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Gevalia coffee review

Picture this: you’re walking down the aisle of your local grocery store (or perusing online) and your eyes are immediately drawn to a bright yellow package sitting neatly at eye-level. On closer inspection, you see the name “Gevalia”. Not being one to judge a book by its cover, you begin to wonder. The packaging might look nice with its bright-colored branding and fancy font but with the listed price tag, are the contents actually any good? Does it live up to the hype of its attractive exterior or is it just all in the marketing. Do you bite the bullet and hope for the best?

It’s best not to leave these kinds of decisions up to chance when your money is on the line and that’s why we’ve scoured the internet, sought advice from the experts, and put it through our own rigorous taste test to bring you the ULTIMATE Gevalia coffee review.

Because of the overwhelming interest in a quick review of the Gevalia House Blend Coffee, we decided to open the article with this heavy-hitter.

Pros

  • Even self-proclaimed coffee snobs boast about the deep, multi-layered, smooth - not bitter- taste.  If you prefer to drink a strong coffee black, this one will save you the burnt taste that plagues so many other roasts.
  • Consistently smooth with a quality taste that isn’t weak, or too strong, or overly acidic.

Cons

  • Check the best-by dates when it gets delivered as they can be expired. This is not a Gevalia issue but rather, that of Amazon. Reaching out to Amazon customer support will usually result in a refund or replacement.

ConClusion

The House Blend is Gevalia's classic flagship roast and part of the Heritage Collection. It is described as a full bodied, smooth blend, meant to be an everyday brew. Tasting Notes: Sweet caramel with a citrus-like finish.

Bean: 100% Arabica from a diverse blend East African, South American, and Central American beans.

Roast: Medium - meant to balance flavor, aroma and acidity and is the most preferred roast in the US.

Our Joe Rating: 9.6/10

Gevalia Coffee Reviewed – Most Popular Ground and Whole Bean Offerings

Over the past 150 years, Gevalia has created a lot of different products, some of which you can only find online or during certain times of the year. Even with them branching out to offer more specialty products, their standard coffee still makes the bulk of their sales and really is what they’re better known for.

With that being said, here is a list of their most popular roasts along with our rating.

Note: Many of these can be found in either whole bean form or in various grinds.

Blend

House Blend

Traditional Roast

French Roast

Colombian Roast

Chocolate Mocha

House Blend Decaf

Our Joe Score

9.4

9.6

9.4

9.6

9.2

9.6

Roast

Medium

Mild

Dark

Medium

Mild

Medium

Price

Pros and Cons of Gevalia Grounds

Pros

  • They are on another level in taste compared to more mainstream brands such as Dunkin Donuts, Folgers, or Maxwell House – although, admittedly, this isn’t a high bar to jump.
  • After tasting Gevalia, many coffee drinkers have switched even from higher end brands such as Starbucks.
  • Reasonably priced relative to other brands.
  • Great for making cold brew. Doesn’t come off as sour or having a tart aftertaste like other brands can. This means you won’t have to add more sugar/sweetener or cream to make it more enjoyable.
  • Their Decaf offering is especially noteworthy with a robust taste that is on par with its caffeinated counterparts. This is impressive since they advertise it being 99.7% caffeine-free. Perfect for those who have a sensitivity to caffeine, or who like to drink something less caffeinated later in the day.

Cons

  • The coffee beans come more in a finer ground than you might be used to. We suggest looking at whole beans especially if you plan on using a French press or making cold brew.
  • In rare circumstances, some drinkers have commented on beans in different packages as being inconsistent in taste.

Special Reserve

Not mentioned in the table above are the Gevalia Special Reserve offerings. These are made from single-origin beans from Guatemala, Costa Rica, Papua New Guinea, or Kenya. Each offers different regional specific flavor profiles and comes in several different grinds and roasts. You can check with out here.?

Which Gevalia grounds are best for a French roast?

Typically, when brewing with a French roast, you want a coarse (chunky) ground. As mentioned earlier in the article, shoppers have noticed that this brand deliver grounds finer than they are used to. In this case, we would suggest looking into whole beans which can be ground at home to your specificity, or the Gevalia special reserve offerings in coarse grind.

K-Cup Review Coffee Pods

Gevalia also offers their coffee in K-cup pods in large counts of 32, 72, 84, and even 100. Here is a snippet of their current lineup:

Blend

Signature Blend Roast

Colombian Roast

Dark Royal Roast

Majestic Roast

Our Joe Score

9.4

9.4

9.6

9.4

Roast

Mild

Medium

Dark

Dark

Price

Signature Blend is their highest rated k cup coffee.

Pros and Cons of Gevalia K-cups

Pros

  • Come in a variety of different roasts to suit a range of drinkers.
  • Pods are compatible with all Keurig 1.0 & 2.0 brewing systems.
  • Their Signature Blend also comes in decaf.

Cons

  • In rare circumstances, some purchasers noted a defect on the sealant used along the top seams of the K-cups, causing them to open during the brewing process. The workaround to this is buying reusable K-cups (we recommend stainless steel over plastic) and filling with the desired Gevalia coffee in mid- to coarse grind.
  • Dark roasts can be a little on the pricey end for those who are only in it for the caffeine.

Espresso K-Cup Coffee Pods & Froth Packets

Gevalia advertises this product as “be your own barista”. It comes with espresso coffee in a K-cup pod along with a creamer or “froth” packet that has been artificially flavored but contains real milk. It is foolishly easy to make using their two-step brewing process. All you do is empty the froth packet into your cup, load up the K-cup into the machine, and press brew. The froth will self-hydrate and mix with the coffee as it brews.

Here are the flavors Gevalia currently offers year-round:

Blend

Mocha Latte

Caramel Macchiato

Cappuccino

Vanilla Latte

Our Joe Score

9.0

9.6

9.6

9.0

Price

Their Cappuccino is their most popular and is very tasty.

Pro and Cons of Espresso K-Cup Coffee Pods & Froth Packets

Pros

  • Great as a fast and easy option - brew a fancier coffee at home without having to run out and pay the high prices at a cafe.
  • Fun seasonal flavors are available. For example, in the fall and around the holidays, Gevalia offers both a Pumpkin Spice and a Peppermint Mocha latte.

Cons

  • Pricey relative to their normal K-cups. Best for a once-in-a-blue-moon treat for yourself or as an option to make houseguests feel special.

Instant Coffee Kits - Gevalia Cafe at Home

Lastly, we finish with their cold and hot instant coffee mixes for those who just want something quick on-the-go or don’t have access to a coffee machine. With the frappé, add water, ice, and blend. For the latté mix, just add warm water to enjoy. It’s your pick – these are great-to-have flavor options for those busy cold or hot days where instant gratification is your number one priority.

Blend

Mocha Frappe

Mocha Latte

Vanilla Frappe

Caramel Latte

Cappuccino

Our Joe Score

8.4

9.2

8.6

9.0

9.0

Roast

Instant

Instant

Instant

Instant

Instant

Price

Their Mocha Latte is their most popular and highest rated brew in their Cafe at Home lineup.

Pro and Cons of Their Instant Coffee Kits

Pros

  • Lattés create a nice and satisfying foam.
  • Frappés: more coffee flavor in a thick consistency reminiscent of a milkshake, and a less sweet alternative to McDonald’s.
  • Substitute milk instead of water, add maple sugar, and/or a splash of heavy cream for an extra flavor blast. (If you don’t mind the extra calories, that is). Try creamy plant-based milks like Oat or Cashew for variety.
  • Unlike the K-cup froth mixes, these do not contain coconut oil – great if you’re allergic.
  • Also great for those with more sensitive stomachs.

Cons

  • The price can scare some people away.
  • In rare cases, people experience a “plasticky” taste. This could be caused by the product sitting for too long in the packaging and/or the packaging being exposed to heat for extended periods of time.
  • One serving of the latté is only 8 ounces – small, if you’re used to the Grande/Venti sizes at Starbucks.

FAQ

Here is a list of the frequently asked questions we get about Gevalia coffee offerings and the company itself.

What is caffeine content in Gevalia coffee?

They use 100% Arabica beans in their coffee so, regardless of the roast, the caffeine content is going to be similar to regular coffee. This means that one Tablespoon (5g) of their regular ground would contain 50-65 mg of caffeine. Their decaf coffee has around 1-5 mg of caffeine per Tablespoon.

Gevalia is currently not using the higher-caffeinated robusta beans.

About Gevalia

Gevalia was founded by a Swedish man named Victor Theodore Engwall in a small harbour town all the way back in 1853. Obviously, they’ve been around for a while and it’s fair to say they know their coffee. The company grew from a small shop to now owning 40% of the Swedish coffee market. Fun fact: Swedes rank sixth in the world for their coffee consumption, devouring an average of 8.2 kg (of dry product) per person per year. That works out to 820 cups of coffee per year, or just over 2 cups of coffee per day (using SCAA American standards measurement). Swedes are the java-drinking leaders of the pack, dominating over other Scandinavian countries like Finland, Norway, and Denmark.

In Northern Europe, Gevalia is a mainstream supermarket brand but are marketed in the United States as a premium brand.

They pride themselves on sourcing quality beans to create rich, not bitter, flavours in their coffee blends. They also use a slow roast process which allows the mild and smooth flavours to fully develop. The company works incredibly hard to keep their product consistent.

To discover more, here is a Youtube video from their official channel:

Who owns Gevalia?

After 120 years as a family company, it was sold in 1971 to Mondelēz International predecessor company, General Foods. It was then merged in 2015 with Jacobs Douwe Egberts – a company that also owns many other large international beverage brands such as Tassimo and Kanis & Gunnink.

In 2011 Gevalia was sold as an owned subsidiary to the massive company Kraft Heinz to handle sales in North America.

What does Gevalia mean?

It’s believed that Gevalia is taken from the city where the company first originated – Gävle. The city name is derived from the word gavel, meaning river banks in Old Swedish and referring to the Gavleån (Gävle River).

Gevalia: Interesting Fact

Gevalia holds the royal warrant of appointment for coffee roasters from the King of Sweden. This enables them to advertise the fact that they supply to the issuer of the royal warrant; thus, lending prestige to the supplier.

Is Gevalia coffee good?

Gevalia is marketed as a premium brand in North America. It seems to live up to the hype as many self-proclaimed coffee snobs enjoy Gevalia coffee. It’s clearly a whole other level above some of the more mainstream brands like Dunkin Donuts or Folgers. Some even prefer it to more premium brands such as Starbucks.  

How is Gevalia coffee processed?

We had a hard time finding this answer online so we resorted to reaching out to them directly via email. We got a reply within three days and were told they use the modern and more common wet processing. This type of harvesting consists of washing and fermentation. During this process, the pulp that is left on the beans becomes soft and is then rinsed off, thus preventing damage to the beans.

According to their official Twitter account (link https://twitter.com/Gevalia), their decaffeinated coffee is processed via a method called Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Decaffeination. It’s a special process that uses natural CO2, like in soda water.

Is Gevalia coffee organic?

From what we could tell, Gevalia does not currently have any certified organic products.

Is Gevalia coffee shade grown?

As of this writing, it appears that they did at one time offer a shade-grown, Costa Rican, medium roast ground coffee but it is currently listed on several online retailers as unavailable. It’s also no longer listed on their official site. It seems that this was only offered as a limited batch and has since been discontinued. There in no indications of them coming out with another shade-grown product in the near future.

Does Gevalia also come in K cups?

Yes, it is sold for the Tassimo and K-Cup systems.

Where can you buy Gevalia coffee?

In Northern Europe, you can find it in most grocery stores but in North America, it’s harder to find. The main places their products may be found are in Wal-Mart, through Amazon, or directly through Gevalia’s official site.

Does Gevalia still give free coffee makers?

Gevalia is well known for giving incentives to join their subscription service (auto delivery) program, one such incentive being a free coffee maker. These offers date back to the early 80’s and were plastered everywhere including magazines, TV commercials, and more recently, online. As of late 2020, it does not appear they are offering the free coffee maker incentive program.


We hope you enjoyed our review of Gevalia coffee and that your questions were answered in our research. We, here, at JoePicksJoe.com are Gevalia fans and hope you’ve been inspired to give it a taste yourself.

Do you have any experience with Gevalia coffee? What did you think or it? Did we miss anything? Leave your comment below!

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Tags

Beans, Coffee Review, Gevalia


About the author 

Joe Cabot

Joe LOVES coffee. He gets up at 6am every morning grind and brew a cup of coffee using the newest beans on his radar. Seriously! When he’s not experimenting with coffee blends or writing posts, you can find him hanging out with his wife and son in Ontario, Canada. Learn more.

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