Bokar Coffee

Bokar Coffee is a dark-roast coffee brand with roots in the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, commonly known as A&P. The brand began being sold through A&P stores in 1919, placing it within the supermarket chain's long-running portfolio of private-label and branded grocery products. Bokar was positioned as a robust coffee offering and was historically associated with the A&P coffee family alongside Eight O'Clock and Red Circle. The name and blend were linked to two Colombian coffee-producing locations, Bogotá and Cartagena. The product description associated with the classic blend emphasizes a selection of 100% Arabica beans and a roast suitable for strong brewed coffee. When ground particularly fine, the blend was also promoted as suitable for espresso preparation. This combination gave Bokar a darker, more intense identity than a general-purpose light or medium roast, while retaining a connection to Colombian coffee origins. For much of its early life, Bokar was primarily encountered through A&P's retail network. That distribution model changed in 1979, when A&P licensed its brands division, Compass Foods, Inc., to market Eight O'Clock, Bokar, and Red Circle to outside retailers, including supermarket chains that competed with A&P. The licensing arrangement broadened the brands' potential distribution beyond A&P-owned stores and reflected the changing economics of packaged coffee and grocery retailing. A&P eventually sold Bokar and its sister coffee brands in 2003. Tata Global Beverages subsequently acquired ownership of Eight O'Clock Coffee Company and the Bokar brand in 2005. Under Tata's ownership, Bokar continued in some markets but was discontinued outside Canada in 2012. The withdrawal reduced the brand's availability in the United States and other markets, although the name remained part of the historical portfolio associated with A&P and Eight O'Clock. In 2018, American Modern Coffee, a Los Angeles-based coffee company, acquired the Bokar brand and reintroduced the original blend to the American marketplace. The relaunch restored Bokar as a heritage coffee label rather than introducing it as a wholly new coffee concept. Publicly available reference material provides limited information about the brand's current distribution, corporate structure, sales, or marketing activity. Its documented identity remains centered on a dark-roasted Arabica blend, Colombian associations, espresso suitability, and a history spanning supermarket retail, brand licensing, corporate divestiture, discontinuation, and later revival.

Bokar Coffee originated as one of the branded coffee products sold by the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, widely known as A&P. The brand was introduced into A&P's store network in 1919. Its early commercial identity was therefore closely tied to supermarket distribution rather than to an independent café chain or standalone coffeehouse business. A&P used a portfolio approach to packaged coffee, and Bokar became associated with the company's other coffee labels, particularly Eight O'Clock and Red Circle. Bokar was characterized as a dark-roasted coffee. The classic blend was described as using 100% Arabica beans and taking its name from Bogotá and Cartagena, two Colombian locations associated with coffee production. The blend was also presented as versatile: a strong brewed coffee when prepared conventionally and a potential espresso coffee when ground very finely. These characteristics distinguished Bokar through roast intensity and preparation flexibility, although detailed historical records about its sourcing, packaging changes, and sales are limited. In 1979, A&P changed the distribution model for its coffee brands. The company licensed Compass Foods, Inc., its brands division, to sell Eight O'Clock, Bokar, and Red Circle to retailers beyond the A&P system. The arrangement included competing supermarket chains, expanding the possible retail footprint of brands that had originally been strongly identified with A&P stores. This move reflected the importance of wider packaged-goods distribution as supermarket competition developed. A&P sold Bokar and its sister brands in 2003. Two years later, in 2005, Tata Global Beverages took over ownership of Eight O'Clock Coffee Company and the Bokar brand. The brand subsequently experienced a contraction in availability. Tata discontinued Bokar outside Canada in 2012, leaving the label with a substantially narrower market presence and ending its contemporary distribution in the United States at that time. The brand later underwent a revival. In 2018, American Modern Coffee, based in Los Angeles, acquired Bokar and reintroduced the original coffee blend in the American marketplace. The relaunch positioned the brand as a revived heritage product, drawing on its historical name and established dark-roast profile. Available reference material does not establish the full scope of current production, retail distribution, ownership structure, executive leadership, or recent promotional activity. Accordingly, Bokar's documented history is best understood as a sequence of supermarket launch, broader licensing, portfolio divestiture, international ownership, market withdrawal, and American reintroduction.

1. 2018American relaunch

   American Modern Coffee acquires Bokar and reintroduces its original blend in the United States.

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2. 2012International availability is reduced

   Bokar is discontinued outside Canada.

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3. 2005Tata Global Beverages takes ownership

   Tata Global Beverages acquires Eight O'Clock Coffee Company and the Bokar brand.

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4. 2003Bokar is sold by A&P

   A&P divests Bokar along with its Eight O'Clock and Red Circle coffee brands.

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5. 1979Distribution expands through Compass Foods

   A&P licenses Compass Foods to sell Bokar and related coffee brands to outside retailers, including competing supermarket chains.

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6. 1919Bokar begins appearing in A&P stores

   A&P starts selling Bokar Coffee through its supermarket network.

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A heritage American dark-roast coffee brand associated with a robust 100% Arabica blend, Colombian coffee origins, and espresso preparation.

• Bokar blendCoffee1919

  The signature Bokar product is a dark-roasted coffee blend described as using 100% Arabica beans. Its name is associated with Bogotá and Cartagena in Colombia. The blend is intended for strong brewed coffee and can be ground extra fine for espresso-style preparation. The historical product identity emphasizes roast depth, Arabica composition, and Colombian associations rather than a broad range of documented variants.

• 2018Reintroduction of the original blendProduct launch

  Bokar had been discontinued outside Canada in 2012.

  What changed. American Modern Coffee acquired the brand and relaunched the original Bokar blend in the United States.

  Aftermath. Bokar returned to the American marketplace as a revived heritage coffee brand.

  Source
• 2012Discontinuation outside CanadaStrategy

  Bokar was operating under Tata Global Beverages ownership after the 2005 acquisition.

  What changed. Tata discontinued the brand in markets outside Canada.

  Aftermath. The brand disappeared from the American marketplace until its later reintroduction.

  Source
• 2003Divestiture of the Bokar portfolioM&A

  A&P owned Bokar alongside Eight O'Clock and Red Circle.

  What changed. A&P sold Bokar and the two sister coffee brands.

  Aftermath. Bokar moved out of A&P ownership and later became part of Tata Global Beverages' coffee holdings.

  Source
• 1979Broaden distribution through external retailersStrategy

  Bokar and A&P's other major coffee brands had originally been closely connected with A&P stores.

  What changed. A&P licensed Compass Foods to sell Bokar, Eight O'Clock, and Red Circle to other retailers, including supermarket competitors.

  Aftermath. The brands gained a distribution route beyond A&P's own store network.

  Source

• 2018American Modern Coffee reintroduces Bokar in the United States

  Los Angeles-based American Modern Coffee acquired the brand and brought the original Bokar blend back to the American market.

  Product launchM&A
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• 2012Bokar is discontinued outside Canada

  Tata discontinued Bokar in markets outside Canada, ending its availability in the United States during that period.

  Other
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• 2005Tata Global Beverages acquires the Bokar brand

  Tata Global Beverages took ownership of Eight O'Clock Coffee Company and the Bokar brand.

  M&A
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• 2003A&P sells Bokar and related coffee brands

  Bokar, together with Eight O'Clock and Red Circle, was sold by A&P as part of the divestiture of the coffee brand portfolio.

  M&A
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• 1979A&P licenses Compass Foods to distribute Bokar beyond its own stores

  A&P licensed its brands division, Compass Foods, to sell Bokar, Eight O'Clock, and Red Circle to other retailers, including competing supermarket chains.

  Other
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• 1919A&P begins selling Bokar Coffee through its stores

  Bokar Coffee entered the market as a brand sold through the American supermarket chain A&P.

  Product launch
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1. Bokar Coffee
2. Eight O'Clock Coffee