peet's selection skews too dark. Dark roast coffee is Peet's specialty.
- Prefer decaf? Your subscription options will be limited.
- If you're looking for k-cup coffee, there's not currently a subscription option available. You might be better off ordering Peet's famous Major Dickason's Blend K-cups on Amazon.
- Looking for coffee beans for your espresso machine? You might occasionally receive espresso beans through your subscription, but there isn't currently a subscription that sends them exclusively. (That said, I've found that most of Peet's darker roasts lend themselves well to espresso.)
- All of the beans you'll receive are roasted by Peet's. If you want to sample a variety of roasters, another subscription might be a better fit.
Is It Worth It?
- Love Peet's Coffee and want to make sure you never run out? This is definitely the subscription for you!
About Peet's Coffee
Peet's Coffee is a specialty coffee roaster based in San Francisco, but you've probably seen their coffee on the shelves of your local grocery store, or you may even have one of their coffee shops in your area. In addition to the cups of joe and grounds you can buy locally, Peet's also offers coffee subscriptions.
There are three different subscription options to choose from: The Signature Blend Series, the Single Origin Series, and the Small Batch Series.
Image via Peet's Coffee.
If you like exploring coffees from specific regions around the world, the Single Origin Series is a great way to sample what Peet's has to offer. The Signature Blend Series will send a variety of Peet's famous coffee blends, and the Small Batch Series highlights limited releases from microlot and smallholder farms around the world.
Each of the three different subscriptions has its own sign-up page, so once you're in the checkout funnel, you'll only have to answer two questions: how much coffee you'd like to receive per delivery, and whether you'd like to receive whole beans or grounds. If you opt for grounds, you'll indicate whether you brew your coffee in a drip coffee maker or a French press or percolator. I'm kind of a snob when it comes to freshness, so I always opt for whole beans that I can grind myself.
Note: if you're not sure where to begin, you might want to start by taking Peet's 5-question Coffee Finder quiz. The quiz matches you with specific coffees rather than a recommended subscription, but your coffee match might be a good indicator of which subscription could be a good fit for you!
The Cost
The Subscription Box: Peet's Coffee Single Origin Series
The Price: Starts at $17.00 per month for one 16 oz. bag. Save with higher volumes per delivery. (Note that this is a review of the Single Origin Subscription, which costs $17.00 per month. The Small Batch Series costs $18.00 per month, and the Signature Blends Series costs $16.00 per month.)
Ships to: The U.S. (including Alaska, Hawaii, and P.O. boxes) for free, Canada starting at $20.25, and internationally starting at $32.00.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out our review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
My Peet's Delivery
When you sign up for a subscription to Peet's Coffee, you can bank of freshness. Beans are always roasted to order, and they're shipped out to subscribers the same day.
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Shipments contain a full pound of beans, and I can almost always smell them before I even open the box!
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This shipment contained a paper coaster with details about the beans inside, and there's space to make notes while tasting.
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Peet's Sulawesi Kalosi Dark Roast, Whole Bean (16 oz.) - Retail $17.95
This month's single-origin coffee is an Indo-Pacific bean that's described as "a rare coffee, semi-aged and cultivated in the traditional Sulawesi method." The flavor is described as "teak," "crushed spice," and "marzipan," and the beans are darkly roasted. I always love learning a little bit about where coffee comes from, and this one has a great backstory. The beans are cultivated in small lots near the homes of local villagers in an area known as Torajaland in Indonesia. Peet's goes on to describe the process of collecting and aging the beans:
Peet's has been sourcing the very best lots of this rare coffee for many years. And we take an extra step, semi-aging our beans to enhance their earthiness and herbal, nutty notes, for a full-bodied and balanced cup, with a heady multi-dimensional aroma that's nothing short of heavenly.
Peet's Coffee tends to be darkly roasted, and these beans are no exception. They're roasty and toasty, with a shiny sheen and a chocolatey aroma. The recommended brewing methods are pour-over and French press, and I opted for the latter.
For my taste test, I got out my trusty French press, ground the beans, and whipped up a big pot. In the cup, this coffee is rich and bold. The dark roast produces a mellow flavor with muted acidity, full body, and complex flavor. It's almost like diner coffee but elevated. I always like to compare my own first impressions with the flavor notes listed in the description. I can't say I pick up on "marzipan" exactly, though there is a nuttiness that's quite pleasant. Interestingly, I don't think I would have picked out "teak" on my own, but Peet's is spot on. There's a not-at-all unpleasant flavor in this coffee that reminds me of shop class and a woodworking studio. Overall, this is the perfect cup of coffee for an afternoon pick me up, and I also think the flavors would make this a good coffee to sip on after a big dinner. The dark roast level yields a strong coffee that would hold up with to dessert.
My Verdict
Like I said at the top of this review, I'll always have a soft spot for Peet's. Their coffee evokes a lot of happy memories for me, and I'm always excited when a bag of their beans lands on my doorstep. Their coffee often skews a bit more heavily roasted than I might seek out on my own (my go-to coffees are all light to medium roast), but they're consistently tasty and ALWAYS very fresh. The single-origin subscription is a great way to sample coffee from around the world, and it's fun to see which country will feature each month.
Value-wise, a 1-bag subscription costs $17.00 with free U.S. shipping. Compared to the retail price, this is a savings of $0.95 on each bag of coffee, and you're also saving on the cost of shipping that you'd pay for a one-time retail order in the Peet's shop. If you are a known fan of Peet's, have more than 1-2 coffee-drinkers in your house, or perhaps if you're using a standard coffee maker every day, you might want to consider signing up for additional bags per delivery. Two bags per delivery costs $32.00 (save $2.00) and three bags per delivery costs $45.00 (save $6.00). This box doesn't provide a particularly high-value month-to-month experience, but that's not uncommon with food and drink subscriptions. To save the most, consider the three bag option and use the coupon below to maximize your savings on your first month.
Want to know more about the Peet's?
Ready to explore the world of coffee? Want to see what other coffee subscription boxes are out there? Find more coffee subscriptions here!
Already a fan of Peet's and think their coffee is the best around? Partial to their House Blend or French Roast? Head to the comments section to tell us about your favorite coffee!
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