Victor Allen's Coffee French Roast, Dark Roast, Single Serve Coffee Pods for Keurig K-Cup Brewers

What is French Roast Coffee?

Most people have little idea about what actually makes a coffee “French Roast.” Which makes sense, because the name is a bit misleading. French Roast coffee isn’t cultivated or even roasted in France. Nope, the term refers solely to the color the beans are roasted to.

The roasting process is responsible for certain flavor characteristics of a given brew. Taste, aroma, and body are all affected by the roast of the bean. Beans roasted to the French Roast classification are intensely rich and delicately smooth, with a bold, full-flavor taste.

At Victor Allen’s Coffee, we love the craft of roasting.  Maybe that’s why we have a special connection to our French Roast for K-Cup Keurig 2.0 Brewers. Unlike a location-specific bean, the flavor distinction of French Roast coffee comes directly from the roasting process. We take great care to make sure our beans are always precision roasted to perfection. Every roast. Every time.

How is French Roast Coffee Made?

A long time ago, coffee roast profiles were defined by the countries where they were most dominant. In France, people preferred their beans roasted to a dark mahogany hue. Of course, today, the market is much more varied—there are ample roast profiles and countries of origin, all of which impart distinct flavors into the coffee.

While the name carried on over all these years, coffee roasters now follow a more scientific method for defining the roast profile of their beans. It’s called the Agtron Scale—it measures bean color and goes from a level of 25 to 95.  Typically, a French Roast coffee will fall between 28 and 35.

Each roaster’s bean preference and roasting formula is unique. At Victor Allen’s Coffee, we start with only 100% Arabica beans for our French Roast. That’s a given. Then comes the fun part.

We’ll admit, we get a little nuts with the Agtron Scale. Some call it persnickety, but we prefer to call it detailed. We like our beans to fall smack dab in the 30-31 range, to produce a consistent, perfectly smoky flavor in every roast.

What Does French Roast Coffee Taste Like?

Generally, French Roast coffee is characterized by its velvety smooth, decadently rich body and dark, smoky flavor. Due to the vaguely defined and entirely unenforced guidelines of the roast, we’ve seen so-called “French Roast” beans floating around out there that are anything but.

Victor Allen’s Coffee French Roast Blend stays true to its roots. It’s a full-bodied roast, with a hearty mouthfeel. A slightly sharp, bittersweet flavor profile is smoothed out nicely with the muted acidity brought about by the slow roasting process.

The aroma enters strong and settles soft like a whisper—dynamic but refined. Prominent notes of roasted cacao permeate quick and dissipate gently, leaving a pleasantly smoky feel in the air.