Gevalia Coffee Club Review
Gevalia Bagged Coffee
$6.99Coffee Choices | Selective |
---|---|
Coffee Types | Whole Bean, Ground, Light Roast, Medium Roast, Dark Roast, Espresso, Decaf, Flavored, Iced |
Coffee Delivery Frequency | Every 2 Weeks, Every 4 Weeks, Every 6 Weeks, Every 8 Weeks, Every 10 Weeks |
Coffee Package Size | One – 8oz Bag, One – 12oz Bag |
The Swedes sure do love their coffee. Started over 150 years ago, Gevalia is a staple amongst European coffee makers and is marketed as a premium brand here in the United States. Because of its long history and cementation in Swedish culture, Gevalia offers some of the best coffee in the world, sourced from places like Hawaii and India.
One of the oldest coffee makers in the world, Gevalia brings the rich coffee history of Sweden to the US and abroad.
- Extensive coffee selection
- 150 years of experience
- Clean Website
- Wide variety of gift options
- Coffee freshness isn’t up to par
- No dedicated coffee club
- Shipping isn’t free
Coffee Selection: (Rating: 10/10)
The Good
Gevalia offers 30 premium coffee types in iced, decaf, and k-cup varieties.
Many of their best-sellers are more standard flavors like the Vanilla Regular Ground, which has a hint of honey-almond mixed in with a rich vanilla flavor. Another flavor, the Pecan Torte, has a nutty, buttery taste with elements of caramel mixed in the background. After you add the cream to this coffee, it becomes more than just a morning pick-me-up, it becomes a special dessert enjoyed with breakfast.
One of the cooler elements of the Iced Coffee is that many are made with almond milk. This is especially helpful to those with dairy sensitivities, as the almond flavor is especially sweet, negating the need for milk.
Gevalia also has their reserve coffees that you can sign up for your auto delivery.
When you sign up for Gevalia, you choose between their bagged coffees (with more than 30 flavors), K-Cups (including their latte varieties), or their Tassimo T Disc Packs (including espresso and tea).
The Bad
Nothing. Gevalia has one of the largest selections for you to select for your own auto delivery plan.
Coffee Bean Freshness: (Rating: 7/10)
The Good
All of the Gevalia coffees come in light-protected bags that are vacuum-sealed for maximum freshness. Whether you order whole beans or grounds, the coffees are protected from light and air — the killers of freshness.
The Bad
While Gevalia does offer single-origin coffee sourced from places all over the globe, there’s no extra emphasis on coffee freshness like the smaller online coffee clubs. After the beans are roasted, they sit in the packaging until they’re either shipped to retailers or ordered online.
The coffee doesn’t arrive 3 days after roasting like other clubs. Despite this absent emphasis on freshness, Gevalia is a bigger company who can source better beans from many area, but some customers may focus more on freshness and quality than variety.
Coffee Quality and Taste: (Rating: 6/10)
Read my full experience of Gevalia Coffee Club to see how trying this club’s coffee turned out.
The Good
Gevalia does have an excellent selection of Special Reserve coffees.
I ordered two special reserves, including their Toraja and Rainforest Organic.
The rainforest was okay, but still too bitter for my tastes. It was a lighter roast, but lacked the sweetness and fruitiness most lighter roasts have. Instead it was very acidic. But, it was still good.
While I didn’t have the best experience, I have had other Gevalia coffees in the past, which is why they are not scoring extremely low. In the past, Gevalia has impressed. But, these two special reserves unfortunately didn’t do well.
The Bad
I’m one of those people that you can rarely disappoint with coffee. Even if there is a coffee I don’t like, I will usually continue to drink it (I’m that addicted).
That being said, I think I found my coffee cryptonite.
Gevalia’s Special Reserve Toraja was the grossest coffee I’ve ever had. The aftertaste was so bitter that it remained in my mouth for a long time. The acidity and flavors were beyond disgusting to me. I am not exaggerating when I say I spit the coffee out.
You can read my full experience in my blog post.
Memberships/Pricing: (Rating: 8/10)
The Good
Gevalia doesn’t offer a coffee club per-say, but it does offer a dynamic plan that automatically ships coffee whenever the customer wants it. This does come with its strengths.
For instance the customer knows exactly what kind of coffee is coming every time, and they also know when they can expect it in their mailbox.
Instead of running the risk of not enjoying this months kind of coffee, the customer knows they can enjoy the shipment every time.
Price-wise, Gevalia is extremely reasonable, even with their bags of coffee. You could get a bag of coffee for as little as $6.99 for 12-ounces or about $0.58 per ounce. That’s extremely low compared to other clubs.
The Bad
Despite the positives, it still would’ve been nice to have another club that ships random coffee for those that wanted to try new things.
Also, you will receive the same coffee every month. For some people, this is excellent. For others, the lack of variety can get old quick.
Additional Club Perks: (Rating: 8/10)
The Good
Gevalia does offer free shipping for a year to any customer who purchases two subscription-eligible items.
They also allow customers to change or cancel shipments whenever they want.
The Bad
After your year, you will have to pay shipping.
Also, there’s no discount for auto delivery.
Shipping/Packaging: (Rating: 7/10)
The Good
The auto-delivery feature is very useful, but it’s also something that many other clubs have as well.
Shipping is not free with Gevalia, unless you take advantage of certain special offers on the site that require you to jump into a long membership.
There is also no expedited shipping.
All Gevalia coffees come in a clearly labeled box and coffees are protected.
The Bad
There’s nothing special about their packaging and compared to other clubs and auto-delivery services, presentation is lacking.
To unlock the free shipping for one year, you must order a minimum of two products from the year-round selections. Not all coffees qualify for the year-round discount.
There are no brewing instructions or tasting notes included with the shipments.
Gift Memberships: (Rating: 8/10)
The Good
For just over $110 you could get a Gevalia Coffeemaker complete with a 20oz House Blend. You can also get a Rainforest Alliance certified Variety Basket, which offers coffee that has been cultivated on farms with at least 40% shade covering—prolonging maturity and making for a more intense flavoring.
Coffee isn’t the only thing that’s offered; customers can also purchase accessories like waffle makers, umbrellas, or even Porcelain Tea Sets, making for an extensive gift store.
They do have plenty of gift bundles to purchase, such as the Triple Indulgence Bundle with three coffees or their Espresso Bundle that includes a Gevalia-branded cup.
The Bad
There is no gift “membership”, but there is a variety of gift items offered through the store.
Overall, the auto delivery is more of a personal experience and it’s not designed to be given as a gift.
There are no gift cards either.
Website: (Rating: 10/10)
The Good
The Gevalia website is beautifully simple, which is expected given the size of the company.
The checkout process, menus, and layout of the pages are top-notch. While Gevalia doesn’t have a blog, it does have a page dedicated to downloadable recipes for visitors. The lack of informational value is made up for with the selection and organization of the site, making a clean experience for every user.
The Bad
There isn’t much negative to say about their website. They give you plenty of information about the auto delivery, including their policies.
Customer Service: (Rating: 6/10)
The Good
There is a dedicated phone line and built-in messaging system on the site. They state that they will respond to all emails and questions within 24 hours.
The Bad
While Gevalia states they will respond to emails within 24 hours, we sent them two separate emails as well as reached out to them on social media with absolutely no response. Therefore, we feel that a lower score in customer service is warranted. While we were requesting information for our review, we do worry that their lack of response will carry over into general customer service questions/concerns. If you need to reach them, it may be best to use live chat or phone; since email obviously delivers no response.
Gevalia Pricing
Bagged Coffee Deliveries: Receive as many bagged varieties of coffee as you want per month for the price per bag. Prices range from $6.99 to $12.99 depending on coffee variety.
Iced Coffee Deliveries: Receive one carton of Iced Coffee at 11.1 oz. or an 8 pack of cartons weighing 33.8 oz. each. Prices range from $2.19 to $39.89 depending on the iced coffee package.
K-Cup Coffee Deliveries: Receive shipments of k-cup pods in packages of 6-54. Prices range from $9.29 to $32.99 depending on the number of k-cups in the coffee package.
Tassimo T Disc Deliveries: Receive shipments of Tassimo specialty coffees, brews, and teas. Prices range from $7.99 to $11.99 per package.
Gevalia Bagged Coffee
$6.99Gevalia K-Cup
$9.29Gevalia Tassimo T-Discs
$7.99
Pricing |
Monthly Price Range: $6.99 - $32.99 Pkg. Size: 8 oz. - 20 oz. How soon after roasting do beans ship: Not Specified |
---|
Shipping Frequency |
Every 2 Weeks Every 4 Weeks Every 6 Weeks Every 8 Weeks Every 10 Weeks |
---|
Club Duration |
On-going Until Cancel |
---|
Coffee Types |
Whole Bean Ground Light Roast Medium Roast Dark Roast Decaf Iced Flavored Espresso |
---|
Membership Options |
Random or Selective Coffee Choices: Selective Ability to Pause/Skip Shipments |
---|
Customer Service |
Phone Online Tutorials FAQ's |
---|
Who is This Coffee Club Best Suited For?
This coffee is best for those looking for a trusted brand with many years of experience brewing the best coffee the world can get their hands on. Gevalia is designed for auto delivery and is better suited for people who know what they want and are fine receiving the same coffee each month.
What We Like About Gevalia
Experience and Rich History: Gevalia is an old and experienced coffee company. Gevalia’s Swedish heritage, coffee selection, and gift options make it a coffee powerhouse in the online world.
What We Don't Like About Gevalia
Not A Real Coffee Club: Gevalia is more of an auto delivery than a club. You don’t receive any newsletters or anything special. Instead, they ship bags of coffee. You don’t even receive tasting notes.
Too Big Box: In being a big online retailer, a few things must be sacrificed along the way. Things like coffee freshness and shipping simply aren’t on par with other coffee clubs online.
Non-Responsive Customer Service: When we reached out to Gevalia via their customer service contact and social media, we received absolutely no response. This was extremely disappointing considering they are a big company and boasts about how they will respond to inquiries within 24 hours.
No Free Shipping: Most clubs and even companies offering auto delivery at least offer free shipping. Gevalia doesn’t. Which means you’ll pay more just to try their coffee.
No Sample Packs: Other companies with auto delivery have the option for sample packs, so you can try multiple coffees at once. Gevalia doesn’t do sample packs of any kind.
Final Thoughts
Gevalia is definitely an auto delivery, not a club. But, it may be just what you’re looking for if you want to handpick your coffees and have them delivered on a set schedule. You’re in control of what you receive, how often, and can try different Gevalia coffees (including k-cups) at your convenience.