My new series: Getting Caffeinated…Is my pursuit to continue to support veterans, and now first responders (my wife is a physician, I was Medical in the Air Force), I’m searching for great coffee.
There is no shortage of veteran and first-responder owned coffee companies, no doubt about that. So how do you weed through all of them? Well, don’t worry, i’ll take one for the team.
In this new series of blog post called Getting Caffeinated, I’m going to review and highlight these companies as I find them, acknowledging their dedication to keeping this country caffeinated and ready to rule the day.
On Deck for June 2021: Got Your Six Coffee www.gotyoursixcoffee.com
Got Your Six is out of Missouri, owned by Eric Hadley, a former US Coast Guard Merchant Marine Engineer. Eric’s mission has been to support and defend this great country through maritime operations, and he’s been to over 59 different countries serving as a licensed engineering officer aboard the USNS Comfort, USNS Niagara Falls, USNS Walther S. Diel, and many others. Eric found his love for coffee when he pulled into port, often seeking out a good wi-fi signal with his mates so they could reconnect with family and loved ones. And because of that, Got Your Six Coffee and his foundation were born.
I picked up “Zero-Dark Thirty”, a medium roast breakfast blend. The packaging I received was typical packaging, sealed and ready for consumption. The cool thing they have done is put a “born on date” on the bottom of the package so you know how fresh the beans are. I thought this was a pretty nice touch.
Description from their website:
“Rise and Grind with our Award Winning Breakfast Blend. Zero-Dark Thirty is exactly what you need to get up and conquer your day. This medium roast blend from numerous regions in Central America will wake you up with hints of sweet floral, fruity, bakers chocolate drizzled with caramel. You can’t go wrong with this treat! Rise and Grind, make the rest of your life the best of your life!”
The roast was mellow, maybe more mellow than I expected from a medium roast. I was expecting a little more in terms of a darker brew, but this is on the lighter side of medium. It’s not a bad thing at all, and if you are looking for a medium roast with good flavor, but light enough to call itself a breakfast blend, this is it!
The Brew:
I brewed it in my pour-over Chemex, approximately 40 grams of fine ground beans with 700 grams of water, or about 3.5 cups out of my electric kettle. While the grounds bloomed you could tell it was a breakfast blend. Not too harsh, but not too light either. I also tried it in my French Press, which made for an even lighter cup. I suggest for this blend you stick to pour-over, as that’s the best method for this blend in my opinion.
Overall, it was a good cup. I’d like to see what their darker roasts are like, so I’ve got my eyes on “Cup of Joe” as well as “K.I.S.S.” both are dark roasts and I will be ordering them in the future.
Eric and Got Your Six have my full endorsement. I’ve grown to like a stouter coffee first thing in the morning, and prefer something darker. My dad however really liked this. He’s a lifelong coffee drinker and is a sucker for a breakfast blend. He was two thumbs up!
Additionally, something cool Got Your Six is doing is a Founding Members Club. For $500 you can become a founding member, which gets you a year supply of coffee delivered to your door every month, a Founding Members swag package that includes a hat, 20oz tumbler, a challenge coin, a morale patch, handcrafted mug, and a custom t-shirt and hoodie from Gruntstyle. You will also be commemorated as a Founding Member on their webpage, and a plank owner’s plaque that will go up in their coffee shops. If you don’t know what a plank owner is, well it’s a Navy/Coast Guard thing when they receive a new ship. Google it, as it’s pretty cool. I myself received a plank owner plaque during an assignment with the Navy.
Eric and Got Your Six are working hard to make a difference in the communities they serve, and want you to be part of it. Check them out today, as well as their Kracken Response Coffee Truck on Instagram.