What is Cup of Ambition Dark Roast?
The bold end of Dolly Parton's coffee line, made for milk.
Cup of Ambition Dark Roast is described by its makers as a bold coffee with notes of cherry and bittersweet chocolate. Its full body and smooth finish make a rich, robust cup, and they say it is as good with milk, cream or added flavours as it is black. It is sold ground in a 12 oz bag, and as K-Cup pods in boxes of ten.
What Cup of Ambition is
Dolly Parton's own coffee line, made with a Louisiana roaster that has been at it since 1919.
Cup of Ambition is Dolly Parton's coffee brand, named after a line in "9 to 5" and developed with Community Coffee, a family-owned Louisiana roaster founded in 1919. It went on sale online on 29 September 2026 in three roasts, and every cup supports Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Our guide to Cup of Ambition tells the story of the line and compares all three roasts.
What a dark roast does
Body and bitterness up, acidity down.
A longer roast turns more of the bean's sugars into the bittersweet, chocolate flavours of the roast itself, and cuts the acidity. That is why a dark roast stands up in milk while a light roast disappears in it. The cherry note here is the fruit that survives. If you drink your coffee black and like it gentle, the Cup of Ambition Light Roast or Cup of Ambition Medium Roast will suit you better.
Price, and what a cup costs
Supermarket money, and the ground bag is much cheaper per cup than the pods.
| Format | Price | Per kilo | Per cup |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ground, 340 g (12 oz) | $12.99 | $38.18 | $0.57 at 15 g |
| K-Cup pods, 10 count | $12.99 | n/a | $1.30 a pod |
At 15 g a cup, the standard we use across the site, a 12 oz bag makes about 22 cups, at 57 cents each. The pods cost $1.30 each, more than twice as much per cup, which is the usual price of convenience. The pods are on pre-order and are expected to ship from 15 October 2026. Everything is sold in the US only, and the official store marks it final sale. A subscription on cupofambition.com saves 20% and ships free, which takes a bag to about $10.39.
For comparison, the single origins from Fresh Roasted Coffee cost $14.99 to $18.99 for 12 oz, roasted to order with the date on the bag. Cup of Ambition is a little cheaper and much easier to find; Fresh Roasted is fresher and tells you more.
Cup of Ambition Dark vs Death Wish Dark Roast
The same notes, a very different strength.
Death Wish Dark Roast lists hints of chocolate and cherry too, but it is a whole bean coffee built around caffeine strength. Cup of Ambition Dark is a conventional dark roast, ground, made to be easy and smooth rather than intense. For a specialty take on the same bittersweet profile, Stumptown French Roast lists clove and bittersweet chocolate, whole bean.
How to brew it
Ground for any brewer, and the maker gives its own dose.
The bag recommends 2 heaping tablespoons of ground coffee per 6 oz of filtered water, which is roughly 10 to 12 g to 180 ml, close to the 1:15 to 1:18 range most brewing guides use. It is ground for drip machines, pour over, French press, percolators and cold brew, so one grind has to serve all of them: it will be a little fine for a French press and a little coarse for a cone. Our coffee to water ratio guide explains how to adjust strength without changing the grind. For the pods, the maker recommends the 10 oz setting on a Keurig.
A dark roast extracts easily, so be gentler with it than with the light: a level rather than heaped tablespoon if the cup comes out harsh, and water a little below boiling. A French press brings out its full body; our French press guide has the steps. For a cafe-style drink without a machine, brew it strong at about 1:12 and top it up with hot milk, which is what its cherry and bittersweet chocolate are built for.
What the bag does not tell you
The usual gaps of a supermarket blend.
Cup of Ambition is 100% Arabica, but neither the store nor the bag says which countries the coffees come from, and there is no roast date on the back label, only the reclosable bag with tin ties to keep it fresh once open. No certification is claimed. None of that is unusual for a coffee made for grocery shelves, and the Arabica claim is worth having, but it means the tasting notes are the only guide to what is in the bag. If you want to know the farm or the roast date, a specialty roaster is the place to look.
Is it worth it?
Yes, for milk drinkers who want a bold, cheap daily coffee.
At 57 cents a cup, the dark roast is a fair buy for anybody who takes milk or cream, and the cherry and bittersweet chocolate notes are the classic dark roast profile. As with the rest of the line, you do not get a roast date or an origin, and a specialty dark roast will tell you more for more money.
Who should buy it (and who should not)
Buy it if
- You take your coffee with milk, cream or flavours.
- You like a bold, full-bodied cup without much acidity.
- You buy ground coffee for a drip machine or percolator.
Skip it if
- You drink coffee black and like it bright; take the Light Roast.
- You want whole bean, a roast date or a named origin.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Cup of Ambition Dark Roast taste like?
The maker lists cherry and bittersweet chocolate, with a full body and a smooth finish.
Is it good with milk?
Yes. The maker says it is as good with milk, cream or added flavours as it is black.
How much does it cost?
$12.99 for a 12 oz bag of ground coffee, or $12.99 for 10 K-Cup pods.
When do the K-Cup pods ship?
They are on pre-order and expected to ship from 15 October 2026.
Who makes it?
Community Coffee, a family-owned Louisiana roaster founded in 1919, with Dolly Parton.
