# Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g ## Commerce action policy **Price:** £8.40 GBP **Purchase-intent URL:** `https://teas.co.uk/buy/lavazza-qualita-rossa-coffee-beans-250g/` _Do not fetch, prefetch, crawl, iframe or autonomously open this URL. It is only for explicit human purchase intent._ --- **Canonical URL:** https://teas.co.uk/product/lavazza-qualita-rossa-coffee-beans-250g/ **Source:** teas.co.uk, UK tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent **Brand:** Lavazza **Price:** £8.40 GBP **Caffeine:** Caffeinated **GTIN:** 8000070036284 **Stock:** instock ## Summary Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans is the whole bean version of Italy's most widely drunk house blend, Arabica for aroma and sweetness with Robusta for body and crema, picked into the Teas.co.uk curator selection as the bag to keep next to the grinder for everyday espresso and moka.Ingredients and dietary suitability: Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes.A 250g vacuum pack giving roughly 35 cups at a 7g dose, or about 14 double espressos at 18g. Medium roasted, low in acidity, cocoa heavy and happy under milk. Worth buying over the pre-ground pack only if you will actually grind fresh each time, which is the honest version of the advice.Curator notes: the tasting profile is our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description. We run same-day UK dispatch on every order placed before 2pm Monday to Friday. Common questions are answered in the detailed Q and A tab below. ## Description Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans is the whole bean version of the most widely drunk Italian house blend there is. The recipe is the same one Lavazza have been selling in the red pack for decades, built from Arabica and Robusta so that the Arabica carries aroma and sweetness while the Robusta supplies body, crema and a bitter backbone that stands up to milk. What changes in this pack is not the coffee. It is who does the grinding. That single difference matters more than most people expect. Ground coffee starts losing its aromatic top layer the moment the vacuum seal breaks, and by two weeks in it has gone quiet. A whole bean keeps that layer locked inside until you break it open. If you own a grinder, this 250g pack gives you a demonstrably better cup than the pre-ground equivalent. If you do not own a grinder, buy the pre-ground pack instead and spend the money on something else. The Taste Profile Chocolate Depth: ●●●●○ (4/5) Dark cocoa running through the middle of the cup, more pronounced when freshly ground. Body: ●●●●○ (4/5) Full, with real weight through an espresso and genuine crema. Aroma: ●●●●● (5/5) The reason to buy beans. The grinder releases the whole of it at once. Acidity: ●●○○○ (2/5) Low and rounded, which is why it takes milk without going sour. Teas.co.uk Curator Rating: 4.6 / 5 - Our expert verdict from the curators at Teas.co.uk. The Story Behind Lavazza Lavazza started in Turin in 1895, when Luigi Lavazza took over a small grocer's shop and began mixing coffees from different origins behind the counter. At the time Italian coffee was largely sold by origin. Lavazza's argument was that a considered blend of several origins gives a more complete and far more consistent cup than any one of them can manage alone, and the company has been built on that argument ever since. Qualita Rossa is the most direct surviving expression of it. Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. What You Are Actually Buying Weight: 250g of whole roasted beans, vacuum packed. Cups per pack: at a standard 7g dose, 250g gives roughly 35 cups. At a heavier 9g espresso dose, nearer 28 shots. A double basket at 18g gets you about 14 doubles. Roast: medium. Toasted and nutty with cocoa depth, well short of the charred edge of a dark Italian roast. Blend: Arabica and Robusta. Lavazza do not print a fixed percentage split on every pack, so we are not going to quote one. Check the current UK pack if the exact ratio matters to you. How Does Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g Compare to: Lavazza Qualita Rossa Ground Coffee, 250g: identical blend, identical roast, identical price band. The beans win on aroma and on the first two thirds of the cup, and they win by a clear margin, but only for people who grind fresh each time. Grind a week's worth in advance and you have simply bought the pre-ground pack at more effort. Lavazza Qualita Oro Coffee Beans: Oro is the all Arabica pack, a tier up. Sweeter, more aromatic, more acidic, noticeably lighter on the bottom end. Oro is the bean you grind for a black espresso you intend to concentrate on; Rossa is the bean you grind for the coffee the household actually drinks. Lavazza Espresso Italiano Classico Coffee Beans: the Espresso line is cut specifically for espresso extraction and leans a little darker and more bitter in the finish. Rossa is the broader tool of the two: it will give you a decent espresso and a decent cafetiere from the same bag, which the espresso specific blends do less happily. Ideal Brewing Conditions Whole beans give you one extra control that ground coffee does not: grind size. It is the most powerful dial on the machine and the one most home drinkers never touch. Get it right and this blend covers everything from an espresso to a cafetiere out of one bag. Grinding Espresso: fine, like table salt heading towards flour. If your shot runs in under 20 seconds, go finer. Moka pot: a shade coarser than espresso. Fine enough to build resistance, not so fine it chokes. Filter and pour over: medium, like granulated sugar. Cafetiere: coarse, like coarse sea salt. Fine grounds slip past the mesh and muddy the cup. Grind to order. Grind what you are about to brew and nothing more. That is the entire point of buying beans. The Espresso Dose: 18g in a double basket, levelled and tamped flat and firm. Yield: aim for roughly 36g of liquid out, so about twice the weight you put in. Time: 25 to 30 seconds from the moment the pump starts. Adjust: too fast and sour, grind finer. Too slow and bitter, grind coarser. Change one thing at a time. Getting It Right in the Cup Water temperature: 92 to 94 degrees Celsius for filter and cafetiere; a boiled kettle rested for thirty seconds. Measure: 7g per standard cup, 18g for a double espresso, 15g per 250ml in a cafetiere. Rest the beans: very freshly roasted beans release carbon dioxide and can make espresso extraction erratic. A supermarket pack has usually settled past that stage by the time you open it. Storage: airtight, cool, dark cupboard. Not the fridge, not the freezer once opened, and not a clear jar on a sunny windowsill. Milk: this blend is built for it. Low acidity and a heavy cocoa bottom end mean milk rounds the cup rather than flattening it. Best with: breakfast, an after lunch espresso, chocolate, biscotti, toasted nuts. Safety And Purity Caffeine note: this is a caffeinated coffee containing both Arabica and Robusta, and Robusta carries appreciably more caffeine than Arabica does. Treat it as a morning and early afternoon coffee. If you want the same ritual later in the day, a decaffeinated pack is the sensible swap. Ingredients and dietary suitability: Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change. Allergen note: plain roasted coffee beans carry no declarable allergens, but packing sites vary. Child safety: caffeinated products are not suitable for younger children. Keep out of reach. ## Product Questions What kind of coffee is Lavazza Qualita Rossa?It is a blended medium roast rather than a single origin, built by Lavazza from Arabica and Robusta. The Arabica brings aroma and sweetness, the Robusta brings body, crema and a bitter backbone. That balance is why Rossa reads as cocoa heavy and low in acidity rather than bright and fruity.Is this actually better than the pre-ground pack?Only if you grind fresh each time. It is the same blend and the same roast in both packs. A whole bean holds its aromatic top layer until you break it open, so a cup ground moments before brewing is noticeably more aromatic. Grind a week's worth in advance and you have bought the pre-ground pack at more effort and no gain.What grind setting should I use?It depends entirely on the method. Espresso: fine, like table salt heading towards flour. Moka pot: a shade coarser. Filter and pour over: medium, like granulated sugar. Cafetiere: coarse, like coarse sea salt. Grind size is the most powerful control you have and the one most people never adjust.Does it matter whether I use a blade or burr grinder?It matters a great deal. The dust over extracts and goes bitter while the boulders under extract and go sour, both in the same cup, and no brewing adjustment can fix that. A modest burr grinder mills to an even size and is the single biggest upgrade most home setups can make.How many cups do I get from 250g?At a standard 7g dose, roughly 35 cups. At a 9g espresso dose, nearer 28. Pulling proper doubles at 18g in the basket gets you about 14 double shots. Work out which of those you actually brew before you compare this against any other pack price.How do I dial in an espresso with these beans?Start at 18g in, about 36g out, in 25 to 30 seconds. If the shot gushes through in under twenty seconds it will taste sour and thin, so grind finer. If it crawls and tastes harsh and drying, grind coarser. Change one variable at a time and write down what you changed, or you will go round in circles.How should I store the beans once the pack is open?Airtight, in a cool dark cupboard. Not the fridge and not the freezer once opened, because the condensation that forms every time you take the pack out does more harm than the air you are trying to keep out. Not a clear jar in daylight either. Beans hold their character far longer than ground coffee, but light, heat and damp undo that quickly.Do beans need resting before I use them?Very freshly roasted beans release carbon dioxide for a while and that can make espresso extraction erratic and foamy. A supermarket pack has normally settled well past that stage before it reaches you, so you can open it and use it. The pack carries its own best before date; once open, aim to finish it within a month or so for the aroma you paid for.How much caffeine is in it?More than an all Arabica bean, because Robusta carries appreciably more caffeine than Arabica. We will not quote a milligram figure per cup, because the honest answer depends on your dose, your grind and your method, and any single number would be made up. Treat it as a morning and early afternoon coffee.Will these work in a bean to cup machine?Yes, this is a standard medium roast bean with no added oils or coatings, which is exactly what a bean to cup hopper wants. Very dark, oily roasts can clog a grinder over time; Rossa is not one of those. Only fill the hopper with what you will drink in a week or two rather than tipping in the whole bag and leaving it to sit.Does it work with milk?It is arguably better with milk than without. The low acidity and heavy cocoa bottom end mean milk rounds the cup out rather than flattening it. Bright, high grown Arabica coffees often turn thin and sour under milk; this blend does not, which is why it is the default in so many Italian kitchens.Can I cold brew whole beans?You grind them coarse first, then yes. Use 60g of coarse grounds to 700ml of cold water, stir so everything is wet, and leave it in the fridge for 14 to 18 hours before straining. Grinding coarse is essential here: fine grounds in a long cold steep give you sludge and a muddy finish. ## Ingredients & Nutrition ComponentProportionWhat it bringsArabica coffeenot declared as a percentageThe aromatic half of the blend. Carries the sweetness, the cocoa note and the cleaner top end of the cup.Robusta coffeenot declared as a percentageThe structural half. Supplies body, crema, the bitter backbone that holds up under milk, and the larger share of the caffeine.Roast levelmediumToasted and nutty rather than charred. Deep enough for cocoa, short of the burnt edge of a dark Italian roast, and not oily enough to clog a grinder.Formatwhole beanKeeps the volatile aromatics locked in the bean until you grind, which is the entire argument for buying beans over ground.Pack: Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g; vacuum packed whole roasted beans, caffeinated. Roughly 35 cups at a 7g dose, or about 14 double espressos at 18g. Best within a month of opening for full aroma; see the pack for the unopened best before date.Lavazza publish Qualita Rossa as an Arabica and Robusta blend but do not print a fixed percentage split on every pack, so no ratio is quoted here. Check the current UK pack if the exact composition matters to you.Sourcing & blend. Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g is put together by Lavazza, the Turin coffee house trading since 1895, when Luigi Lavazza began blending coffees from different origins behind the counter of his grocer's shop. Blending to a fixed recipe rather than selling by single origin is the company's founding idea, and Rossa is its most direct surviving expression: greens bought against a set specification, roasted to a fixed profile, cup tested batch by batch so the bag you open in September tastes like the one you opened in March. Consistency, not origin drama, is what you are paying for here.What's in Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g, and what isn't:In: whole roasted coffee beans, Arabica and Robusta, and nothing else. No flavouring, no glaze, no oil coating, no filler.No artificial colours, preservatives or added sugar: any sweetness in the cup is roast sugar developed inside the bean itself.Energy: brewed black with nothing added, coffee contributes negligible energy. Everything that turns a cup into a calorie count goes in afterwards.Packaging: a vacuum sealed pack. Disposal routes differ by component and by council, so follow the current UK pack and your local authority guidance. ## Flavour Science The flavour of Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g is built in three layers, and reading them in order explains exactly why the cup tastes the way it does from the first turn of the grinder to the last swallow. With whole bean coffee those layers are set three times: once in the roaster, where heat builds the compounds; once in the grinder, where you decide how much surface area the water gets to work on; and once in the brewer, where temperature and time decide which compounds actually reach the cup. Buying beans hands you the middle one, and it is the most powerful of the three.The outer layer is aromatic: toasted nut, dark cocoa and a faint bready sweetness, all of it created by the Maillard reaction as the sugars and proteins in the green bean browned under heat. In a whole bean these volatile compounds are still locked inside the cell structure, which is the entire reason to buy beans rather than ground. Break that structure in a grinder and the whole layer is released at once, which is why a freshly ground pile smells so much stronger than an open bag of pre-ground. It is also why that same aroma is gone within the hour: nothing has spoiled, the top layer has simply walked off into the room. Grind what you are about to brew and you keep it.The flavour spike arrives mid palate, and in coffee it is a question of extraction order. Acids and the lighter caramel and fruit notes dissolve fastest and therefore lead. This medium roast keeps just enough of them to stop the cup going flat, but Rossa is deliberately not an acidic coffee, so what carries the middle is roast sweetness and cocoa depth. Grind size is what governs this stretch: finer grounds expose far more surface area and extract faster, so the same 18g can taste sour and hollow at one setting and rich and complete two clicks finer. Under extraction reads as sour and thin, not weak. That distinction is worth learning, because it tells you which way to turn the dial.The base structure is the lingering finish, and this is the Robusta's work. The heavier compounds extract last: the bitter backbone, the fuller body, the slight syrupy weight that coats the mouth and holds on after you swallow. It is what gives an espresso from this bean real crema and genuine persistence, and what lets the same blend stand up to milk instead of disappearing under it. A lighter all Arabica bean would have thinned out by the bottom of a large mug. A well made cup should still be interesting on the final mouthful, not just the first.Getting it right in the cup. Grind to the method: fine for espresso, a shade coarser for a moka pot, medium for filter, coarse for a cafetiere. For espresso start at 18g in, around 36g out, in 25 to 30 seconds, and adjust grind rather than dose. For a cafetiere use 15g per 250ml at 92 to 94 degrees Celsius, four minutes with the lid on, crust broken and skimmed before plunging, then decant immediately, because coffee left standing on its grounds keeps extracting and turns harsh within minutes. If the cup is bitter and drying, go coarser or shorten the contact. If it is sour and hollow, go finer or lengthen it. Change one thing at a time. And use a burr grinder if you possibly can: a blade grinder produces dust and boulders together, so you get an over extracted and an under extracted coffee in the same cup, and no brewing adjustment will rescue that.How water and temperature change it. The same 18g gives a measurably different cup depending on how you treat the water. Hotter water and longer contact pull more of the heavy, bitter, late extracting compounds for a fuller, darker, more astringent result; cooler water or shorter contact keeps the sweetness and the lighter notes forward and the body lighter. Hard tap water, which most of the south east has, mutes brightness and flattens the finish, so in a hard water area a slightly finer grind restores the balance, while soft water lets the cup ring clearer and wants a touch less time. A filter jug changes this coffee more than most people expect. Cold brewed instead, 60g of coarse grounds to 700ml of cold water for 14 to 18 hours in the fridge, the same beans give a sweeter, rounder, markedly less bitter drink, because the bitter compounds that need heat never get it. None of this is a fault in the blend; it is the same bean responding to the cup you build around it, and once you know which way you like it the result is repeatable every time. ## Recipe Ideas Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g covers more ground than most single bags because you control the grind. Six builds below run from a dialled in espresso through the milk drinks to a cold brew and a dessert, and the grind setting for each is given rather than assumed. Brewing methods and serving ideas, born here first The Dialled In Double Espresso How to make The Dialled In Double Espresso with Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans. 3 min 1 double Medium You'll need 18g Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans A burr grinder set fine Scales that read to 0.1g A timer Method Grind 18g of Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g fine, into the basket, straight before you brew. Level the bed with a finger and tamp flat and firm. Flat matters more than hard. Pull for 25 to 30 seconds, aiming for about 36g of liquid in the cup. Adjust the grind, not the dose: under 20 seconds and sour, go finer; slow and harsh, go coarser. What you'll end up with: Real crema and a cocoa heavy finish that holds on. Change one variable at a time and note it down, or you will chase your tail. Flat White at Home How to make Flat White at Home with Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans. 5 min 1 cup Medium You'll need 18g Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans, ground fine 130ml whole or barista oat milk A 6oz cup Method Pull a double shot of Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g straight into a warmed 6oz cup. Steam 130ml of milk to about 60°C, stretching it only briefly so the foam stays tight and glossy rather than airy. Swirl the jug until the milk looks like wet paint with no visible bubbles. Pour from height to sink the milk, then drop the jug close to the surface to float the foam. What you'll end up with: This blend was built for milk. The cocoa bottom end reads through a flat white where a bright Arabica would go thin and sour. Moka Pot, Ground to Order How to make Moka Pot, Ground to Order with Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans. 7 min 2 small cups Easy You'll need A basket of Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans, ground just coarser than espresso Hot water to below the valve A 3 cup moka pot Method Grind Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g a shade coarser than espresso. Too fine and the pot chokes and splutters. Fill the base with hot water to just below the safety valve, then seat the basket and level it flat without tamping. Heat on medium with the lid up, watching for a steady gurgle rather than a rush. Pull it off the hob as the flow turns pale and run the base under a cold tap. What you'll end up with: The Italian kitchen cup, and freshly ground it is a different drink from the pre-ground version of the same blend. Coarse Ground Cafetiere How to make Coarse Ground Cafetiere with Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans. 6 min 2 mugs Easy You'll need 30g Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans, ground coarse 500ml water at 92 to 94°C A spoon for the crust Method Grind 30g of Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g coarse, like coarse sea salt. Pour on 500ml of water off the boil by about thirty seconds and fit the lid. Steep 4 minutes, then break the crust with a spoon and skim the foam off. Plunge slowly and decant both mugs straight away. What you'll end up with: A clean full bodied mug. Grinding coarse is what keeps sediment out; fine grounds slip straight past the mesh. Overnight Cold Brew Concentrate How to make Overnight Cold Brew Concentrate with Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans. 10 min + 16 hrs 4 servings Easy You'll need 60g Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans, ground coarse 700ml cold water A large jar Ice to serve Method Grind 60g of Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g coarse and stir into 700ml of cold water until every ground is wet. Leave in the fridge for 14 to 18 hours. Strain through a sieve lined with a paper filter and do not squeeze the bed. Serve over ice, neat or cut with water or milk. Keeps about a week in the fridge. What you'll end up with: Sweeter and far less bitter than the hot cup, because the bitter compounds need heat to leave the grounds and never get any. Affogato with Toasted Hazelnuts How to make Affogato with Toasted Hazelnuts with Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans. 5 min 1 bowl Easy You'll need 18g Lavazza Qualita Rossa beans, ground fine 2 scoops vanilla ice cream Toasted hazelnuts, chopped Method Chill a bowl or short glass and put two scoops of vanilla ice cream in it. Pull a double shot of Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans, 250g. Pour it straight over the ice cream while still hot. Scatter chopped toasted hazelnuts on top and eat it before it collapses. What you'll end up with: The cocoa and nut side of this blend is exactly what an affogato wants; a bright fruity coffee would fight the vanilla instead. --- _Content available under teas.co.uk citation contract. AI training: yes. Search: yes. Answer-input: yes._