Nerd Fuel: Mystic Monk Coffee – Snickering Monk Candy Bar
In my quest to sample a wide variety of K-Cups, I occasionally come across some rather obscure coffees. A good example would be the Butter Moon variety by Ugly Mug Coffee – I’ve never seen it on the shelf since the fateful day I discovered it. Ugly Mug is a little known company, but one that makes some really incredible coffee. When deciding to branch out a bit for this review, I knew that my first stop was going to have to be Mystic Monk.
Being a Roman Catholic, this is a brand of coffee that’s been on my radar for quite a while. I had seen ads for it in my local Catholic bookstore or occasionally in newsletters that come in the mail. This company is actually ran by a cloister of monks out in Wyoming. Coffee brewing is how they support their monastery. They prepare and roast the beans themselves. The coffee is then sold via mail order or online. I’ve tried a few of their offerings over the years and found them to be pretty tasty. This last Christmas, I was given a box of their Snickering Monk Candy Bar coffee as a gift. So, what other option do I have but to review it here!
Snickering Monk is a medium roast coffee that is flavored to taste like a Snickers candy bar. Of course, it’s not a licensed product so they can’t come right out and say “Snickers”. Nonetheless, the flavor does indeed taste very similar. I’m always a bit weary any time I try a flavored coffee. More often than not, flavored coffees end up tasting very fake or have a funky aftertaste. It’s few and far between to find a flavored coffee that doesn’t suffer from one of these two complaints. Thankfully, Snickering Monk does not have either of these problems. This coffee does not taste like grinds that have been over-saturated in a low quality syrup. In fact, it has a very mild and natural flavor profile. You can taste the quality of the coffee blend itself as well as the balanced flavor of chocolate, caramel, and peanuts. I’m not sure how they managed it, but it’s very well done.
The packaging for the coffee seems a bit amateurish when compared with big companies. The pods themselves are not branded. I’m sure these are some sort of empty “fill-and-seal” pods that they load up and then package. At first, this struck me as a little odd. But then, once you think about it, you come to realize that’s an example of how “boutique” this coffee really is. This is not just some outsourced product with a label slapped on it. This is real craft coffee that was roasted and handled by a person who dedicates themselves to their work. That’s something I find admirable and it really shows in the quality of this product.
This is one of the few flavored coffees that I found to be worthy of raving over. It’s perfect for a chilly winter morning or even for a snuggly night in front of your favorite movie/game.
Score: 4 out of 4
Would buy again?: YES! I cannot rave enough about this coffee. Everything from the quality of the coffee itself to the amazing flavor is top notch. I can’t wait to try some of their other offerings. If you like coffee and Snickers bars, there’s really no reason not to try it.
