# What beans do Waitrose use?



## Hallettoil

Hello all at Coffeeforums

We have a Delonghi Magnifica and have achieved some decent cups of coffee but that "special" cup still eludes me.

Both my Wife and I do like the Costa ( in the shop) and anyone who has had the free coffee from Waitrose will be surprised how nice it is, but WHAT is the question.

What are these magic beans they keep secret...has anyone dabbled at the magix mix?. Do please share your secrets

keep up the caffeine fix

Richard


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## Mrboots2u

Welcome . not tried the waitrose coffee.

Why not have a look a the list of roasters in the beans thread. Hasbean, rave, coffee compass, smokey barn. Tons of roasters with great coffees.

What is it you like taste wise about the costa /waitrose drink ?

Sure we could find a great alternative from a roaster.


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## aaronb

They're really cheap, low quality rubbish. That is why they are free. Sorry to be blunt but it's true.

I end up in Waitrose 3 times a week or so as it's just down the road, and never take the free coffee. I did try it once and it was dreadful.

Totally agree that if you try someone like HasBean, Smokey Barn, Rave etc it will really open up coffee to you, and be far superior to anything served up in Costa or Waitrose.


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## No big name!

aaronb said:


> Totally agree that if you try someone like HasBean, Smokey Barn, Rave etc it will really open up coffee to you, and be far superior to anything served up in Costa or Waitrose.


Before you place an order, may I suggest you decide what type of flavours you like in the coffee? Google 'Coffee flavour wheel.'

I frequent a couple of well respected artisan type coffee shops and they both quite often serve coffees bursting with citrus and fruity notes, both of which I despise in coffee - whereas occasionally they have coffees with smokey caramels and chocolate taste hints. Basically, a cup prepared by a world class barista ain't gonna float your boat, if he uses a bean that is not to your palate.

Without ever having tastes Waitrose coffee, I'd suggest "Rave's Italian Job" - buy a kilo and have a play. It's probably what your looking for.

P.S. Regarding the above; the masculine shall include the feminine and vice-versa....


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## Xpenno

Best thing about Waitrose coffee is watching people trying to steer a shopping trolley, hold a basket and generally do their shopping one handed, just wait until you've bloody finished shopping! Love it!

Anyway from the look and smell of it they are using a traditional dark roast Italian Bean. If you are looking for something similar I would say Rave's Italian Job would get you in the ballpark. If you are looking to step it up in quality from then something like Rave Fudge or Signature, Atkinsons Archetype or Has Bean Blake. Latter four options don't contain Robusta, I believe Italian Job does, not necessarily a bad thing if that's what you like though.

Good luck.


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## Phil104

Hello Richard and welcome to the friendliest internet forum there is. I regularly shop in Waitrose, am entitled to a free coffee but I never have had one based on descriptions of it. You may know that the staff can't have a free coffee and you can interpret that in different ways - including a company commitment to staff health and wellbeing.


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## Glenn

Xpenno said:


> Best thing about Waitrose coffee is watching people trying to steer a shopping trolley, hold a basket and generally do their shopping one handed...


That's what my butler told me also


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## aaronb

Xpenno said:


> Best thing about Waitrose coffee is watching people trying to steer a shopping trolley, hold a basket and generally do their shopping one handed, just wait until you've bloody finished shopping! Love it!
> 
> Good luck.


It has been an incredible success for them, the Waitrose near me started having queues so long at the cafe for the free coffee they have installed a fully automatic machine near the entrance just for those who want to sip and shop at the same time. I thought nobody would use it, preferring the idea of one made by a 'Barista' in the cafe but how wrong I was.

It makes me feel a bit sad seeing all that bad coffee being drunk, but the only competition in the area is a local cafe who haven't got a clue and serve as poorly made coffee as Waitrose.


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## jeebsy

My local waitrose has a coffee machine and several tables in the shop. I'm surprised how many people sit (literally in the middle of) a supermarket to drink a coffee and have a chat when there's a couple of decent independents near by.

Suppose everyone's middle class aspirational these days, and if you want to be seen to be middle class few things say it like drinking coffee in waitrose


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## Mrboots2u

jeebsy said:


> My local waitrose has a coffee machine and several tables in the shop. I'm surprised how many people sit (literally in the middle of) a supermarket to drink a coffee and have a chat when there's a couple of decent independents near by.
> 
> Suppose everyone's middle class aspirational these days, and if you want to be seen to be middle class few things say it like drinking coffee in waitrose


My shepherds pie tea in the Morrisons cafe doesn't hack it anymore ?


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## The Systemic Kid

When I pass our local Waitrose cafe and see loads of people enjoying their 'free' coffees, the word 'beige' keeps coming into my head...can't think why


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## jeebsy

Mrboots2u said:


> My shepherds pie tea in the Morrisons cafe doesn't hack it anymore ?


You've got chickens though



The Systemic Kid said:


> When I pass our local Waitrose cafe and see loads of people enjoying their 'free' coffees, the word 'beige' keeps coming into my head...can't think why


Beige on so many levels


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## Mrboots2u

jeebsy said:


> You've got chickens though
> 
> Beige on so many levels


Not my chickens mate , they wander around where we live ..

Rented accommodation too , so that's a middle class fail also


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## aaronb

I just want to get in and out as quickly as possible, then cry at the till when I see what they charged me for a few essentials


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## jeebsy

aaronb said:


> I just want to get in and out as quickly as possible, then cry at the till when I see what they charged me for a few essentials


Haha, I sometimes go there as it's on the way home. Items don't seem much more expensive individually but when you get to the till your shop is at least 1.5x more than elsewhere.

Done a few shops in Aldi recently and they were ridiculously cheap. Some of the meat and fish was the same price as the wholesalers I used to go to in London


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## The Systemic Kid

Best thing about Waitrose is the: 'overheard in Waitrose'. My two favourites:

"do we need Parmesan for both houses?:

"mummy, does Lego have a silent T like Merlot?"


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## aaronb

jeebsy said:


> Haha, I sometimes go there as it's on the way home. Items don't seem much more expensive individually but when you get to the till your shop is at least 1.5x more than elsewhere.


Yeah, the problem is I don't have a car at the moment, Waitrose is about a 7 min walk and then work is 2 minutes further so it is the most convenient shop for me









Anyway I hope we havent scared you off OP, I do strongly believe if you give one of the suggestions in this thread a try you will be pleasantly surprised!


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## 4515

Mrboots2u said:


> Not my chickens mate , they wander around where we live ..
> 
> Rented accommodation too , so that's a middle class fail also


The other middle class fail from this thread was your reference to sheherds pie tea, rather than dinner

Gotta go - the pedant police are knocking at my door


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## Mrboots2u

Peasant police ?


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## 4515

Mrboots2u said:


> Peasant police ?


Turned out to be neither

They were questioning me about game birds (known a few of those in the past !) - it was the pheasant police


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## Mrboots2u

working dog said:


> Turned out to be neither
> 
> They were questioning me about game birds (known a few of those in the past !) - it was the pheasant police


So many double entendres , so little time .......


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## 4515

Had to smile when watching the GP yesterday when they were discussing tyre choices

They were talking about one of the riders having a soft on. Thank god he didnt choose the hard tyre

There you go - from Finbarr Saunders to Roger Irrelevant in one post


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## Geordie Boy

Waitrose by me doesn't have a cafe so they've added in some self service bean2cup machines by the exit and a till to process all the free transactions. They should just put a scanner on the machine so you only get a coffee if you have a card, easily save a member of staff


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## jeebsy

What's the deal? Shop there and get a free coffee?


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## aaronb

jeebsy said:


> What's the deal? Shop there and get a free coffee?


Get a MyWaitrose card for free, and you get a free coffee (one per day) and a free paper too plus discounts on certain products, changes every week or so.

Also someone is meant to win a prize of Waitrose vouchers every month locally and nationally. EDIT: They changed it, one person wins £5000 and 10 win £500 a month. And you have to spend a certain amount to get the free paper now.

Worth getting one if you shop in Waitrose even occasionally, for the discounts rather than a crappy coffee obviously. You can get a mini keyring one so it's always on you.

http://www.waitrose.com/home/mywaitrose/mywaitrose_welcome.html


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## Hallettoil

Many thanks for you suggestion


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## Hallettoil

Have you tried the coffee?

Good idea that.


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## Hallettoil

Thank you sincerely for the positive suggestions that have been posted, however, I appear to have started a "knock Waitrose" response, which I regret.

Those that did offer a useful suggestion, I appreciate your time and response.

Those that have risen to the Waitrose bait, you do not have to shop there, there are other Supermarkets, but I agree you have your opinions, but in posting my thread, it was not the expected result especially from "one of the friendliest forums on the net".


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## Mrboots2u

Dont take what is meant as banter too much to heart please. Try some the roasters we've mentioned and I'm sure you will be making coffee soon that puts free waitrose coffee to shame...

Cheers


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## Drewster

Hallettoil said:


> Thank you sincerely for the positive suggestions that have been posted, however, I appear to have started a "knock Waitrose" response, which I regret.
> 
> Those that did offer a useful suggestion, I appreciate your time and response.
> 
> Those that have risen to the Waitrose bait, you do not have to shop there, there are other Supermarkets, but I agree you have your opinions, but in posting my thread, it was not the expected result especially from "one of the friendliest forums on the net".


It really is a mad-house here!

Everyone *is *pretty friendly but like "geeks" everywhere we lack in social skills ;-)

Some of the guys on here really cannot comprehend how anyone can possibly drink coffee that hasn't had each bean individually roasted and ground to their exact specification.... some of them even think they can tell others how they should drink their coffee....

But honestly most of them don't mean any harm and are only trying to be helpful!!


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## dougie todd

Drewster said:


> It really is a mad-house here!
> 
> Everyone *is *pretty friendly but like "geeks" everywhere we lack in social skills ;-)
> 
> Some of the guys on here really cannot comprehend how anyone can possibly drink coffee that hasn't had each bean individually roasted and ground to their exact specification.... some of them even think they can tell others how they should drink their coffee....
> 
> But honestly most of them don't mean any harm and are only trying to be helpful!!


Brilliant!


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## Mrboots2u

Drewster said:


> It really is a mad-house here!
> 
> Everyone *is *pretty friendly but like "geeks" everywhere we lack in social skills ;-)
> 
> Some of the guys on here really cannot comprehend how anyone can possibly drink coffee that hasn't had each bean individually roasted and ground to their exact specification.... some of them even think they can tell others how they should drink their coffee....
> 
> But honestly most of them don't mean any harm and are only trying to be helpful!!


We may all not like the same coffee or roasters or type of roast , but most of us see the benefit of using fresh roasted and ground coffee, for espresso or brewed.

There is still a bit of this forum thats to do with aspiring to make great tasting coffee......

To the OP try some roasters , pick some beans with chocolate and caramel nutty tasting notes ( nearly any decent roaster will have a blend or single origin with something along these lines )

Use them after being rested in the machine of your choice , add milk , sugar syrup whatever you like , see if they are a nicer cappuccino than a costa .....

I hope they are , bit of gentle advise on here can open up a world of coffee tastes that i didnt think I was capable of making or even existed.

Hope we can do the same for you


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## jeebsy

I thought it was friendly banter....


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## Xpenno

Hallettoil said:


> Thank you sincerely for the positive suggestions that have been posted, however, I appear to have started a "knock Waitrose" response, which I regret.
> 
> Those that did offer a useful suggestion, I appreciate your time and response.
> 
> Those that have risen to the Waitrose bait, you do not have to shop there, there are other Supermarkets, but I agree you have your opinions, but in posting my thread, it was not the expected result especially from "one of the friendliest forums on the net".


You should be glad that we left the Delonghi Magnifica out of it but Waitrose was just a step too far!

Seriously though most of the people on here are passionate about coffee. Most of us started out in Starbucks or Costa and then decided to have ago at home, I had a Delonghi Magnifica myself and enjoyed it very much, I then took the next step and went fully manual with a grinder and never looked back. As far as I'm concerned you should drink and eat whatever makes you happy and there is nothing wrong with that.

My guess is that most of the comments are harmless banter as the first few posts gave you all the advice you needed to get started and most on here would probably agree with the roaster/bean suggestions. Be sure to let us know how you get on.

p.s. if you think this thread is bad then never search the forum for pergtamp.....


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## Drewster

jeebsy said:


> I thought it was friendly banter....


I don't disagree.... but the OP might not be used to "our ways"......


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## hotmetal

Do Waitrose sell kopi luwak? Seems strangely familiar. ..!


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## jeebsy

hotmetal said:


> Seems strangely familiar. ..!


No it doesn't. Behave.


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## hotmetal

I was just feeling a bit of sympathy for the OP whose first post was to declare that he liked a coffee that, unbeknown to him, fell short of what the forum deems acceptable (rightly or wrongly, not arguing for Waitrose or KL!) This wouldn't be the first time a new member has probably wondered what on earth they've unleashed!


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## jeebsy

I thought you meant the op was suddenly going to reveal himself as a supplier of the brand waitrose use.


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## The Systemic Kid

If you enjoy Waitrose coffee - fine. Same with Starbucks, Costa etc, etc. But if you are new and stumble across this forum, a quick browse around the forum's threads would soon put you in no doubt about the what the forum is all about - the pursuit of coffee excellence. Sadly, what Waitrose and the rest offer just doesn't cut it.


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## Phil104

The Systemic Kid said:


> If you enjoy Waitrose coffee - fine. Same with Starbucks, Costa etc, etc. But if you are new and stumble across this forum, a quick browse around the forum's threads would soon put you in no doubt about the what the forum is all about - the pursuit of coffee excellence. Sadly, what Waitrose and the rest offer just doesn't cut it.


And, of course the pursuit of coffee excellence and all that means is the point of the forum and should be the point of this thread, not where one chooses to shop. In the context of the forum, there is encouragement to choose what coffee to drink and the more one pursues coffee excellence, the more careful is the choice. I would still say to the OP that this is the friendliest forum. There is banter that can come across as a bit cutting (if not offensive) but in my experience the more one reads the forum and begins to get a sense of who posts, most of the time (would it be about 98%?) it is good natured. It's just that initially it can seem a bit exclusive, particularly, I suppose, if you unwittingly post something that is contentious.


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## 4515

Id agree. As with all forums, there is a core of members who post prolifically and could be seen as exclusive. I think I misinterpreted this as exclusivity when I joined.

I can say though that having exchanged PMs, telephone calls and forum days out with some of the forum members that everyone I've been in contact with has a common interest (or is that obsession) about coffee and their comments are made with the best intentions.

Sure, it goes off topic from time to time but it would be a dry (and quiet) forum if this didnt happen.


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