Having seasonally fresh coffee always on hand is one of the many reasons why people choose to subscribe to a coffee service.
Another reason is to get their coffee from the best small-batch roasters. But what if you want to try multiple different roasters and still get your beans seasonally fresh every time?
Bean Box combines these subscription needs into one by offering several different fresh single origins and blends from a wide range of small-batch coffee roasters, delivered to customers based on their preferred frequency.
Bean Box: Company History/Overview
The company of Bean Box was founded by Matthew Berk and Ryan Fritzky with the goal of sharing different small-batch and locally roasted beans with other coffee lovers.
Matthew is in charge of software engineering and the manufacturing process, while Ryan is in charge of marketing and physical product development.
Based in Seattle, Washington, Bean Box partners with some of the country’s top small-batch roasters to bring together delicious coffees for people looking to experience new offerings.
Each bag of beans is picked by their curators, who have also judged award-winning coffees in competitions.
Bean Box Subscription Review
Get a Free Coffee Tasting flight with your first Bean Box Coffee Subscription delivery using code ROASTY or visiting this link!
- Pre-ground available
- Shipping included
- Variety of subscription options
- No way to individually subscribe to coffees
In the box I received from Bean Box, there was one 12-ounce bag of coffee and four sample bags from varying roasters, including Tandem, Medici, Waikiki, Portrait, and Equator.
Bean Box even included a piece of mint chocolate as a little treat to go along with my beans!
Tandem Coffee Roasters: Colombia La Piramide
The 12-ounce bag of beans I got in my box comes from Tandem Coffee Roasters, which is based in Portland, Maine, and remains one of the most unique companies that Bean Box works with.
Their Colombia La Piramide is a year-round offering that originates from Inzá, Colombia, where a group of 300 small producers grow the washed processed beans at an elevation of 1,700 – 2,000 masl.
Described as a super sweet, clean, and complex brew, these beans have tasting notes of red apple, cacao, and sugar cane. Upon my own brewing, I found the aroma was bright and sweet with a slight acidity to it.
This can also be found in the taste, which is bright, bold, acidic, and features an underlying sweetness. The cup works great as a lighter roast!
Medici Roasting: Mexico Sierra Mixteca
The first sample bag of beans I tried comes from Medici Roasting, a company based in Austin, Texas, that grew its brand through several cafes before it actually began roasting.
This coffee, the Mexico Sierra Mixteca, is a washed processed light roast from the region of Santa Maria Yucuhiti/Oaxaca. It’s grown at an elevation of 1,500-1,800 masl in the Sierra Mixteca mountain range between Oaxaca and Puebla.
The small-scale coffee farmers here are descendants of the Mixteca tribe and have dedicated their lives to producing coffee as well as honey and fruits.
Tasting notes for this offering from Medici include rose, cherry, and caramel.
Once I got to brewing, I noticed that the aroma was sweet, bright, and slightly acidic with a nice floral background.
Its taste held a sweet and mellow floral base with a touch of fruity acidity. Overall, it was a nice and light cup of coffee.
Waikiki Coffee: Palekana Blend
The next sample bag I got is from Waikiki Coffee, a roaster in Seattle that partners with smaller Hawaiian coffee farmers through direct-trade relationships. They also work with small farms in Colombia, Brazil, and Ethiopia to produce some of their Hawaiian blends.
The Palekana Blend is a medium roast that’s a mix of Colombian, Kona, and Ethiopian coffees.
“Palekana” means to be protected and the blend is smooth and nutty with tasting notes of dark chocolate, cherry, and mango.
I found that the aroma was a wonderful combination of chocolatey and fruity notes, leaving a sweet and interesting invitation to the brew. It had a rich chocolatey base and a sweet and acidic fruity finish. A nice, well-balanced, and warm cup!
Portrait Coffee: Award Tour Brazil Simone Natural
Another sample bag from Bean Box, Portrait Coffee is a roastery in Atlanta, Georgia, that strives only to source coffee that’s completely traceable to smaller farmers, strengthens farming communities, and tells the heritage story of coffee.
They also have a goal of providing Atlanta residents with career and life opportunities in the coffee field. Portrait was even awarded the Sprudge’s Notable Coffee Roaster of the Year in 2020.
The Award Tour Brazil Simone Natural is a light roast coffee from Brazil that’s naturally processed and represents harmony. Tasting notes include blood orange, floral, and tropical fruit with a soft finish.
The aroma of this cup is a delicious combination of sweet fruity and floral notes that complement each other really well. I
ts taste is a well-balanced brew of fruits and florals that aren’t overly sweet or acidic.
Equator Coffees: Equator Blend
The last of the sample bags of coffee I received is from Equator Coffees, a roastery based in San Rafael, California, that works hard to produce high-quality, sustainable, and socially responsible coffee.
Equator is a Fair Trade, Organic, and B-Corp certified company that became the first LGBTQ-owned business to win the National Small Business of the Year by the Small Business Administration in 2016.
The Equator Blend is a medium-dark roast that originates from Sumatra, Kenya, Colombia, and Brazil. Coffees included in this blend are wet-hulled and washed processed, and grown at an altitude of 4,400-5,900 feet.
Tasting notes are mellow and complex with flavors of cedar, apricot, marzipan, milk chocolate, and nutmeg.
Upon brewing, I found that the aroma was a nice woody, toasty, chocolatey, and sweet combination, providing a warm and delicious invitation to the brew.
Its taste is warm and toasty, creating a delicious and soft bold drink that’s chocolatey, woody, and roasty.
Bean Box: Subscription Options
Get a Free Coffee Tasting flight with your first Bean Box Coffee Subscription delivery using code ROASTY or visiting this link!
- Pre-ground available
- Shipping included
- Variety of subscription options
- No way to individually subscribe to coffees
When subscribing to Bean Box, all you have to do is fill out your preferred options to lead to your own personalized subscription service. First, you can pick between getting your coffee sent to you in whole-bean form or pre-ground.
Next, you get to pick what type of coffee Bean Box will send you. They have options of light and bright roasts that are floral and fruit-forward, medium and cozy roasts that are chocolatey and nutty, dark and toasty roasts that are bold and delicious, espresso roasts, or decaf roasts.
However, their most popular subscription option is the Curator’s Choice, which lets you explore new seasonal single-origins and blends from some of the best small-batch roasters in the U.S. These coffees are hand-selected by Bean Box’s curation team.
Once you’ve settled on a roast preference, you can then choose to get deliveries of one 12-ounce bag or two 12-ounce bags on a frequency of either every week, every two weeks, or every month.
Bean Box: Roasting
Bean Box sources their coffee from the small-batch roasters that they partner with and freshly roasts them in Seattle. By purchasing through Bean Box, customers can support the small-scale roasters and the direct relationships that they have with coffee producers.
The roasters that Bean Box partners with have been selected not only for their careful sourcing process but also for their high-quality standards. Bean Box has a “Ready to Ship” section that contains coffee that has been roasted within the past 1-2 weeks, guaranteeing some pretty fresh brews.
Bean Box: Pricing
The great thing about Bean Box is that whether you select their Curator’s Choice subscription or one of the individual roasts, the prices are the same all around. At the time of writing, one bag of coffee is priced at $20 every week, $22 every two weeks, and $24 every month.
Meanwhile, for two bags of coffee, the cost is $38 every week, $40 every two weeks, and $44 every month. On top of that, shipping is included, so you don’t have to pay any extra fees for that!
The subscription options are curated by Bean Box’s Cup of Excellence Judge, Maryna Gray, and you also get exclusive member perks when you subscribe. These perks include exclusive savings on single coffees, 5% back in credits for every purchase, promotions, early access to certain products, and even surprise gifts!
What Makes Bean Box Unique?
Bean Box stands apart from other coffee subscription services by offering a variety of expertly curated high-quality coffee that’s not only seasonally fresh but also comes straight from some of the best independent small-batch roasters in the U.S.
As they’ll tell you, they “stand out from the competition by delivering seasonally fresh single origins and classic blends from multiple roasters in one convenient delivery, saving customers both time and money.”
How To Cancel Bean Box
To make any changes to your Bean Box coffee subscription box, you can log into your account on their website and manage your account from there.
Whether you need to receive deliveries sooner, skip deliveries, pause deliveries, change which roast selection you’re receiving, or change shipping and billing information, you can do it all under your account.
If you want to cancel your subscription, you can do this under the same section. Since customers are billed every Thursday, it’s important that you cancel before 5 PM (PST) on Thursdays so that you aren’t charged for your next shipment.
Get a Free Coffee Tasting flight with your first Bean Box Coffee Subscription delivery using code ROASTY or visiting this link!
- Pre-ground available
- Shipping included
- Variety of subscription options
- No way to individually subscribe to coffees
Bean Box: Final Thoughts
A subscription with Bean Box is one that allows you to experience several different roasts that are seasonally fresh and come from some of the best small-batch coffee roasters around the country. You can explore expertly curated brews through an easy process and a general price.
Bean Box eliminates the issue of being limited to one roaster while still allowing customers to support small-scale roasters and the producers that they work with.
Plus, the freshly roasted beans that are picked just for you based on your coffee preferences are inarguably delicious!
Bean Box Subscription Review: Exploring Small-Batch Roasters
We present an in-depth Bean Box subscription review of some of the small-batch coffee roasters that they partner with.
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