Why Is Cumberland Farms So Proud of Its Coffee Taste Test Results?
The folks at the gas station and convenience store chain Cumberland Farms want you to know something about its coffee—not everybody thinks it’s completely awful.
That’s based on a blind taste test of brews from Framingham-based Cumberland Farms and Canton’s own Dunkin’ Donuts. According to a press release sent our way multiple times by Cumberland, 51 percent of subjects who took a sip of its coffee said it was better than or equal to the Dunkin’ sample. Put another way, 49 percent (as in, a single percentage point less than half) said Cumby’s was worse.
The test results, according to a Cumberland spokesperson, did not differentiate between the 51 percent of subjects who thought the coffee was better than Dunkin’ and those who thought the two were equal. Let’s assume that the 51 percent divides up, if only a little bit. It seems safe to say that of the three options—compared to Dunkin’ Cumby’s was better, Cumby’s was equal, or Cumby’s was worse—the 49 percent saying it was worse represent the plurality.
Opinions may vary as to the quality of Dunkin’ coffee, but I’d end my praises around “serviceable’’ and few would call it gourmet. But according to the Cumberland Farms spokesperson, the subjects of the taste test were considered Dunkin’ loyalists. These were defined as those who consume coffee away from home, and most often do so at Dunkin’.
In Boston, that’s a little bit like calling somebody who buys Kleenex a tissue brand loyalist, but okay. Shoot for the stars, Cumby’s. Shoot for the stars.
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