It’s Coffee Time: A Review of Java with a Splash of Politics

By Peter Kadel, Consumer of Caffeine

Recently, I found out about the Black Rifle Coffee Company, a veteran-run-and-owned coffee-roasting operation based out of Utah. Their beans come from South and Central America. The company is owned by Evan Hafer, a veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and who has been working on his coffee-roasting skills for the past ten years. The company advertises itself as “the world’s premium conservative coffee company.” The BRCC roasts its coffee in small batches. The coffee is made to order. This means that the coffee isn’t made until you order it on their website. Thus, BRCC’s coffee takes a little longer to reach you due to the 2-3 day roasting period. Additionally, shipping takes about 7-10 days, but that is at the lowest cost for shipping. If you are willing to dole out the extra money, it can get there in two days.

BRCC carries a decent variety of coffee with 17 different blends that come in 1 of 4 roast types: light, medium, dark, and extra dark. The available textures are ground or whole bean.

I have tried two of the available blends. The first one was a medium-roast blend called the Fit to Fight blend which has an excellent aroma and decent taste. The coffee was delivered quickly. The blend tasted good. Usually I need to sweeten coffee in addition to adding heavy cream, but with the Fit to Fight Blend and with the Black Buffalo Blend–the second blend I’ve tried–I enjoyed the flavor of the coffee by itself. All it needed was a little cream. Even after I accidentally left the grounds out in the open air for a week, the Black Buffalo Blend kept its rich and full flavor and has not let me down yet. The Fit to Fight Blend had one incident where it began to taste sour as I was drinking it, but I’ve only had that issue once (but that might have been the cream).

Overall, the Black Rifle Coffee Company produces quality coffee that has the same effects on me as every other coffee I’ve had–virtually none. However, that doesn’t mean the coffee won’t offer the caffeinated kick most coffee lovers need to get through their day. While some people may be hesitant to support a company with strong political views, BRCC is not the only coffee company to have a political bias; Starbucks is a nationally recognized coffee chain that has often taken a political stance on various issues, rather than remaining neutral. For years, Starbucks has supported same-sex marriage legislation. And, in February 2017, Starbucks offered to hire 10,000 refugees in reaction to recent immigration legislation. The BRCC, in response to Starbucks, stated it wants to hire “veterans instead of refugees.” It should be noted that Starbucks also has a 10,000-veteran hiring initiative. The fact of the matter is, you’re voting with your wallet when businesses get political. You don’t have to buy their product. But, do note, BRCC makes some great coffee!

 

 

Referenced:

 

http://www.businessinsider.com/why-trump-supporters-boycott-starbucks-2017-2

https://www.snopes.com/politics/sexuality/starbucks.asp

Editor: Charles Schnell