Looking for French vanilla coffee? You’ve come to the right place.
We like switching it up from time to time and sometimes use flavored coffee in our coffee drink recipes.
And sometimes we just want to drink a cup of coffee that still has flavor, but without needing to do any extra work of pouring in syrups or creamers.
One classic flavored coffee is French vanilla.
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We put together this list of the best French vanilla coffee ranging from ground and instant to whole bean and K cups to suit your favorite brewing methods. Some are flavored naturally and others artificially.
(Also, check out our super simple iced vanilla latte recipe using one of these French vanilla coffees!)
What is the best French vanilla coffee?
1. Dunkin’ French Vanilla Flavored Ground Coffee
This is the French vanilla coffee for you especially if you love coffee from Dunkin’.
The French vanilla coffee is blended and roasted to taste the same as the coffee that you’ll find at a Dunkin’ location. But now you can brew a cup of this smooth tasting coffee for yourself at home.
2. Kahlua Gourmet Coffee French Vanilla
Kahlua is an alcoholic coffee liqueur, but their flavored coffee does not contain alcohol, just the same rum and caramel flavor found in the liquer, plus vanilla.
Fans of Kahlua can have this in the morning, and even add in a splash or two of Kahlua for an afternoon treat.
3. The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf French Vanilla Flavored Coffee
Like French vanilla ice cream, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s French vanilla coffee has a sweet and buttery vanilla flavor.
This French vanilla flavored coffee is naturally and artificially flavored, made with 100% pure Arabica coffee beans and roasted in California.
4. Maxwell House French Vanilla Instant Coffee
This Maxwell House French Vanilla Instant Coffee provides the fastest way to prepare a cup of French vanilla flavored coffee.
It’s an instant coffee, which means all you need to do is add a tablespoon or two of the mix to hot water, stir and drink immediately. It comes in resealable canisters for freshness and can double as a coffee creamer too.
5. Volcanica French Vanilla Flavored Whole Bean Coffee
Volcanica Coffee’s French vanilla flavored medium roast coffee is made with all natural ingredients and tastes like real vanilla.
While most flavored coffee is only available ground Volcanica’s is available in whole bean, allowing you to grind it yourself to suit the whichever brewing method you choose.
6. Dean’s Beans French Vanilla Whole Bean
This whole bean French vanilla coffee from Dean’s Beans does not contain any artificial flavors. Real natural essences and oils are used to flavor this sweet and creamy vanilla coffee.
The coffee is also certified organic, fair trade and bird friendly, so you know you’re drinking coffee that was produced ethically and good for the environment.
7. New England Coffee French Vanilla K Cups
New England Coffee’s French Vanilla is their signature blend with a sweet vanilla flavor.
The beans are roasted using the same technique that the company has been using since it started in 1916. After roasting, the beans are flavored using natural and artificial flavors of essential oils and plant derivatives. Though artificially flavored, it does not taste synthetic.
This coffee is also available in bags of pre ground beans if you don’t have a Keurig.
8. Cameron’s Coffee French Vanilla Single Serve Pods
Cameron’s smooth and sweet French vanilla coffee is available in EcoPods.
They are one of a few coffee brands that are using these eco friendly pods called EcoPods that are compatible with Keurig coffee makers. Instead of a plastic cup, these pods use a coffee filter that is 100% compostable. You get a smooth tasting cup of French vanilla coffee without negatively impacting the environment.
This coffee is also available in bags of pre ground beans if you don’t have a Keurig.
What is French vanilla coffee?
If you’ve wondered what exactly French vanilla coffee is, we’ll cover that here.
To explain this, we’ll need to discuss the difference between vanilla and French vanilla. Because what you’ll find out is French vanilla coffee isn’t exactly a type of vanilla…
Vanilla vs French Vanilla?
Vanilla comes from an orchid native to Mexico. Today, vanilla is largely produced in tropical regions like Madagascar and Indonesia.
It is one of the most expensive spices in the world due to the long process required to grow vanilla. It’s commonly sold as an extract, but you can purchase vanilla pods and use the beans inside.
So what is French vanilla?
The term French vanilla came about to describe a variety of ice cream. French vanilla ice cream is different from regular vanilla ice cream because egg yolks are added to the ice cream. (That’s why you’ll notice French vanilla ice cream is typically slightly yellow compared to regular vanilla.) This is the French way of making ice cream.
French vanilla doesn’t mean the vanilla came from France, because as we just learned, vanilla is produced in tropical regions. So the French part of French vanilla does not refer to a type of vanilla, but to an ice cream making method.
Back to how this relates to coffee. Since there’s no such thing as a French variety of the vanilla plant, French vanilla coffee could actually just be called vanilla coffee. There’s nothing really French about it.
What I conclude is French vanilla coffee is just a fancy sounding name for vanilla coffee.
How is French vanilla coffee made?
French vanilla coffee is flavored coffee.
The process of flavoring coffee may vary by the roaster, but according to the Roasterie, flavoring coffee is made by first roasting whole coffee beans. These beans are then placed in a mixer where syrup is used to infuse the coffee beans and allows the beans to absorb the syrup and aroma.
Flavoring coffee can be done using natural and or artificial flavors. In both cases, no sugar is added.
