Chicory coffee or roasted cacao?
Chicory coffee is roasted chicory root, brewed like coffee — sometimes on its own, often blended with real coffee. Choffy is roasted cacao beans, ground, brewed and strained, with no coffee and no chicory. Both go in the press you already own; they taste nothing alike.
Chicory coffee is roasted chicory root, often blended with coffee. Choffy is roasted cacao — no coffee, no chicory.
Same press, same filter, same three minutes.
If the bean sounds more like it
Start with three estates at one roast, or go straight to the most coffee-like one we make. Nothing to brew with yet? The Starter Kit adds the press.
French Roast Variety Set Choffy Brewed Cacao
Ecuador, Nigeria and Ivory Coast, all at French roast. Three bags with the roast held constant — the only honest way to find out which bean you want.
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Ecuador French Roast Choffy Brewed Cacao
Ecuador French — the darkest and smokiest we make, and the one people switching from black coffee tend to stay on.
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Choffy Brewed Cacao - French Roast Starter Kit
The same three French roasts as the set — Ecuador, Nigeria and Ivory Coast, 10 oz each — plus our 14 oz tumbler press, a French press and travel cup in one. Everything you need to brew on day one.
Shop thisThe comparison, answered
Is chicory coffee actually coffee?
Not by itself. Pure chicory coffee is roasted chicory root with no coffee in it. Many popular chicory coffees, including the New Orleans style, are blends of coffee and chicory, so they do contain coffee. The ingredient list on the bag tells you which you have.
Which has less caffeine?
Pure roasted chicory root has none. Coffee-and-chicory blends have the caffeine of the coffee in them. An 8 oz cup of Choffy is about 20 mg by our own measurement, against about 96 mg in the same size cup of coffee on USDA figures.
Can I brew them the same way?
No. Pure chicory root is sold ground, as granules you steep, or as an instant powder. Choffy brews ground in a French press, drip machine or pour-over, and also comes in single-serve cups compatible with Keurig® brewers. Coffee-and-chicory blends do come in pods, but those contain coffee.
Can I mix Choffy with chicory or coffee?
Yes. Plenty of customers add a scoop of Choffy to their coffee in the press for a mocha-style cup.
What is in the cup besides caffeine?
Theobromine, which occurs naturally in cacao and carries into the brew. Nothing is added: no sugar, no flavoring, no fillers.
The three differences that actually matter
Root against bean
Chicory is a root, roasted and ground. Cacao is a bean — the same one chocolate starts from — roasted and ground, never sweetened. Both brew like coffee; the cup that comes out is completely different.
Woody and sharp against dark and smoky
Roasted chicory is woody and sharp, which is why it has long been used to stretch or deepen coffee. Roasted cacao is bitter, dark and smoky — our French roasts land closest to strong black coffee. If you want a cup that stands on its own without coffee in it, taste the bean.
Know your caffeine
Pure roasted chicory root is caffeine free. Coffee-and-chicory blends carry the caffeine of the coffee in them. Choffy sits in between: about 20 mg in an 8 oz cup by our own measurement, against about 96 mg in the same size cup of coffee on USDA figures.
Side by side
Every fact below is from the makers' own pages or ours, read 3 November 2026.
| Choffy | Pure chicory root | Coffee and chicory blend | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Roasted cacao beans, ground | Roasted chicory root | Ground coffee blended with roasted chicory |
| Example label | Roasted cacao | Organic roasted chicory root granules (Frontier Co-op) | Coffee, chicory (Café Du Monde) |
| Contains coffee | No | No | Yes |
| Caffeine in a cup | ~20 mg in an 8 oz cup, by our own measurement | None, as the maker describes it | Yes, from the coffee |
| How you make it | French press, drip, pour-over or a pod | Steeped like tea, 3–5 minutes (Frontier) | Brewed like coffee |
Example labels, read 3 November 2026: Frontier Co-op Organic Roasted Chicory Root Granules (frontiercoop.com): ingredient ‘Organic Roasted Chicory Root Granules’, described as a ‘caffeine-free coffee substitute’, steep 1 tsp in 8 oz boiling water for 3–5 minutes. Café Du Monde Coffee and Chicory (wholefoodsmarket.com listing): ingredients ‘Coffee, Chicory’. Choffy caffeine is our own measurement (2.4–2.6 mg per fluid ounce brewed), not an independent laboratory’s. Check the current label before relying on any of it. Frontier Co-op and Café Du Monde are trademarks of their owners. Choffy Inc. is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Frontier Co-op or Café Du Monde, and all comparisons are drawn from each brand’s own published materials on the date shown.
“Best quality ever. So rich and full. I love it and feel great about my choice to drink it. Yum.”
Sue Decker · verified buyer, on Ecuador Dark Roast
From people who tried the alternatives
Google, Amazon and Walmart figures last checked 11 September 2026. The on-site figure updates itself.
“If you're a coffee lover, but don't like the quick hit of energy then the crash- you'll love Choffy. Sustainable energy, better ingredients, fabulous taste. I am a Choffy lover!”
“I add a scoop to my French press with my coffee in the morning for the BEST mocha. In the afternoon I have a cup straight for a treat and a pick me up.”
“I now make mocha's in the morning, using Volta French Roast and my chosen brand of coffee. It is a very yummy addition to my mornings. I've told friends who don't like coffee to switch to Choffy!”
One bean, four estates, nothing added
We invented roasted cacao in 2006 and we still only make this. Every batch tasted before it ships, every batch destoned after the roast.
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