Conventional brown sugar is simply white, refined sugar moistened with molasses. On the other hand, raw muscovado sugar has a rich, earthy and almost smoky flavor, as well as a high molasses content. India Tree’s moist-textured variety, processed in Mauritius, can be substituted for dark brown sugar in any recipe (we tested this) or used to add extra flavor to coffee, tea or cocktails (perfect in an Old Fashioned).

After tasting coffees from roasters around the country, we decided to partner with Elevator Cafe & Commons, a small roaster in Portland, Oregon, to produce a custom blend for us from the freshest beans. The bright, clear flavors and precision of their roasting thoroughly impressed us. When you order our blend, you can be sure that the beans have been freshly roasted and shipped out immediately. Our inaugural 177 Milk Street coffee is a do-it-all blend that works across brewing methods and accommodates a variety of palates. The medium roast mix of Central and South American beans packs a full, rich body and a balanced nutty, cocoa-rich flavor. It’s a solid, full-bodied blend that’ll be terrific brewed in your standard coffee maker, pour-over, French press, Italian-style Moka pot or cold brew.

The best afternoon tea has enough body and complexity to get you through the afternoon doldrums (and keep you from falling asleep at your desk). We developed this Milk Street Exclusive tea with Smith Teamaker in Portland, Oregon, whose founder, Steven Smith, revolutionized American tea-drinking habits. The multi-layered black tea blend mixes malty Assam and buttery Keemun with pungent juniper, clove and bright bergamot for a complex and unexpectedly refreshing cup.

Genmaicha is Japanese green tea that is mixed with roasted, popped brown rice. This premium product from Jugetsudo is a rich, balanced green tea, with notes of sesame and a hint of umami richness from the caramelization of the toasted rice. Earthy matcha adds a fuller, rounded flavor for a satisfying cup.

The Milk Street Coffee Sugar Sampler 6-Pack includes all six of our flavors in regular, full-size pouches.
Milk Street's coffee and tea sugars are inspired by global coffee traditions and will transform your morning cup. This sampler pack includes 6 full-size pouches of our Milk Street Coffee Sugars. Flavorings range from the earthy, chili-spiked Mexican Mocha that we tasted in the markets of Oaxaca to a tropical Coconut Ginger Cream, Vietnamese-style Caramel Brûlée reminiscent of their sweet, malted coffee and, closer to home, an homage to New Orlean’s most famous cup of coffee, orange-cinnamon scented café Brulot. Our Original Cardamom Coffee Sugar, mates our favorite spice with vanilla and a touch of cocoa for a classic paring common in both the Middle East and Scandinavia, and our lighter, brighter Honey-Spice Tea Sugar blend, designed to enhance black tea, blends warm spices with granulated honey and a refreshing mint-lavender finish.

In our custom Mocha Mexican Coffee Sugar, earthy, aromatic cinnamon defines the chocolate’s flavor, coaxing out its fruitiness and tempering the bitterness without excessive sweetness. We use chipotle chili powder for its smoky depth, which pairs well with the spicy cinnamon and adds a subtle touch of heat.

This small-batch vanilla extract from Kansas-based Vain Vanilla is prepared completely by hand using only the best ingredients. The Original Baker's Blend is made with top-shelf rum that emphasizes vanilla's sweet characteristics and adds its own cane-sugar dimension. We especially love that Vain Vanilla leaves its vanilla pods in the bottle, which has two benefits. First, over time the extract will continue to deepen in color and become more complex as the pods release more flavor compounds. Second, when you're done with the vanilla extract, you can still slice open the pods and use the beans themselves in your desserts.

The Palmpress is an ingenious new device that is essentially a collapsible French press. The durable plastic device looks like an over-sized hockey puck, but unscrew the lid and it pops open to reveal a silicone funnel. Add coarsely ground coffee to the marked line, pour in water that is just shy of boiling, give a stir and wait 4 to 6 minutes before inverting the press over a mug and pressing to extract. The flavor is bright and strong--just the way we like it. Perhaps best of all, clean up is a breeze: just scrape out the grounds and then give it all a rinse. There are no paper filters or pods to dispose of and no fragile parts to disassemble. Note: it produces 1 cup of coffee at a go.

Soom imports our favorite tahini, and this silky-sweet date syrup has quickly become a kitchen staple sweetener. Also known as date honey, Soom’s Silan is a thick, glossy syrup prepared from steamed and pureed dates. It’s earthy and rich, with a rounded flavor and dried-fruit finish. Use it anywhere you might drizzle maple syrup or honey; it makes a terrific alternative to maple syrup on pancakes and waffles, or drizzled over oatmeal and yogurt. Silan even works for savory recipes. Pair it with toasted nuts or nut oils in vinaigrettes; you can also drizzle it over roasted meat or toss it with roasted vegetables, especially naturally sweet carrots, sweet potatoes or butternut squash garnished with toasted almonds and chili flakes.

We like our cocktails and our cardamom. In this case, we get both at once, along with a surprising savory element in these handcrafted bitters from Portland, Oregon. The husky, minty flavor of cardamom pairs particularly well with spicy bourbon or earthy rum. We think these bitters might make the perfect Old Fashioned and add a new dimension to a Dark and Stormy. Beyond cocktails, these bitters are a terrific way to add easy flavor to whipped cream, caramel sauce, rice pudding or a pot of oatmeal.

Maple Pearls are pebble-sized nuggets of crystallized maple syrup with a unique slow-melting, crunchy texture and robust sweetness that's richer in flavor than store-bought maple sugar. You can crush them up to make maple sugar, or used whole in baked goods, they behave much like chocolate chips: The outsides melt and caramelize slightly but don't completely disintegrate, contributing bursts of rich maple sweetness as you eat. Crown Maple uses state-of-the-art technology to extract richly flavored, organic maple syrup from Hudson Valley's Madava Farms, the largest maple syrup production site in North America. The family company is a trusted brand among chefs for its rich flavor and craft quality.

Fold Maple Pearls into Buttermilk Biscuits or scones for a maple-flavored twist on the classics, or add to cookie recipes such as our rich Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies; they're also easy to crush or grind into granulated maple sugar for any recipe. At breakfast, we like to sprinkle Maple Pearls over oatmeal in place of maple syrup for added texture, especially with buttery and nutty flavors—try them with Browned Butter Apple Oatmeal. Or add to crunchy salads for a sweet accent; the maple flavor complements the crunchy candied pecans perfectly in our Apple and Fennel Salad with Candied Pecans.

• Net Weight: 4.5 ounces
• Ingredients: Pure organic maple sugar
• Certifications: Organic
• Place of Origin: Dutchess County, New York