# A Game of Coffee Rich Italian blend



## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Here we go. Ordered from Ebay at the cost of £8.49 for a delivered kilo. They were roasted on April 8th. I looked at the sellers other products and this is without doubt a lost leader for them. Ground the first beans at the same level as the CC beans I had in. It was nearly there so tightened up the second shot. I guesstimated the in weight but timed the shot out to 29.8 gas over 28 seconds, as a shot diluted with water for an Americano. I am not very good at describing flavours but if I had to stab, I would say the overall taste was like something produced on a French Press, quite earthy and full. Nothing jumping out at me but quite pleasant. I would guess that this may develop further with a bit more time. At worst, it is an inferior quality bean they are trying to dump, at best it is a genuine lost leader.

The thumb is more up than down but if any of you are dark aficionados, then try it....at this cost what are you going to lose?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121919244187?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Maybe try weighing in and out a little more and dial it in better, could be the best bean you have ever had!!

Try espresso also...

For such an old tooth David you do make me laugh how many corners you cut.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

froggystyle said:


> Maybe try weighing in and out a little more and dial it in better, could be the best bean you have ever had!!
> 
> Try espresso also...
> 
> For such an old tooth David you do make me laugh how many corners you cut.


An old dog like me knows what he likes. I dislike playing with coffee. I like drinking it! If I cut a few corners, then the next cup I make I will change something to get it that bit better. My morning routine means that I just about have time to make an americano whilst my porridge is in the microwave. By the time I have eaten that, the coffee is at the perfect temp!

This bean will get better the more I play I am sure, but I do not think it will be earths shattering, just pleasantly acceptable


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## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

Thanks for the review, I'm and I thinking of trying them once my current supply runs out. Lol

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## GCGlasgow (Jul 27, 2014)

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?22879-Beginners-Reading-Weighing-Espresso-Brew-Ratios


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Commodity coffee forums


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

dfk41 said:


> I would say the overall taste was like something produced on a French Press, quite earthy and full.


My French presses don't taste like this?


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

risky said:


> My French presses don't taste like this?


Depends what's in his French Press. Maybe it was full of earth.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

earth or darker beans ground.....my french press always gives me a full of strong flavour....perhaps it is the way I brew it! When I make a Chemex it is brighter but not as full flavoured


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

I do believe I will be buying some of the very same beans , probably in about 2 weeks time.

I like a darker roast and dont mind a percentage of robusta in it.

Always good to try something different, and ive been Rave loyal for quite a while now and it will if nothing else give me something to compare to.


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

Bad coffee. Badly made


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

Robusta and "crisp and clean" . Erm no, never .


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

garydyke1 said:


> Robusta and "crisp and clean" . Erm no, never .


Not words used in the same sentence by me! I was suggesting that the qualities a Chemex make are very different to a French Press.....when I use them anyway! I would not expect Robusta to be crisp and clean either!


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## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

dfk41 said:


> Not words used in the same sentence by me! I was suggesting that the qualities a Chemex make are very different to a French Press.....when I use them anyway! I would not expect Robusta to be crisp and clean either!


it's on the bag though, is probably what Gary was referring to.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

ah, well, there you go then....I did not read the bag!


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## jimbocz (Jun 5, 2015)

garydyke1 said:


> Bad coffee. Badly made


Can you expand on that a bit? What's bad about the coffee other than the fact it's cheap? From everything I've heard it's just a blend with some robusta in it, the same as Rave's Italian job.

How is it badly made? I've been drinking a lot of coffee from Rave and some different coffees from Game of coffee and they both taste equally fine to me.

Granted I've still got a lot to learn about coffee, so I'm interested in why this coffee is so bad so I can not buy it if needed.


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## James811 (May 10, 2014)

Just found another similar ebay store called grind house, I'm intrigued, I may have to roll the dice for £8.50


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

How was the 1kg posted, did it have a price label on it?


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

jimbocz said:


> Can you expand on that a bit? What's bad about the coffee other than the fact it's cheap? From everything I've heard it's just a blend with some robusta in it, the same as Rave's Italian job.
> 
> How is it badly made? I've been drinking a lot of coffee from Rave and some different coffees from Game of coffee and they both taste equally fine to me.
> 
> Granted I've still got a lot to learn about coffee, so I'm interested in why this coffee is so bad so I can not buy it if needed.


buy what you want ... Yeah it's got robusta in it . What's else has it got I lm it . Some nice fresh In season beans with a cupping score above 85 , where the farmer has a decent price and the coffee is Delish or some bulk bought by the ton , not sure where it's from ...

What you like is what you like - doesn't make my taste buds goods and yours bad . We are different

But there is a difference in quality of bulk commodity greens and greens traceable with a good cupping scores .

Commodity is cheap - you buy it cheap - the farmers gets did all....

I don't know what's on this blend - perhaps the roasters aren't sure other than brazillian .

Pays your money takes your chances ...as I said before at those prices someone is getting a raw deal . Most likely man at the start and the buyer at the end


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

All their other offerings are double the price more or less. You know the retail game

Boots. Just cos it is cheap means very little


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

James811 said:


> Just found another similar ebay store called grind house, I'm intrigued, I may have to roll the dice for £8.50


I wouldn't


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

dfk41 said:


> All their other offerings are double the price more or less. You know the retail game
> 
> Boots. Just cos it is cheap means very little


My experience would suggest otherwise


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Mrboots2u said:


> as I said before at those prices someone is getting a raw deal . Most likely man at the start and the buyer at the end


This bugs me slightly, we do not know where these beans come from, fact, it could well be some poor farmer getting shafted by the dealer, however it could also well be a farmer who's farm is purely there to turn over as many beans as he can in a season, he might not care about scoring just shipping as much as possible.

Or they could be low scoring beans, like really low and the farmer is happy to accept a low price.

I deal with suppliers from the far east every day in work, i have some that strive to perfect the product that they sell to me, and i pay top money for it, i then one or two that could not give a flying monkey about quality, they want to shift as many crap products as possible... and the market calls for both.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Now we don't know where they come from - that's says a lot in itself ...

As the roasters we recommend here generally will offer where It is grown ...

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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Sometimes I feel like I am discussing beans in an asile at Costco on here .

" these are cheap and brown "

HeI haven't tried there beans . Send me 100g is you want Dfk. I've had samples sent of 3-4 of there under a tenner eBay roasters before - this is what I Base my experience on .

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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

I am not trying to convince anyone to buy them! We all make our own decisions in life. I do not go down the Fairtrade argument either as I have had a lot of Fair-trade stuff that if you trust your tastebuds, was poor. I will email the firm and find out. To me, they taste like cheap beans but that could be a whole number of things from the skill of the roast to the blend itself. At the end of the day, I tried some cheap beans from Ebay, that I am sure many others have done.I will not buy them again because I am not influenced by price, and I am quite happy in the beans I buy from CC at twice the price.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Flat trade doesn't guarantee quality I agree and its be same as direct trade or traceability ...

Someone asked why people suggested they were poor . I tried to give some context

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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Hi, firstly, the beans arrived fine and after a couple of extra days rest, I opened them today. Now, as espresso they were not pleasant but as americano or with about 3 ounces of milk, they were fine. This has sparked a debate on the forum I use, as to whether the beans are cheap and nasty or genuine beans sold as a lost leader.

To me it matters not because you make no claim either way. Your service was as advertised and the beans turned up promptly!

But, if you wanted to share a bit more info such as region or estate of beans, whether they are commodity etc etc, then I would be grateful

many thanks


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Well, I tried.....note the sellers eBay name

New message from: hallucinationboy Top Rated Seller(375Turquoise Star)

Hey there,

It is so glad to hear that you are satisfied with our service. We do our best to bring fabulous coffee to our dear customers.

According to your describes, if you drink mostly espresso rather american or coffee based drinks, Game of Coffee House Blend may suits you more. 

Our house blend is a seasonal blend, as the base for Rich Italian Blend, currently contains 100% Arabica beans from Brazil and Colombia. Super nice beans . In our Rich Italian Blend, we also added two different robusta beans from uganda and vietnam.

I hope this is helpful.

Again, thanks for choosing Game of Coffee!


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

Incase it was of interest the person who is behind game of coffee is a member on here.

Not many posts, but Isaac did join, probably to mainly promote his product, but maybe he would be willing to answer some questions on here

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?29382-Hello-from-Game-Of-Coffee!&highlight=game+coffee


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## jimbocz (Jun 5, 2015)

Mrboots2u said:


> buy what you want ... Yeah it's got robusta in it . What's else has it got I lm it . Some nice fresh In season beans with a cupping score above 85 , where the farmer has a decent price and the coffee is Delish or some bulk bought by the ton , not sure where it's from ...
> 
> What you like is what you like - doesn't make my taste buds goods and yours bad . We are different
> 
> ...


Thanks for this detailed answer. I'll pay attention.


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

Thanks to Bootsy, I've just had the honour of trying this as a 'Mystery' coffee.... Cheers Martin. Subtle hints of car paint fumes and fish came to mind. At least I don't have an EK to dismantle









Not too bad with lots of milk but not good either (didn't finish it). Now I need a stronger bin freshener


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## Missy (Mar 9, 2016)

Rhys said:


> Thanks to Bootsy, I've just had the honour of trying this as a 'Mystery' coffee.... Cheers Martin. Subtle hints of car paint fumes and fish came to mind. At least I don't have an EK to dismantle
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You know eating bin freshener won't help?


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

I have to be honest with these beans and I have thought about this for some time. it is not good enough for roasters to sell cheap beans, that are not tasty. cheap does not equal putting up with poor quality. if there are a lost leader, they are rank. If they are older beans past their best, then they are rank. In my humble, I am sure the roaster is capable of better than this. if he is not, then Ebay is his best target market and definitely not, the cultured palates that exist on here.


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

dfk41 said:


> I have to be honest with these beans and I have thought about this for some time. it is not good enough for roasters to sell cheap beans, that are not tasty. cheap does not equal putting up with poor quality. if there are a lost leader, they are rank. If they are older beans past their best, then they are rank. In my humble, I am sure the roaster is capable of better than this. if he is not, then Ebay is his best target market and definitely not, the cultured palates that exist on here.


Bang on, nothing wrong in my eyes selling cheap, old beans but just target your customers well, my brother in law has all my old aged beans that i dont finish before 8 weeks, he loves them and has no problem drinking them...

Not everyone is as picky as us over a cup of coffee.


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