My Eight O’Clock Coffee review
by Coffee Cynic Turned Avid Coffee Drinker!

– Jeremy from Colorado

Drinking Eight O'clock Coffee

Well, I’m sure most of you can relate to this, but when I was younger (18ish??? I am 26 now), I HATED the taste of coffee.  When someone would offer me some, I would turn them down hatefully.  I couldn’t understand why anybody would like to ingest something so bitter and “burnt” tasting. I’ll admit I was a 100% genuine coffee cynic.

As I got older, I began to enjoy the smell of coffee.  I would see others in restaurants sitting with their hands wrapped tightly around their coffee mugs, talking, laughing, reading, etc., and it started to reshape the image that I had of all things coffee-related.

Then, I started to read articles in magazines about the “healthy” benefits of coffee in general.  That blew me away!  Here I thought that coffee was bad for you because of the caffeine and the “jitters” it sometimes induces!

So I gave coffee another try.  I would load it up with creamer and sugar and you know what?  It didn’t taste half bad!  It was almost like a dessert, and I could drink it anytime I wanted without fear of ridicule for “having sweets” to early in the morning.

I went from there to drinking it black, then trying several different coffee brands, ways of preparing coffee, and so on.  I am happy to announce today that I am an avid coffee drinker, and a believer in the way it makes a person feel, both physically and mentally.  I am always visited by pleasant feelings when I think of or drink coffee.  It goes great with almost anything, and the aromas are amazing.

Oh, and after all the brands I’ve tried, I settled on Eight O’clock Original Coffee.  It’s amazing!  I have yet to buy whole bean and grind it myself.  Maybe that will be my next coffee endeavor!  Thanks for reading!

by Jeremy

At PurelyCoffeeBeans, I’ve answered lots of questions over the years. You’ll find the questions and their answers scattered throughout the site! I’m always open to more questions, if you’re frustrated or curious, or you want to review a coffee, why don’t you drop me a line!

This week we welcome…!

1. What time is it? Eight O’clock Coffee Time!

What time is it? Oh, it’s eight o’clock. Time for coffee! Time for Eight O’Clock Coffee! If you’ve bought any coffee in a supermarket, you’ll find that the Eight O’Clock coffeeir?t=purelycoffee 20&l=ur2&o=1 brand is on many supermarket shelves and is generally reckoned to be a great tasting coffee.

q? encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B006HYMUGK&Format= SL250 &ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=pcb coffee brands 20&language=en USir?t=pcb coffee brands 20&language=en US&l=li3&o=1&a=B006HYMUGK

Check out Eight O’clock Coffee products on Amazon.
Discover its true character and price!

In fact, it featured in our recent Coffee Brands 2020 survey, which you can check out here.

2. How about that name?

Eight O’Clock coffee is a light roast coffee that was introduced by A&P in 1859.  People bought it as fast as they could stock the shelves and A&P realized they needed a good name for their coffee. So they hired a marketing company that did a survey on what time the average person actually drank coffee, hoping to get a good catch phrase and name from the interviews.

The results of a survey by the company showed that the majority of respondents drank coffee at around 8 AM and again after dinner about 8 PM.  Thus, they named their popular coffee Eight O’Clock Coffee.

3. Where does Eight O’Clock Coffee come from?

In fact, Eight O’Clock Coffee sold so well that in the 1930s it had a 25% share of the market.  It was actually the most popular coffee sold in America and sales increased more when A&P began to offer pre-ground coffee.

Eventually, it was bought by Tata Coffee and is now the third largest seller of whole bean coffee in America.  For decades, Eight O’Clock had claimed to be the best tasting coffee in the world and the new owners saw no reason to change that.

Nearly everyone who drinks the coffee will attest to its superiority over other supermarket shelf coffees.  People agree it’s about the best coffee on the shelves of your local grocery and generally better than the premium brands that cost twice as much.  It can be bought in cans and bags of pre-ground coffee or beans to grind at the store or at home.

4. What is Eight O’Clock Coffee’s secret?

Most of the cheaper commercial coffees use Robusta coffee beans as filler because it saves money but it also makes for a listless, bitter cup.  Eight O’Clock is an economy coffee that tastes more expensive than it is partly because they use 100% Arabica beans.

The bag of regular Eight O’Clock Coffee you’ll see on the supermarket shelf will yield coffee that it is slightly sweeter with a hint of chocolate.

5. What coffee formats do Eight O’Clock Coffee sell?

Eight O’Clock offers a wide range of traditional roasts so there is a coffee for everyone, literally. This wide range allows them to pitch to a wide range of customers all at a very reasonable price point.

I won’t cover them all, because there really are too many. Moreover, not every coffee is available in every format.

  • Ground Coffee appeals to the largest segment who drink coffee every day
  • Whole Coffee Beans for those who grind daily
  • Flavors of America for those looking for a little spice in their daily cup
  • Barista Blends is targeting the Starbucks-type crowd
  • Single Serve focuses on the K-cup market for the Keurig
  • Indulgent tempts those who love dessert-type coffee drinks

6. Eight O’Clock Ground Coffee

Their traditional coffee is the backbone of their roasting history. It’s available in three formats – Whole, ground and K-cup. Flavors include the following:

Learn more about Colombian coffee in our article.

Eight O’Clock Decaffeinated

I was glad to see that decaff options are as varied as they are:

  • Decaf Original
  • 50% Decaf
  • Decaf 100% Colombian

If you’re interested in lowering your caffeine intake, we highlight some ways you can reduce it.

7. Specialty & Barista Blends and Flavored & ‘Indulgent’ Coffees

Their specialty roasts and barista blends aren’t particularly expensive:

Flavored & ‘Indulgent’ Coffees

Many coffee drinkers like added flavors. Eight O’Clock Coffee surely has them!

  • Hazelnut
  • French Vanilla
  • Mocha

8. K-Cup Blends knock out! 

Though Eight O’Clock Coffee’s K-Cup blends aren’t as popular as their regular coffee, you can find pretty much all the popular blends typical of this coffee company, like:

  • French Roast
  • French Vanilla
  • Mocha Macchiato

Eight O’clock Coffee’s Coffee is popular, affordable, and available now. If you’ve never tried, why not put a 1/2-lb of Eight O’Clock’s Columbian Blend, known for its smooth or rich flavor, in your basket now!

Or if you prefer something with more body, enjoy their French roast coffee.

But this medium roast is a good value if you can’t or don’t want to spend the big bucks on premium beans.  It is crisp with hints of chocolate and cherry. You’ll find that it’s a well balanced cup with mild acidity, feels silky to the mouth and has a lingering finish with a slight nutty taste.

All in all, Eight O’Clock is a good traditional cup of coffee that will start your morning right even if it’s not yet 8 o’clockir?t=purelycoffee 20&l=ur2&o=1. You can also serve it as a perfect end to a good dinner, right after your dessert course! Perfect!

Tata Beverages is the current owner of Eight O’Clock Coffee: Tata Coffee.


What are the best coffee brands, find out here!

Signature of PurelyCoffeeBeans in calligraphic brush style