This post is all about identifying the 10 best coffees to try at Central Market. The ground and whole bean coffees and coffee products in this post are the best coffee items I’ve tried from Central Market. I’ve got quite a few of these coffees and other items on my shelves right now.
You might also like my post on the 10 best coffees to buy at Costco.
Here are my ten favorite coffees to buy when I shop at Central Market:
1 – Best Overall Coffee at Central Market – What’s Brewing Tanzania Peaberry
Peaberry coffee is close to my heart and to the hearts of other coffee lovers. Their unique round shape allows for a more complete roast. The result is a sweeter cup, lighter in color but not in body or flavor.
As an added bonus, peaberry coffees tend to have about 20% more caffeine than a standard medium-roast cup of coffee.
What I love about this particular coffee – it has bright acidity along with a full body. That’s a rare combination that just screams “gourmet coffee” to anyone who takes a sip. The flavor is rich, with just enough mild florals to keep things interesting for a long session.
If I could afford to brew this as my standard morning cup, I would. It stands up to any breakfast food you can throw at it and has just enough caffeine strength to get my going without making my head swim.
Central Market sells What’s Brewing Tanzania Peaberry by the pound for $16.99.
2 – Best Central Market Brand Coffee – In-House Roasted Organic Sumatra Tempe
I’m not exaggerating – Central Market’s in-house roasted organic Sumatra Tempe made one of the best cups of drip coffee I’ve had in a long time.
If you like your coffee full-bodied, and if your flavor and aroma preferences tend toward the dark side, you’ve got to buy a pound of Central Market’s Sumatra Tempe – if you can find it in-stock.
For coffee nerds who care about this sort of thing, Central Market’s blend is of both the catimor and typica bean varietals, and they’re all grown at least 1,000 meters of elevation. It produces strong notes of dark chocolate, burnt sugar, and molasses. The finish is all herbal, unique among coffees from this part of the world.
At $13.99 a pound, Central Market’s in-house roasted organic Sumatra Tempe is among their more expensive whole-bean coffees. It’s still only about $0.46 per cup, a totally manageable number for a coffee budget, provided you aren’t drinking a ton of cups per day.
3 – Best Organic Coffee at Central Market – Third Coast Nicaragua Organic
Nicaraguan coffees are coming into their own, and for good reason.
Coffee in Nicaragua is almost all cultivated at a high elevation in areas with a moderate temperature. That produces a naturally sweet bean. Nicaraguan coffee processing methods vary. The best beans, like the ones in Third Coast Coffee’s organic Nicaraguan blend, are processed naturally.
The natural production process and favorable climate make a fine coffee that’s worthy of your attention.
Third Coast’s organic Nicaraguan is a great gourmet coffee stand-in for that can of Folger’s in your parent’s pantry. It’s medium-bodied, roast to a perfect medium, with mild acidity and a little bit of burnt caramel sweetness. There’s nothing about this cup that will be off-putting to everyday coffee drinkers.
Central Market sells Third Coast organic Nicaraguan coffee for $15.99 a pound. That’s on the high-end for their coffee products, but it’s by no means the most expensive coffee you can buy at Central Market.
4 – Best Non-GMO Coffee at Central Market – Grady’s Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate
I never thought I’d see a coffee that’s all-natural, sugar-free, vegan, low-calorie, non-GMO, kosher, and gluten-free all at the same time.
Even crazier – the idea that this product would actually taste good.
Grady’s Cold Brew New Orleans-Style Coffee Concentrate is delicious. It makes a really convenient iced coffee – pour it over a little ice and milk, stir, and enjoy. I’ve also added it to cold milk and chocolate for a pseudo iced mocha. What can I say, it gets really hot in Texas and hot coffee isn’t always what you want.
Grady’s is brewed from 100% Arabica beans. Their blend comes from Central and South America, with the beans chosen explicitly for their cold brew process. I love the little hints of chicory and spice that pop out even through ice and dairy products.
Grady’s is powerful stuff, cold-brewed for 20 hours to develop rich flavors with much less acidity than the hot-brewed stuff.
I usually buy Grady’s Cold Brew Coffee in the small 16 oz. bottles for about $6 a piece. They have other sizes available.
5 – Best Flavored Coffee at Central Market – Addison Coffee Roasters Texas Pecan
Addison, TX’s own Addison Coffee Roasters sells their delicious Texas Pecan flavored coffee to Central Market so people all over the state can enjoy it.
The base here is Addison Coffee Roaster’s signature medium-roast. It’s a blend of Latin American beans. The natural pecan flavor is a Texas favorite. The nutty and warm notes and aromas of Addison’s base coffee jump out with the addition of pecan flavor.
It’s a match made in (Texas) heaven.
I keep a pound of Addison Coffee Roasters Texas Pecan around for when company comes. Nobody in my house is really a huge fan of flavored coffees. But when people gather, it’s nice to make a little decaf, a little full strength, and a flavored pot for people who enjoy it.
6 – Best Coffee Pods at Central Market – Central Market Ethiopian Yirgacheffe K-Cups
As a child of the original 90s gourmet coffee boom, I can’t help but fanboy out when I see Ethiopian Yirgacheffe.
This “Champagne of coffees” was, at one time, the hot name (the “it boy”) of gourmet coffee. Though some of the gild has come off the rose in the decades since, I still think Yirgacheffe is among the finest single-origin beans on the market.
So, I was thrilled to see Central Market’s K-cup version of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe on the shelves. It’s Keurig-compatible. It costs about $9 for a sleeve of 12, so it’s affordable.
As for the flavor – all the hallmarks of a good cup of Yirgacheffe are here. It has soft acidity, a distinct floral sweetness, and an aroma of lemon zest that fills the room as it brews.
If the K-cup process does anything to the brew, it maybe softens some of the brightness and floral characteristics. But, hey, K-cups are about convenience, not subtlety.
7 – Best Light Roast Coffee at Central Market – Fara Coffee Breakfast Blend Light Roast
I didn’t discover Fara Coffee through Central Market.
I discovered this Austin, Tx craft roastery when I had their coffee in the morning at a cute little Austin bed and breakfast last year.
Finding out that you can buy Fara Coffee from Central Market was a revelation.
Light roast coffees are great first thing in the morning. The reduced roast time leaves behind caffeine and other goodies that help us get going. The light roast also brings a mild body with it. That makes light roast great for longer coffee-drinking sessions.
Think Saturday morning reading the newspaper and being lazy. This is the perfect coffee for that.
Fara starts with Central and South American beans, chosen for their brightness and sweet notes. They’re roasted about as light as you’ll see any commercial coffee.
The result is a clean finish with nice subtle notes of stone fruit and milk chocolate.
A 12 oz. bag of Fara Breakfast Blend will set you back around $8 at Central Market.
8 – Best Medium Roast Coffee at Central Market – Casa Brasil Medium Signature Roast
Casa Brasil is an Austin-based coffee roaster. They work directly with Brazilian coffee producers to blend top-tier coffees. Most of their beans come from prized microlots in the high elevations that produce that country’s best coffees.
Casa Brasil’s signature medium roast is a crowd-pleaser. Brazilian beans perform best at a solid medium roast. Any darker and you lose some of the surprise light and fruity notes on the finish. Any lighter and you miss out on the robustness of the bean’s flavor.
My nearest Central Market sells pounds of Casa Brasil Medium Signature Roast for $12.99. I sometimes have a hard time finding it in-store (it’s popular) so I order it online. The price is the same.
9 – Best Dark Roast Coffee at Central Market – Katz Ethiopia Natural Dark
Katz Coffee is a Houston institution. Pretty much every cool coffee shop and hip restaurant in town serves Katz, and it’s been that way for about twenty years.
That’s why I was super excited to see Katz on the shelves and online from Central Market.
Their Ethiopia Natural Dark will be a real treat for fans of dark roast coffees. The beans are prized. They’re from the Guji region, known for its high-end coffee beans. The coffee is processed naturally, bringing out some interesting herbal and fruity notes.
This is a true dark roast; that means heavy body and little acidity. The caffeine content is also lower than even a typical dark roast.
For me, Katz Ethiopia Natural Dark is a perfect fit for dessert or a nighttime coffee with a cigar.
10 – Best Instant Coffee at Central Market – Waka Coffee Colombian Instant Coffee
Every review I’ve ever read of instant coffees has Waka Coffee products at or near the top.
That’s not an accident; Waka Coffee makes some darn good instant coffee. Freeze-dried to preserve aroma and flavor, the beans are packaged perfectly, and they produce a cup that’s just as good as what you might make in a drip pot.
This is a medium roast 100% Arabica Colombian coffee, smooth in body with gentle citrus notes on the finish.
Waka Coffee Colombian Instant Coffee is perfect for when you like a balanced cup of coffee with just enough acidity and just enough body, but you don’t have a lot of time. The last time I bought a box, it was about $10 for 8 single-serve packets (meaning 8 cups of coffee).
Conclusion: 10 Best Coffees to Try at Central Market
I’ve sampled dozens of coffees from Central Market – trust me, these ten are the best you can get right now.
If you think I’ve left off a crucial Central Market coffee find, please leave a comment. I want to know what you guys think about coffees at Central Market stores.