And we're back!
Today I'm reviewing nitros, which means this coffee is infused with nitrogen
to make the texture a bit more creamy and bubble-y.
A good nitro should always have a head on it, almost like a beer.
First up is High Brew against Starbucks,
and I actually remembered water today to "cleanse the palette."
High Brew wins.
When I opened this one, it let out steam!
Now it's High Brew against Rise.
High Brew's just too smokey.
And Rise is the winner here.
It is questionable when you can't even hear the nitrogen...
I think there might have been something wrong with this can of B-Sweet.
It had absolutely no nitrogen feel to it,
and it did NOT taste great.
Modern Times makes a nitro, too!
It's the same "Blackhouse Blend," but they put nitrogen in it.
And you can see it's much lighter than Rise, which usually means the flavor's going to be
a bit more complex.
I really liked the coffee, but again - it didn't have enough nitrogen in it.
Rise won out.
This one tasted like grass!
I would NOT recommend Trident!
I got two options from the "Nitro Beverage Co."
This is their espresso blend, in the smaller can.
Because it was an espresso blend, it wasn't my favorite;
I still like Rise better!
Oooh! But look at that!
That's a good nitro right there!
That looks like how nitro SHOULD look.
Beautifully foamy - this is the other Nitro Beverage Co,
this is their original Cold Brew Coffee.
And I did have a hard time with this one!
They're pretty comp, but there's just something about the Rise that has a delicious flavor.
Stumptown definitely wins for best can.
And look at that foam!
That's another beautiful pour right there.
Little bit lighter than the Rise.
But once all that initial foam went down, the coffee itself was a bit disappointing.
This is when the caffeine hit.
We're going with the first of two Groundwork cans, and Rise still won out.
Both of these cans were pretty dark-roasted.
And though I did like the yellow Groundwork can over the red one,
Rise still got it.
Now, Verve is one of my favorite coffee shops in Los Angeles,
and I have had this "Original" flash brew before.
It's great stuff,
it's a great everyday coffee,
but it's just a little too basic;
Rise won out,
which I was kind of surprised by.
But we've got another can of Verve,
and look at the nitro in this one!
That's a good coffee.
(Ooooh!)
This is their Ethiopian flash brew.
It's a single origin, and it's pretty light,
so it has a lot of complex - kind of - "flowery" notes to it.
But is it too light?
Would I drink it everyday?
I feel like I should choose something here that's really good and interesting,
but also not too crazy.
I mean, I would probably go with Rise.
That was the one I was drawn to finish drinking the most,
but I'd be happy with any of these last four, honestly.
From least favorite on the right to most favorite on the left,
this is my ranking of all the nitros.
But here's the real test:
comparing it to the Blue Bottle "Bright" from yesterday's winner.
Now, these two coffees are pretty incomparable, because
one's a cold brew, one's a nitro,
the Bright is pretty light roast, and the nitro is not so much.
Let's do it anyways!
Similar color, surprisingly.
I forgot how much I liked that Blue Bottle "Bright."
I mean, again, I'd be happy with either one,
I'd probably not drink a nitro everyday, but I've never tried it before,
so who knows?
And if I had to recommend them, I'd say any of these four.
We've got lighter roasts on the left, darker/medium roasts on the right.
And now they're rearranged for cold brews on the left, and nitros on the right.
Any of these four would make me perfectly happy.
And... very, very caffeinated.
So caffeinated.
Ridiculously caffeinated.
And now I know which cans to grab when I'm at the store
and in need of a little luxury.