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Table of Contents
- The Best Dark Roast Coffee of 2026
- 1. Kicking Horse ‘Grizzly Claw’ Coffee
- 2. Death Wish Ground Coffee
- 3. Black Rifle ‘Murdered Out’ Coffee
- 4. Caribou Coffee ‘Mahogany’ Roast
- 5. Peet’s Major Dickason’s Blend
- 6. Tim Hortons Dark Roast Coffee
- 7. Starbucks French Roast Coffee Beans
- Tips for Making the Best Cup of Dark Roast Coffee
- Summary
Best Dark Roast Coffee 2026 – Updated by Burbro Editors on April 14th, 2021
One of the most popular coffee bean roasts in the world is the dark roast coffee. The dark roast coffees are popular because they’re the perfect coffee roast for almost any form of coffee. You can use the beans for cold brews, espressos, french press, flavored coffee and even in your drip brew coffee maker. The taste profile of dark roast coffee beans is different from other coffee beans and has a distinct deep taste that’s heavy-bodied while being filled with sweetness. The dark roast coffee beans also have a consistent taste (their taste comes from the roasting process) and low acidity, making them perfect for specialty coffees.
If you’ve been shopping for dark roast coffee beans, you’ll find that there are many options to choose from, and there is more variety than you’ll find with light roast coffee beans or medium roast coffee beans. However, this doesn’t mean that all dark roast coffee beans taste good or are worth your money. In this article, we’ll be looking at the best tasting dark roast coffees. The products on our list are some of the best dark roast coffee beans and are made with some of the highest quality ingredients so that you can find the perfect coffee beans to brew a cup of delicious, dark roast coffee.
The Best Dark Roast Coffee of 2026
If you’re looking for the best dark roast coffees, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve reviewed the best dark roast coffee and compiled the top products into a shortlist so that you can quickly find what you’re searching for so that you can get back to your day. We’ve also created a section of dark roast coffees that are ‘also good,’ which won’t be reviewed in this article. However, these are still good dark roast coffees, and you may want to look at them and see if they’re something you would enjoy.
Now let’s start reviewing the best dark roast coffees.
Here are the Best Dark Roast Coffees for 2026.
- Best Organic Dark Roast Coffee: Kicking Horse Dark Roast Coffee
- Best Strong Dark Roast Coffee: Death Wish Coffee
- Best Dark Roast Coffee for French Press: Black Rifle Coffee Extra Dark Roast
- A Popular Dark Roast Coffee: Caribou Coffee ‘Mahogany’ Roast
- A Rich Dark Roast Coffee: Peet’s ‘Major Dickason’s’ Blend
- A Canadian Classic Dark Roast Coffee: Tim Hortons Dark Roast Coffee
- A Specialty Dark Roast Coffee: Starbucks Dark Roast Coffee Beans
Runner-Up List
- Also Popular: Koffee Kult Dark Roast Coffee Beans
- Also Popular: Lavazza ‘Intenso’ Espresso Beans
- Also Popular: 1850 Dark Gold Coffee Beans
- Also Popular: Stumptown Dark Roast Coffee
- Also Popular: Seattle’s Best Dark Roast Coffee
- Also Popular: McCafe Medium Dark Roast
1. Kicking Horse ‘Grizzly Claw’ Coffee
One of the Best Organic Dark Roast Coffees.
If you enjoy making french press coffee or cold brews with your dark roast coffee, you’ll want to use organic coffee beans. This ensures no chemicals can be released into your coffee while you’re brewing your coffee. If you want to try an organic dark roast coffee bean, we recommend trying the Kicking Horse Dark Roast Coffee. The Kicking Horse coffee is made with 100% Arabica beans and has a dark, deep, delicious taste with a rich texture. These coffee beans are also USDA Certified, Kosher-friendly and grown under the Fair Trade Agreement. When people think of organic coffee, they usually feel that it affects the coffee’s taste and that the coffee will be weaker. However, it merely means that the coffee beans have been grown, picked and processed under the certification guidelines, and the coffee’s taste isn’t affected.
2. Death Wish Ground Coffee
The Best Strong Dark Roast Coffee.
If you like having a strong cup of dark roast coffee, you’ll want to try Death Wish Coffee. Their coffee brand is known for having some of ‘the world’s strongest coffee,’ and it has the kick that will get you up and going in the morning. The Death Wish Coffee is an organic coffee bean with double the caffeine that you’ll find in other coffee beans. It has a deep, delicious taste that’s intense and bold. It also has subtle hints of cherry and chocolate, which make it a tasty treat. Something that we love about the Death Wish coffee brand is that their brands are certified by the USDA. This means that their beans have been grown, picked and processed by the USDA standards. Their company is also part of the fair trade agreement meaning that the farmers are paid a fair percentage of the profits for growing the coffee beans.
3. Black Rifle ‘Murdered Out’ Coffee
One of the Best Dark Roast Coffees for French Press.
When you enjoy making coffee with a french press, you’ll need coffee beans that are coarsely ground up and carry a rich flavor. The Black Rifle coffee beans come as whole coffee beans, which can easily be coarsely ground for your french press coffee and has a deep flavor that’s perfect for french press coffee. The Black Rifle Extra Dark Roast coffee beans are made from a blend of coffee beans grown in Brazil and Columbia. They are professionally roasted to create a smoky flavor that’s delicious and accompanied by a bold aroma. One of the things that we love about Black Rifle Coffee is that the beans are made in America, and the company is veteran-owned and operated. They also use their profits to give back to programs that support the military and other first responders.
4. Caribou Coffee ‘Mahogany’ Roast
A Popular Dark Roast Coffee
If you’re new to making coffee, you’re likely going to be using a drip brew coffee maker to brew your coffee. One of the best coffee beans for beginners is the Caribou Coffee ‘Mahogany’ Roast because it’s difficult to make a lousy cup of coffee when you’re using these beans. The Caribou Coffee ‘Mahogany’ Roast is made with 100% Arabica beans and features a bold, aromatic flavor with tones of vanilla and sweet molasses. It also has a rugged, earthly taste that has a smooth finish. These beans are the ideal dark roast for anyone that usually opts for light roast coffees. The Caribou Coffee brand uses a blend of coffee beans from El Salvador, Central and South America. They also use small-batch roasting to ensure that each batch of beans can be handcrafted to ensure the roasting process is consistent and provides quality assurance for the roasting process.
5. Peet’s Major Dickason’s Blend
A Rich Dark Roast Coffee.
If you enjoy sipping on a rich cup of dark roast coffee, you’ll want to try Peet’s ‘Major Dickason’s’ Blend. This coffee makes a delightful cup of coffee that is loved by many and can be enjoyed at any time of the day. The Peet’s ‘Major Dickason’s’ Blend is made with their signature blend and is roasted to perfection. Their coffee creates a rich, flavorful taste that has a full-bodied taste and complex tasting notes. Their beans are also roasted in small batches to ensure that every bag of coffee beans has a consistent taste. These coffee beans by Peet’s Coffee can be found in whole beans or ground. If you choose their ground beans, you’ll want to store the beans in an airtight container to ensure that the freshness of these beans is preserved so that the flavor doesn’t evaporate and can be extracted into your cup of coffee.
6. Tim Hortons Dark Roast Coffee
A Canadian Classic Dark Roast Coffee.
There are few things more iconic in Canada than ‘Timmies’ coffee. Whether you’re from Canada or not, you’ll want to try their dark roast coffee. This is a classic dark roast coffee that is loved by many and can be enjoyed at any time of day. The Tim Hortons Dark Roast Coffee is made from premium Arabica beans and is roasted by professionals to create a flavorful coffee. Their coffee beans have a rich, deep flavor with a smooth finish and the signature ‘Timmies’ taste. These coffee beans are very flavorful, and they come already ground so that they’re ready to use in your coffee maker. However, you’ll want to ensure that they are correctly stored so these delicious flavors and aromas can’t evaporate before you begin brewing your coffee.
7. Starbucks French Roast Coffee Beans
A Specialty Dark Roast Coffee.
One of the most iconic brands of coffee is Starbucks. Their brand is known worldwide for their coffee beans and coffee houses that seem to populate every corner of the world. If you enjoy a specialty dark roast coffee, you’ll want to try the Starbucks Dark Roast Coffee. The Starbucks Dark Roast Coffee is made from 100% Arabica beans and has been roasted to perfection. These beans feature a full-bodied taste that’s intense with an explosive smokey taste. If you want to get the full taste from the Starbucks coffee beans, we recommend using cold water when you’re brewing these beans. This will prevent the beans from ‘cooking’ and changing the chemical structure of your coffee beans.
Tips for Making the Best Cup of Dark Roast Coffee
Once you’ve chosen the best coffee beans for your dark roast coffee, it’s time to start brewing the perfect cup of coffee. If you’re new to making dark roast coffee, we’ve got you covered. In this section, we’ll provide some tips for choosing the right coffee beans, storing your coffee beans and making an amazing cup of coffee with your dark roast coffee beans.
Here are some tips for using Dark Roast Coffee Beans.
- Always check the expiration date of the coffee before you purchase your dark roast coffee beans. You want to ensure that the beans haven’t expired or aren’t close to expiring. If the beans are close to their expiration date (or past it), you’ll find that the coffee tastes and smells stale.
- If you’re not sure what the expiration date is for your coffee beans, you should avoid picking beans that have been ground. Instead, it would help if you looked for whole coffee beans to ensure your coffee beans’ freshness. When the coffee beans have been ground, the oils will begin to evaporate, which means that the beans’ flavor and aroma will begin to expire.
- You should look for coffee beans from a brand or coffee house that you like visiting for your coffee. If you enjoy the taste of a certain coffee brand, you’ll like the beans that they use for coffee. By buying their coffee beans, you’ll be able to make the same coffee at home.
- As you’re choosing coffee beans, you should also choose the region of the world where the beans were grown and the breed of the coffee beans. Your coffee beans’ taste will be greatly affected by the breed of the coffee beans and the region where the beans were grown.
- Once you’ve gotten your coffee beans, you should ensure that the beans are stored properly. If you got ground coffee beans, make sure that the beans are stored in an airtight container to preserve the beans’ freshness. If you got whole coffee beans, you should only grind the beans for up to 30 minutes before using them to brew your cup of coffee. This will ensure that all the flavor from the beans will be extracted into your cup of coffee.
- If you’re using a coffee maker, it’s okay to use fine grind coffee beans or coarsely ground coffee beans since you’ll use a coffee filter. However, if you’re making coffee with a French Press or making cold brews, you’ll want to use coarsely ground coffee beans to ensure that you get the best cup of coffee.
- Unless you’re using water with the perfect extraction temperatures for coffee, you should always use cold water when you’re brewing coffee because the cold water will prevent the beans from heating up and cooking the beans. When you use hot water to make coffee, you’re cooking the beans and changing the beans’ chemical structure, which changes the taste of the beans.
- When you’re getting ready to make your coffee, you should use the ‘golden rule’ for making coffee. This rule is the ratio of coffee to water that creates the perfect cup of coffee. You’ll want to measure 1-2 Tablespoons of coffee beans to 6 ounces of water. Once you’ve measured the coffee beans out for the amount of water you’re using, you’re ready to begin brewing the perfect cup of dark roast coffee. Enjoy!
Summary
We hope this article has helped you find the best dark roast coffee for your coffee needs. If you’re new to drinking dark roast coffee, you may want to try several brands of coffee to see which brand is right for you. We recommend trying several brands because every company has a different roasting process, creating a coffee that tastes different from other dark roast coffee beans. While you’re experimenting with the various coffee brands, you may want to try various breeds of coffee beans. This is because there is a distinct taste between coffee bean breeds, and you may find one that you love. You can also try flavored coffee if you’re looking for something sweeter, without the strong coffee taste. As always, you should set a budget before you begin shopping for coffee beans. If you’re a daily coffee drinker, you’ll want to find a coffee that’s affordable for you to use every day. By setting a budget, you’ll be able to find the best tasting coffee beans within your coffee budget.
