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Coffee companies often claim they want to be eco-friendly and ethical, but most of the time they don’t show meaningful progress in reducing waste or paying coffee farmers more for their crop. We get frustrated by this kind of lip-service, but when we came across Driftaway Coffee, we knew something was different—and we had to discover what it was.
Driftaway Coffee has been around since 2012. Though it started as a side hustle for a married couple living in Brooklyn, it has become one of the US’s premier coffee subscriptions, earning mentions on national news sites, professional coffee publications, and enthusiast blogs.
These days, Driftaway claims to be one of the most eco-friendly coffee companies in the country—but is it true? And does the coffee itself stack up?
Let’s find out.
What Makes Driftaway Coffee Different
Driftaway Coffee roasts its own beans, then ships them out via regular subscription. While they tend to only have 3-5 coffee offerings at a time, they all consistently get rave reviews. They also sell to offices and have a cold brew subscription for easy, no-hassle cold brew coffee.
Instead of using a quiz to see what kind of coffee you like, Driftaway sends you a “tasting kit” of four different coffee so you can try them all! It’s a different, more fun way of doing things, but it’s not the only thing that’s different.
Driftaway has a unique, eco-friendly approach to sourcing, roasting, and selling coffee.
Here’s what Driftaway Coffee does differently when it comes to sustainability:
This is all great, but at $14.57 per bag of coffee, is the coffee even good?
We Tried Four Driftaway Coffee Beans… Here’s How It Went
We went straight for the tasting kit to sample all of Driftaway’s beans. Upon arrival, we instantly noticed how the info cards were designed to look like postcards. A nice, simple touch.
The packaging was minimal (and compostable), the info cards were packed with insightful information on the origin farms, and the beans were clearly marked.
Honduras Natividad Melgar
This was the first coffee we tasted, and, to our surprise, one of our favorite light roast coffees we’ve had in a long time. The grape-y, lemon-y notes (what Driftaway calls “golden raisin”) were sweet and balanced, and a rich brown sugar aroma rounded out the lighter notes.
It’s definitely a lighter bean—but an exceptional example of how a bright, complex light roast can still be balanced.
Colombia Huila Santa Maria
This bean had a heavy chocolate aroma right off the bat, which was followed by smooth nutty notes and a gentle caramel sweetness. It was a bolder bean compared to the Honduras—a great pick for a cool Autumn afternoon.
Kenya Gatubu AB
We tend to love complex, wildly-flavorful African coffees, and this Kenyan bean made us excited. Lemon and lime notes? We had to know what that tasted like!
The crisp, sweet acidity did taste like a lemon-lime soda, but in a good way. It wasn’t overly sour—not by a long shot. The pleasant tang of the lemon-lime notes were balanced out by a rich floral sweetness and aroma. Overall, an excellent bean!
Peru Cajamarca Jaen
Peruvian coffees are often light and floral, so we were excited to see one with darker, deeper flavor notes.
This one had a symphony of chocolate granola, honey, and brown sugar notes. The flavors were in perfect harmony—just the way a medium-roast coffee should. It almost tasted as if we were straight-up eating delicious granola after a hike outdoors.
The Positives Of Driftaway Coffee
While Driftaway’s promises of eco-friendly coffee drew us in, we discovered a wide variety of ‘pros’ worth mentioning.
Negatives Of Driftaway Coffee
Driftaway isn’t a perfect coffee subscription, and the two big negatives we noticed are worth calling out, just in case.
Realistically, these negatives only impact a small number of people. For most coffee lovers, they shouldn’t be a big deal.
The Verdict: Is Driftaway Coffee Worth It?
Here’s the thing… there are tons of great coffee subscriptions out there, but very few of them are working as hard as Driftaway Coffee to be eco-friendly and ethical.
The service was convenient. The tasting kit was a nice touch. The info cards are full of information. The transparency is rare—there are so many good things to say.
And when you consider that all four coffees we tasted were exceptional, Driftaway Coffee seems like a no-brainer for people who are passionate about making sure their coffee habit does good to the planet and coffee farmers.
Driftaway has some great deals for Dripped Coffee readers, so if you’re on the hunt for your next bag of coffee, make sure to use one of these codes:
- DRIPPED50 - for 50% off the first delivery on Subscriptions
- DRIPPED10 - for 10% off Coffee Gifts
What About Alternatives To Driftaway?
If you’re not quite sold on Driftaway Coffee’s eco-friendly subscription, no worries. There are a few other reputable subscription services we love to suggest.
Atlas Coffee Club
For the travel-lovers, Atlas’s globally curated coffee subscription takes you on a journey around the world through delicious coffee. They offer beans, sourced from small-batch farmers, from 50 countries, making them a beloved “coffee tour guide”.
Mistobox
This service has a ton of coffee options—over 500. When it comes to variety, Mistobox can’t be beat. They also have a user-friendly website with a Netflix-style “brew queue” and a great quiz to help you navigate all the options.
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It’s rare to find a coffee company so dedicated to sustainability, ethical sourcing, and transparency. If those things appeal to you, give Driftaway Coffee a try and let us know how it goes!
