My Barista Told Me Something I Can't Unknow About Flavored Coffee
HuffPost
There are better choices when it comes to your morning brew.
I have a confession: I love flavored coffee beans. Whether they’re birthday cake, coconut rum, or even the mysteriously named “Midnight in Paris” — the stranger the beans are, the better. Looking to keep the number of pumpkin spice lattes (and sugar cookie, peppermint and every other seasonal latte that has sprung up lately) I consume in check, I thought flavored beans presented a perfect alternative to those sugary, syrup-laden drinks — fun flavors with no extra sugar.
That is, until a casual conversation with my barista changed everything. The flavored coffee I was drinking had a dirty secret: the beans are typically stale from the last harvest season and sprayed with a cocktail of solvents and flavoring agents to mask their bitter flavor.
Um, ick?
I wanted to verify this, so I spoke with baristas and coffee roasters and asked their thoughts on flavored coffee.
What are flavored coffee beans?
