Starbucks
Espresso Roast Whole Bean
6.7Fair
The dark, caramelly blend behind Starbucks café espresso since 1975, in whole-bean bags for home machines.
4
Kicking Horse Coffee
Kick Ass (Dark Roast) Whole Bean
Kicking Horse's bold, smoky organic dark roast: chocolate malt, molasses and licorice from Fairtrade co-op beans.
7.8
Good
Coffee Reviews score
See the breakdown →
Community
—/10
- Roast
- Dark
- Origin
- 🇮🇩 Indonesia
- Caffeine
- Regular
- Price per serving
- $0.90 / cup
- Dark Chocolate
- Malt
- Molasses
- Licorice
- Earthy
USDA Organic Fair Trade Kosher
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Last reviewed October 17, 2026 by the Coffee Reviews editors · How we score
Kicking Horse's bold, smoky organic dark roast: chocolate malt, molasses and licorice from Fairtrade co-op beans.
Kick Ass is Kicking Horse Coffee's flagship dark roast, an organic Fairtrade Arabica blend from Indonesia and Central and South America roasted in the Canadian Rockies. The roaster describes a smoky, sweet vanilla and dark chocolate aroma with chocolate malt, molasses, licorice and an earthy finish. It is a grocery-store staple for dark-roast drinkers; specialty drinkers who switch to lighter roasts tend to find it too roasty.
Best for
- Dark-roast drinkers who take milk or cream
- French press and cold brew
- Shoppers who prioritize organic and Fairtrade labels
What we like
- Certified organic and Fairtrade beans
- Bold, low-acid dark roast that stands up to milk and sugar
- Widely available, with a 2.2 lb bag that lowers the cost per cup
- Kosher certified
Watch-outs
- Smoky, roasty profile is too dark for many black-coffee drinkers
- Dark, oily beans can be hard on super-automatic grinders
- Origins are disclosed only by region
Flavor profile
What it tastes like.
In the roaster’s words
“Sweet / Smoky / Audacious. Aroma: smoky, sweet vanilla and dark chocolate. Tasting notes: chocolate malt, molasses, licorice and an earthy lingering finish.”
- Dark Chocolate
- Malt
- Molasses
- Licorice
- Earthy
- acidity
- body
- sweetness
- bitterness
LightMediumDark
How it scored
The breakdown.
7.8Good
Cup score out of 10, weighted across five factors.
- Flavor & cup quality30%7.6
A smoky, chocolatey dark roast that loyal drinkers call their house coffee, though it reads as roasty to black-coffee specialty drinkers.
- Quality & freshness20%7.6
Organic Arabica roasted in Invermere, but it is a dark, oily mass-market roast sold off grocery shelves rather than roasted to order.
- Value20%7.9
About $0.90 per 15 g cup in the 10 oz bag and about $0.66 in the 2.2 lb bag at Kicking Horse's own prices.
- Sourcing & transparency15%8.1
All beans are certified Organic and Fairtrade from named producing countries' co-ops, with origins given by region for this blend.
- Community love15%7.9
A popular Canadian and grocery-store favorite with steady positive Reddit mentions and a long trail of YouTube reviews.
Creator video reviews
Watch it in action.
2 positive
Independent creators, verified with YouTube and TikTok. We don’t pay for reviews and creators don’t pay us.
What people are saying
From the forums.
Verbatim from Reddit, forums and long-term owner write-ups — linked so you can read the full thread.
“This is our favourite and it is lower acid. The taste is wonderful and doesn’t bother my stomach”
“I love the kick ass one it works in my espresso machine and I buy it whole bean so I can use it for everything from espresso to cold brew.”
“Kicking horse - Kick Ass blend is our house coffee.”
“In a previous life, I drank the Kicking Horse Kick Ass, but that was when I added cream and sugar to my coffee. I started drinking it black when I started drinking artisanal small batch roasters and I'm concerned that I won't be able to drink any of this stuff--it kind of tastes like an entirely different drink.”
Details
The particulars.
- Origin
- 🇮🇩 Indonesia
- Species
- Arabica
- Format
- Whole bean
- Caffeine
- Regular
- Ingredients
- Organic Arabica Coffee
- Best brewed as
- French press, Drip machine, Pour-over, Cold brew, Moka pot
- Certifications
- USDA Organic, Fair Trade, Kosher
- Typical price
- $16.99 for 10 oz (checked October 2026)
- Servings
- ≈ 19 cups at 15 g per cup (10 oz bag); the 2.2 lb bag is $43.99 (≈ $0.66 per cup)
Community
Member tasting notes & discussion.
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Discussion
No discussions yet.
Own Kicking Horse Coffee Kick Ass (Dark Roast) Whole Bean? Ask a question or share your recipe — you’ll be the first.
FAQ
Good questions.
Is Kick Ass a dark roast?
Yes. Kicking Horse tags it as a dark roast and describes it as 'Sweet / Smoky / Audacious', with low acidity and full body.
Is Kicking Horse Kick Ass organic and Fairtrade?
Yes. Kicking Horse says all of its beans are Fairtrade and organic, its sustainability page shows the USDA Organic logo, and the product page carries a kosher certificate.
What brew methods does Kicking Horse recommend for Kick Ass?
The product page recommends French press, drip and pour-over. Reddit users also use the whole beans for espresso and cold brew.
Sources (7)
- kickinghorsecoffee.com/products/kick-ass-coffee
- kickinghorsecoffee.com/products/kick-ass-coffee.json
- kickinghorsecoffee.com/pages/faq
- kickinghorsecoffee.com/pages/sustainability
- amazon.com/dp/B00KC0LP70
- foodincanada.com/food-in-canada/kicking-horse-coffee-now-part-italian-family-136991/
- lexpert.ca/big-deals/lavazza-acquires-majority-stake-in-kicking-horse-coffee/351446
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