I know the regular coffee is fairly priced, but I alway seem to get in line behind the UberYuppie who has to have the Caffe Latte Half Caf-2%milk- fat free whipped cream and sprinkles. Makes me just want to shove coffee beans up their nose.
FTR, I am a recovering donut-aholic. I don’t buy any anymore. Their smells don’t even tempt me. except the ones with goo inside. Nothing like a doper baked inside a donut…mmmmmmmm that’s good carbs!
Now I see why the Atkins diet failed to take off amongst the cannibal population.
Count me in as another burnt and bitter - as well over roasted average beans, I think they use boiling water to make the coffee (if you make a french press at home, you are supposed to let the water sit for about 5 minutes before pouring it into you press) - boiling water gives it a funny taste.
I think the funny taste definately is something to the grounds being singed by boiling water, because the starbucks beans we get at my work and make with a regular industrial drip machine taste way better than direct from Starbucks.
My first Dunkin Donuts was when I came to Belfast as a student. Now that I’m employed and in more need of caffeine and sprinkly sugary things, they’ve all sold up and moved on 
That was the best chicken soup! Screaming hot salty chicken water… mmm…
I got a King of Clubs on my hot chocolate cup!!!
So you’re saying is, Starbucks doesn’t even know how to boil water? 
A TV station here in New Orleans did a report a few months ago comparing the caffeine in various brands of coffee. They included big names like Starbucks, a couple of local favorites (not the chicory blends), and tested them all for caffeine content.
For the same size cup, same roast of coffee, Starbucks had more than twice the caffeine of the local coffees. Which also taste a damn sight better.
Give me my $4 a pound Community any day of the week. Or any of the local coffeeshops’ offerings. They didn’t come right out and say it, but they sure suggested strongly that Starbucks pumps caffeine into their product. Which wouldn’t surprise me in the least.
I doubt it. It’s just stronger. It’s made with more coffee beans. If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s weak coffee.
Purple’s a fruit, right?
Not true. The brewing equipment Starbucks uses brews at about 200 deg (just under the boil) consistent with the SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America) recommendations. The new brewers have a thermometer and digital display showing water temperature. They won’t even start a brew cycle if the water isn’t hot enough. Starbucks also educates its partners and customers on this issue.
I will say that unfortunately not every store takes equipment maintenance as seriously as we do in ours. Those urns should be cleaned out periodically (at least weekly, even more for busier stores) with descaler. And some baristas would certainly serve better espresso if they kept their portafilters cleaner. I’m guessing that poor equipment maintenance, improper barista technique, and neglecting cleanliness standards are the primary reasons people are getting lower quality product (burnt/bitter) at Starbucks. I take my job pretty seriously and I’m proud of the high standards corporate sets. It really burns me up when others who don’t make us look bad. Poor drink quality is a store issue because they’re not following corporate standards.
As for the coffee, I have it on the first-hand authority that it is most certainly 100% Arabica. Starbucks buys its coffee direct from the growers and grower associations. Can’t you imagine the stink the SCAA (of which Starbucks is a member) and its members would put up if a huge member corporation were falsely advertising its coffee? Believe me, Starbucks doesn’t need to do that.
My honest take is this: I like my coffee dark and flavorful. I don’t care for our French Roast however. It is over-roasted for my taste, although I do like other French Roasts I’ve ordered online. I do enjoy Starbucks Espresso Blend, though, and most of the other coffees with the exception of House, Lightnote, and Breakfast Blend. I don’t care for mild-roasted Latin American coffees.
Incidently, I can easily taste the difference between our Arabian Mocha Java (my favorite) and Colombian and I’m a smoker with dulled taste buds. If you can’t tell the difference between an Indonesian from a Latin American from an African–even at Starbucks–there’s something wrong. The flavors are very distinctive. Here’s a tip: a Java or Sumatran is going to be notably earthy and heavy-bodied; whereas a Colombian is going to be lighter bodied and effervescent. Typically the Indonesians are darker roasted because their flavor is more intense and can withstand longer roasting. Latin Americans tend to lighter roasted as their more subtle flavor notes would be burned away in a longer roasting cycle.
I prefer Africans and Yemeni coffee because I enjoy their interesting flavor variations and more substantial body than LAs but less of the heavy, earthy aspects of the Indonesians. Oh, and I abhor the sweet drinks. My usual is an Americano with skim foam and one raw sugar. But I’m pretty picky and I rarely ever get one as good as the ones I personally make because I’m an extremely anal clean-freak at the bar and I can tell what a good shot looks like, so my shots are generally exceptional. And I know how to foam milk properly. BTW, a cappuccino should be free-poured with extremely dense foamy milk that looks almost meringue-like. Silky goodness. If they give you one that’s half steamed milk and half scooped out airy milk bubbles, give it back and suggest they check their recipe book. Well, only if you want to be mean. But you ought to at least get your drink made properly. CrazyCatLady, I don’t know what it is you’re getting at the gas station out of those machines, but it’s not a cappuccino! Though you may enjoy it, it’s totally unfair to compare the price of a hand-crafted beverage made with fresh ingredients to a machine-made beverage likely made with powdered ingredients.
UrbanChic, the price only went up on prepared beverages and brewed coffee. I think the whole bean Breakfast Blend is still the same price ($9.95 in my neck of the woods) and far cheaper than buying it by the cup in the store. Get yourself a pound of Breakfast Blend ground coarsely and a travel press, and stop in instead for hot water out of the shuttle. You’ll save a bundle of money and time. And you’ll still be drinking your Breakfast Blend as you walk out of the store!
While I’m at it, feel free to Ask The Barista any Starbucks-related questions if so inclined. I’m happy to share and dispel any myths. 
Sorry. I came to this thread late because I’ve been in the midst of a five-day Super Mah-jongg addiction.
Normally I hate to make a whole post to just say this, but that was informative and well put together and in danger of falling off the page, so. . .
A most excellent post, Cinny Girl.
Cinamon MahJong Girl I have a question!
Do you get free coffee/drinks at work?
Are you playing Mah Jong on line or eeek! *out there in the real world?[/size]
Thanks, that means a lot, Trunk!
While I’m at it, I may as well answer your question back on page one regarding whether Starbucks brews freshly ground beans. Answer is: for the most part. Of course, the espresso is ground right there at the bar automatically in small batches so it’s probably the freshest. Drip coffee beans are shipped to the stores in one of two conditions: 5 lb. vacuum sealed whole bean and 9 oz vacuum sealed pre-ground. The 9 oz pre-ground is generally used by stores that brew full batches consistently (one packet is a full batch). The 5 lb. bullets of whole bean are ground some time in advance (usually that morning), bagged in half or quarter batches and rotated behind the previously ground coffee.
I’m not a fan of the pre-ground but it is more convenient and time-saving to just open the bag and pour it in (a necessary evil for the high volume drip stores). Ours is not as high volume on drip than bar drinks, so we don’t use as many full batches. As it is the only thing we order the pre-ground packets for is the iced coffee (which is brewed double-strength and diluted with ice). Everything else is ground that morning from whole bean. Incidently, I believe there’s no hard and fast rule on this. It would be determined based on the needs of the store and practices could vary significantly. OTOH, YMMV.
Yup! That’s one of the nicest perks there is. I am THE coffee achiever. There is only very rarely a time you’ll see me without some type of coffee. I’ve been trying to switch my last drink of the night to tea, but it’s hard.
Oh yeah, I like the Tazo bag teas, but I don’t like the chai concentrate that is used to make chai lattes. It’s way too peppery. Someone said earlier that it comes in jugs. Technically, it doesn’t. It comes in the same kind of foil lined box that Oregon Chai and other commercially prepared chais come in. If you want to do it yourself, get a cup of the bagged chai filled with half steamed milk/half hot water and add two honeys (top with silky foam). Much, much better, IMO!
It’s computer Mah-jongg solitaire. I wish I had real tiles though. That would be so cool!
Could it be possible that the 200 degrees is too hot at the altitude my city is at, 1077m or just over 3500 ft. According to what I remember boiling temperature is about 6 degrees F or about 3 C less at 3500 ft. I know that water boils at a lower temperature at higher altitudes and perhaps the closeness of the state change of the water at the altitude is affecting the coffee. If I tried Starbucks in Vancouver next time I visit would I notice a difference in flavor?
Whether the water is boiling is not actually the factor in brewing coffee. It’s the temperature. You don’t want your water to get too hot. 212° F (boiling point at sea level) is too hot to brew coffee at. Even if water boils at 200° F, you’re still brewing at the correct temperature. The SCAA recommendation is actually a range: 92 - 96C (197.6 - 204.8F), so something in that range should be fine regardless of whether the water is actually boiling. The phrase “just under the boil” as a guideline for brewing temp usually works just about anywhere when you can’t actually measure the temperature of the water.
Incidently, I think barometric pressure which is variable at any altitude is a better indicator of when water boils, but quite impractical to calibrate brewing equipment by as it’s the water temperature that’s important, not whether it’s boiling.
In short, coffee brewed at 200° F in Vancouver should taste the same as that brewed at 200° F in Calgary. Hope that clears it up.