Crio BruBrewed Cacao Ecuador French Roast - Coffee Alternative Natural Healthy Drink | 100% Pure Ground Cacao Beans | 99.99% Caffeine Free, Keto, Low Carb, Paleo, Brew And Enjoy Hot or Iced (3lb)USDA Organic

First of all, Kudo's to Ash for pointing out a bialetti can be used as I don't have a french press and did not want to start buying more equipment I may not use beyond a week. I use my stove top bialetti and my aeropress which was recommended by the manufacturer as well in their A and Q. This helped me make the decision to try this.Well, after being a coffee addict for many years I think I really am making the switch at this point. Two days in and no heartburn or palpitations and I slept well last night. The trick is you need to take a caffeine pill (at least I did) while you're transitioning so you don't get nasty withdrawal symptoms. If I go 4 hours after waking without caffeine I get eh nastiest migraine so I new I could not risk that so I bought some vivarin. 200 mgs of caffeine. I know, that means I'm still not off caffeine, BUT that's like 40% of the caffeine I was ingesting when I had my 2 mugs of strong Joe. My goal is to ease of the caffeine and cut the vivarin in half in a couple days. Can't go cold turkey, and hey, if I have to take one caffeine pill a day so be it. Still way less then what I was consuming.I really like the taste with just one packet of stevia and just a splash of cream. It adheres to all my keto and intermittent fasting rules, which are pretty restrictive. Two cups of 3 tablespoons of cacao each comes out just right. The bag will last a decent amount of time making this not so expensive. This really does do the trick for that morning treat and with enough kick. The theobromine in it is practically a happy drug. I never realized caffeine constricts blood vessels until I started researching this. Theobromine dilates blood vessels and increases heart rate in a more positive way. This is like win win all the way for someone who gets nasty heartburn (coffee is pretty acidic) and palpitations, but likes a tasty hot beverage in the morning to start the day.Believe the hype. Just make sure you make it right or you won't maximize the taste and experience. Keep the condiments to much less than you would with coffee too.

I can’t drink caffeine as I seem to have an intolerance and I get sick to my stomach. I decided to try this to see if it would make me sick and it doesn’t so I’m happy for that! I also went into it not expecting it to taste like hot chocolate based on other reviews and after a little trial and error I found what works best for me. I have a Ninja Hot and Cold Brew System and I found using the cold brew setting gives me the best taste. It steeps it in batches which I think helped give it more flavor than when I was using a regular coffee setting. I then add a tbsp of creamer and a dropper full of liquid stevia drops to cut the bitterness and it’s perfect for me. So happy I came across this stuff!

*The Pitch*: I was turned on to Crio Bru by a food blog that suggested using it in a frozen summer dessert. From there, I tried drinking it as suggested and then added my own twist.*The Package*: Crio Bru is packaged just like coffee, as it is marketed as a more mellow alternative to coffee. It comes in a vacuum-sealed bag that you can pinch shut with a wire (just like a bag of coffee).*The Fit*: I’ll start with the dessert. To that end, it is amazing. It involves simmering the crio bru in milk/cream on the stovetop with sweetener (the recipe I read called for maple syrup, but I used brown sugar instead and it was excellent) and then freezing it in ice cube trays. When you’re ready, you blend the ice cubes with some kind of liquid (coconut, almond, or dairy milk) and the result is a rich, full-bodied chocolate drink that is super refreshing on a summer day.Now, on to the consumption as directed by the packaging. It is recommended to steep ½ cup of Crio Bru in a french coffee press for a total of about 15-20 minutes. As it’s brewing, it smells *amazing* like a river of chocolate. However, I found the finished product to be far too bitter to appreciate like a cup of coffee. My tongue is expecting rich chocolate taste from the brewing aroma, but I’m greeted with the reality of bitter cacao.I was able to tweek the brewed recipe by adding some cream and sugar after the fact (like high tea). Just adding a little sugar to cut the bitterness and some cream to finish out the chocolate flavor does wonders.Ultimately though, this is an expensive treat for what it is. One french press calls for ½ cup of Crio Bru. The bag probably holds about 2-3 cups so you’re looking at 6 servings optimistically and the bag was ~$14 at the time of review.*The Good*: Delicious frozen desserts can be made from this cacao bean grind.*The Bad*: It’s pretty spendy considering how much it takes to brew.*The Ugly*: Nothing ugly about this drink. It’s a fun splurge.*The Bottom Line*: I really enjoyed the dessert made from Crio Bru but the drink itself is only so-so. It’s fairly expensive for what you get. While I will buy this again, it will only be an occasional treat.

This was delicious. We used it to make cowboy Cafe mocha. My only issue is, it's glorified choco powder. There are much cheaper alternatives.