Many of us do enjoy top-quality coffee made by experienced baristas. However, it isn’t something that we can get every morning. Pre-ground coffee like Cafe Bustelo and Folgers is what most of us consume to kick-start our day. Below, we will compare Cafe Bustelo vs Folgers to find the best pre-ground coffee that you can get from the local store.
Continue reading below to find out more about:
– The company that is producing each coffee brand here
– The coffee variants of Cafe Bustelo and Folgers
– The available packaging sizes on each coffee brand
– The comparison of their flavor profiles
– Which pre-ground coffee that is generally more recommended
Cafe Bustelo: Company History
Cafe Bustelo was created by Gregorio Menendez Bustelo, who traveled from Spain to Cuba when he was young and then moved to the United States in 1917. He started the Cafe Bustelo company in New York in 1928. His coffee quickly became popular among Cuban people in the area, who prepared the coffee in espresso makers instead of sock filters.
Today, Cafe Bustelo is available in various packaging forms. Besides the usual ground coffee, it also comes in K-Cup pods, which you can use to make coffee with a Nespresso machine like Nespresso Inissia vs Vertuoline.
Cafe Bustelo was highly successful throughout the 20th century. It became known for its distinctive yellow-and-red color scheme. It became a popular cachet in artistic subcultures throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
However, in 2000, Cafe Bustelo was bought by the Rowland Coffee Roasters of Miami. In the same year, Rowland was purchased by the Cuban-American Souto family. Later, in 2011, it was sold to the J.M. Smucker Company.
Cafe Bustelo: Variants and Packaging Sizes
Cafe Bustelo is widely known for its Cuban-style espresso. A Cuban-style espresso is a type of espresso that came from Cuba and is typically sweetened with demerara sugar that has previously been whipped with the strongest espresso drops. It is usually dark and strong.
Cafe Bustelo itself was originally roasted and sold by Cuban immigrants. It was meant to be used for making café con leche, which is a Spanish coffee drink made from strong espresso and scalded milk in a 1:1 ratio. Nowadays, Cafe Bustelo has become quite popular outside the Hispanic market, most particularly among heavy coffee drinkers who prefer dark brews.
Cafe Bustelo is available in several versions. First, there is the normal espresso ground coffee, which is available in several packaging forms: cans, bricks, single-serve packets, and even K-Cup pods. For the can packaging, there are 10-oz, 22-oz, and 36-oz sizes available. For the brick packaging, there are 6-oz, 10-oz, and 16-oz sizes available. Cafe Bustelo also has a decaffeinated version of the espresso style.
Secondly, there is Supreme Bustelo Espresso, which is an Arabica coffee with a very fine grind and a full-bodied flavor. This version is available in 10-oz cans and 10-oz bricks. You can also get the whole-bean version which is available in 16-oz and 32-oz cans, or the freeze-dried instant coffee which is available in 3.52-oz tubes.
Thirdly, there is Cafe Bustelo Sweet and Creamy, which is a line of instant coffee products. There are two flavors: café con leche (coffee with milk) and café con chocolate (coffee with chocolate). There are two packaging options: ready-to-drink cans and single-serve instant coffee packets.
Cafe Bustelo: Flavor
How is the flavor of Cafe Bustelo vs Folgers? We take the standard espresso-style Cafe Bustelo as the basis of our comparison. This is a good basis because it can be used for making espresso-style or Americano-style drinks, and various other coffee-based drinks.
The very first thing that you need to know about Cafe Bustelo is that it is very strong. Some people described it as very bitter. Hence, it is only suitable for certain coffee drinkers.
The texture is very good. It has been ground finely and evenly. If you try to pour the ground coffee into a glass, you will find that the texture is consistent. You can brew it manually by putting the ground coffee into a glass and pour hot water all over it. Or, you can put the ground coffee into your automatic espresso maker to save yourself from too much hassle.Either way, Cafe Bustelo can be processed well.
The flavor is really strong and bitter. The coffee is very acrid. The concentrated shot will definitely keep your eyes open so that you can go through the day. Both the caffeine content and the flavor are responsible for this effect – it is hard not to jolt up after sipping the superbly strong bitterness.
Unless you are a fan of the bitterness, you will want to add some milk into the espresso-style coffee. Interestingly, the coffee can pair well with the flavor of the milk. If you mix the coffee and the milk in a 1:1 ratio, this is what you call as café con leche. By adding milk, you can significantly reduce the bitterness. The milk’s sweetness will improve the flavor profile and make it more enjoyable for a wider range of people.
Folgers: Company Information
Interestingly, Cafe Bustelo vs Folgers now belong to the same parent company. Yes, Folgers is actually also a part of the J.M. Smucker Company. Since the 1990s, Folgers has become the best-selling ground coffee in the United States. The coffee company was started in San Francisco in 1950 by the Pioneer Steam Coffee and Spice Mills.
The founder of this company, William H. Bovee, seized an opportunity to produce roasted ground coffee that is ready for brewing. Before Folgers, Californian people typically had to buy and grind whole beans by themselves. The mill was built by James A. Folger, who later bought out the partners of the company to get a full ownership and renamed the company according to his name.
Folgers grew dramatically in the 1900s, thanks to Frank P. Atha who opened and managed a Folgers coffee plant in Texas. In the middle of the 20th century, under the leadership of Peter Folger, Folgers became one of the major coffee brands in North America. In 1963, Folgers was purchased by Procter & Gamble. During this ownership, Folgers managed to become the number one brand of coffee in America.
However, in 2008, Folgers was acquired by the J.M. Smucker Company using a financial technique named Reverse Morris Trust. This is definitely a smart move by the buyer, as it allowed them to buy Folgers tax-free. Since then, Folgers has become a subsidiary company of the J.M. Smucker Company.
Folgers: Variants and Packaging Sizes
So far, Folgers has produced at least twelve different lines of coffee, which are all available in the United States. They are:
– Classic Roast, which include the classic “red can” roast and the half-caffeine medium roast.
– Classic Complements, which offers dark roast, medium-dark roast, and light roast options.
– Folgers Gourmet Selections, which is a line of flavored and varietal coffee products.
– 1850, a premium line with whole-bean, ground, K-Cup, and iced options.
– Simply Smooth, which is a medium-roast coffee.
– Singles, which are single-serve coffee packets.
– Flavored Coffee, which includes French Vanilla, Cinnamon, Hazelnut, and Chocolate Silk options.
– Instant Coffee, which is available in regular and decaf options.
– Home Cafe Pods, which is for one-cup brewing systems.
– Folgers Flavors Coffee Enhancers, which provide Caramel, Mocha, Hazelnut, and Vanilla flavorings for your coffee.
– Cappuccino, which includes French Vanilla and Mocha Chocolate flavor options.
– Folgers Iced Cafe Coffee Drink, which includes Original Latte, Vanilla Latte, Hazelnut Latte, and Caramel Macchiato options.
In Canada, Folgers is mostly available in the Classic Roast and the Mountain Roast options. Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, Folgers Instant Crystals for quick and easy brewing are available.
Folgers: Flavor
If we compare the flavor of Cafe Bustelo vs Folgers, the difference is quite significant. Folgers is notably different from any other ground coffee in the market. You can easily distinguish it from other products during a blind test. It is generally sweet. We take the espresso-style Folgers Classic Roast as the basis of this comparison.
The texture is great. The ground coffee is fine and even. So, you don’t need to worry about inconsistency caused by uneven grind levels. A regular brew consists of one tablespoon of ground coffee and 6-fl-oz of hot water.
The Folgers Classic Roast will immediately impress you from the first sip with the nutty taste. The nutty notes are very pleasant in the rich flavor profile. There is still some bitterness that is the typical of coffee, but it is not dominating. Instead, there is a strong sweetness that melts the profile in an enjoyable way. The aroma is somewhat a reminiscent of malted milk coffee.
Overall, the sweet flavor of Folgers Classic is good. It is not something that may ruin the coffee flavor. Instead, it is the distinctive characteristic of this coffee. People who don’t like bitter coffee will definitely enjoy Folgers. However, if you are the type of person who enjoy super-strong dark-brew coffee, Folgers probably will not satisfy your taste.
Cafe Bustelo vs Folgers
Conclusion
In general, between these two coffee brands, Folgers is more recommended. It has a flavor that is more enjoyable for a wider range of people. It is quite sweet with some nutty notes. Someone who doesn’t drink coffee frequently will still find it nice. It is not too harsh.