Starbucks is just not good Coffee. IMHO

[Whisky]

No, they could get a good consistent medium roasting profile easily, with the equipment they have. They probably do. It is very capable and consistent high-volume equipment. But they are using cheap beans, and you definitely do not get to taste that coffee during the three week window after roasting, when it would actually taste good.

No, it's all roasted in Roasting Central, on huge fluid bed roasters, sealed up in vacuum bags, and when you buy a coffee or a bag, it's probably at least a half-year later. I have tried sealing the coffee I roast in vacuum bags, but it does not help much to increase longevity.

Maybe I should have said it’s easier to get a consistent dark roast rather than a consistent lighter roast. When you’re roasting almost 5 million pounds of coffee a week out of 5-6 plants I’m sure getting a uniformly even roast is difficult. One thing I can say for Starbucks, their coffee has been the same over roasted crap regardless of where I am.

Even their “artisanal” roasts are roasted in Probat 120s that can roast 260lbs of beans at a time.

 

[JohnG]

And the experience is an over-marketed homage to old European coffee houses, dumbed down for a demographic that would probably complain bitterly at not being able to find any old European coffee houses with wi-fi. Plus they'd have to actually go to Europe, which is so 20th Century.

We had a cafe like that where I live. Went there several times a week. Also sold craft brews on tap and wine.

It closed after the pandemic hit. New owners got rid of everything including the perfectly patinaed terra cotta tile and copper topped tables you see here.

Turned it into a Chipotle with a car dealership floor.

 

[Mike M]

Starbucks espresso along with two sugar sticks and 3.3 ounces of steamed whole milk.

If you tried to put milk and sugar in your espresso anywhere in Europe it would be frowned upon, if you tried it in Italy they'd imprison you

 

[ChriWilson]

Starbucks black coffee is disgusting. Even McD is better.

Their lattes are Ok but a lot of places make them now.

I wouldn't drink either...

The only Starbucks coffee that was worth a damn, were their reserve batched Clover-Brewed coffees.
They ditched the machines after it became apparent that they slowed down production...

Their Roastery locations are on another level and are Starbucks in name only.
Had a chance to visit the Michigan Ave location in Chicago last year and will most likely visit the Tokyo location if we make it there later this year.

Chicago Roastery Design | Starbucks Reserve®

A multi-sensory destination of epic proportions, the Starbucks Reserve® Roastery Chicago is five stories of coffee theater. Both workshop and stage, it is a three-dimensional window into the coffee journey.

www.starbucksreserve.com

When Starbucks first showed up in Austin in the mid 90s, I remember the coffee being really good. I think since then they’ve become so big the quality control, or the ability to roast “small batches”, has gone downhill. It’s funny to me that Starbucks and Peet’s, to a lesser extent, really advocated drinking lighter roasted espresso as opposed to the usual dark roast.

I remember these days as well. Our local Peet's has taken a step back, but still closely resembles their model from when I first found them

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

We had a cafe like that where I live. Went there several times a week. Also sold craft brews on tap and wine.

View attachment 1816152

It closed after the pandemic hit. New owners got rid of everything including the perfectly patinaed terra cotta tile and copper topped tables you see here.

Turned it into a Chipotle with a car dealership floor.

View attachment 1816154

You know what I think is criminal John? The new owner tearing up the beautiful terra cotta floors, and replacing them with that awful floor. Clearly the new owner has no room for taste. If I had gone to a coffee shop before, and this happened, I would never step foot in there again, this is an atrocity!

 

[Andris83]

everything has been said already. I full agree, it is the worst. But, it is the same cr.p anywhere you go in the world. In a way it is the mcdonald's of coffeeshops (except mcdonalds burger is edible, some say ).

 

[Whisky]

I don't want "coffee" that tastes like hot water with a brown crayon dipped in it.

It’s watered down something resembling coffee. I thought sometimes it was actually tea.

Y’all need cowboy coffee.

1. Boil water
2. Throw in 2-3 handfuls of ground coffee
4. After 5 minutes throw in a horseshoe, if the horseshoe sinks add more coffee.

 

[c__port]

If you tried to put milk and sugar in your espresso anywhere in Europe it would be frowned upon, if you tried it in Italy they'd imprison you

Apologies to all offended by my mis-characterization of espresso. It probably was just very potent coffee.

The service typically looking similar to this - with about half as much coffee in the cup, and two sugar sticks instead of the lumps:

 

[Andris83]

If you tried to put milk and sugar in your espresso anywhere in Europe it would be frowned upon, if you tried it in Italy they'd imprison you

I wish this was true (Italy, yes), but not everyone is a coffee purist
I had to "educate" some of my guest, telling them they won't put cold milk, powdered or condensed milk into espresso, in my house at least

 

[Mojo88]

everything has been said already. I full agree, it is the worst. But, it is the same cr.p anywhere you go in the world. In a way it is the mcdonald's of coffeeshops (except mcdonalds burger is edible, some say ).

Yep, all chains strive for that consistency from location to location even if it’s mediocre. One chain place that has pretty decent black coffee is Panera. We have one near us and the only negative is the large groups of retired guys that hangout and drink all the coffee in the morning. There is a group of about 20 guys that are there every morning. When we retired my wife jokingly asked me if I was going to join them. I laughed and said nope, I have had enough of listening to people complain after being in technical sales for 35 plus years. I can come here on B&B and talk about coffee and anything I want.

 

[musicman1951]

Maybe I should have said it’s easier to get a consistent dark roast rather than a consistent lighter roast. When you’re roasting almost 5 million pounds of coffee a week out of 5-6 plants I’m sure getting a uniformly even roast is difficult. One thing I can say for Starbucks, their coffee has been the same over roasted crap regardless of where I am.

I think this is their business plan - there are 47 billion SB in the world - actually 241 in NYC in 2019, and you can get the exact same cup of coffee in any of them. Sure, it's over-roasted, stale and a bit on the nasty side - but if you drink it all the time you get accustomed to that taste. And the price they get for their mostly sweet drinks is marketing genius.

The only thing I've had that was worse was Peet's Coffee (one in a rest stop and the other in an airport). I like it dark and black - like my soul - but that stuff was undrinkable.

Italy has great coffee (I mostly had espresso) and it was cheap. But I've only been there once and it's a long commute.

 

[Herrenberg]

The only thing I've had that was worse was Peet's Coffee (one in a rest stop and the other in an airport). I like it dark and black - like my soul - but that stuff was undrinkable.

It was actually through a Peet's that I learned that coffee could actually taste really good, and was set on the path to home roasting.

Not Peet's regular stuff; that's just Starbucks garbage with a different logo. But my particular Peets had a special offering of $20 half-pound bags of something special, maybe Jamaica Blue Mountain, don't remember. It was good beans, and there was an actual roast date on the bag, not the "date on which we opened the vacuum bag from Central Roastery" like their usual stuff (I asked). It was wonderful. It was revelatory.

 

[Eric_75]

Not a big Starbucks fan, but I do enjoy their Holiday Blend.

 

[Lightcs1776]

Maybe I should have said it’s easier to get a consistent dark roast rather than a consistent lighter roast. When you’re roasting almost 5 million pounds of coffee a week out of 5-6 plants I’m sure getting a uniformly even roast is difficult. One thing I can say for Starbucks, their coffee has been the same over roasted crap regardless of where I am.

Even their “artisanal” roasts are roasted in Probat 120s that can roast 260lbs of beans at a time.

Definitely. I roasted a great Ethiopian bean and was disappointed that I roasted darker than I wanted. Oh well, it was still better than most coffee I have tasted.

 

[Tirvine]

As regards their black coffee, I disagree with the prevailing view that it is over roasted. Here in Austin I get the French roast from HEB, roasted much darker than Starbucks', and make delicious coffee. There is a delicate tipping point for any coffee. If you exceed a certain coffee to water ratio it is horrid. Starbucks consistently ignores that fact and grossly overdoses. Their milk drinks are bereft of espresso. Given how mechanized and crappy their espresso is, you cannot really fix it with extra shots. Which all comes down to this. "Friends don't let friends drink Starbucks." Find a shop with great beans, an espresso machine that requires a real barista, and an excellent barista or buy a great grinder, a decent machine, and good beans and make your own.

 

[Herrenberg]

As regards their black coffee, I disagree with the prevailing view that it is over roasted. Here in Austin I get the French roast from HEB, roasted much darker than Starbucks', and make delicious coffee. There is a delicate tipping point for any coffee. If you exceed a certain coffee to water ratio it is horrid. Starbucks consistently ignores that fact and grossly overdoses. Their milk drinks are bereft of espresso. Given how mechanized and crappy their espresso is, you cannot really fix it with extra shots. Which all comes down to this. "Friends don't let friends drink Starbucks." Find a shop with great beans, an espresso machine that requires a real barista, and an excellent barista or buy a great grinder, a decent machine, and good beans and make your own.

Everyone has his own opinion. Especially about coffee. Mine is that second crack is wack, and that any coffee roasted 4 weeks ago might as well be thrown away, or distilled for its caffeine. Sealing in a vacuum bag does not change any of this.

 

[DesertIguana]

Where else would people pay 6 - 8 bucks for burnt cup of coffee, camouflaged with weird name, and flavoring with sugar & additives to kill bad taste. Starbucks is the place.

 

[musicman1951]

As regards their black coffee, I disagree with the prevailing view that it is over roasted. Here in Austin I get the French roast from HEB, roasted much darker than Starbucks', and make delicious coffee. There is a delicate tipping point for any coffee. If you exceed a certain coffee to water ratio it is horrid. Starbucks consistently ignores that fact and grossly overdoses. Their milk drinks are bereft of espresso. Given how mechanized and crappy their espresso is, you cannot really fix it with extra shots. Which all comes down to this. "Friends don't let friends drink Starbucks." Find a shop with great beans, an espresso machine that requires a real barista, and an excellent barista or buy a great grinder, a decent machine, and good beans and make your own.

Absolutely! I had Starbucks espresso once - which was one time too many, but enjoy some truly wonderful espresso at a small local shop.

 

[Old Hippie]

Might be synchronicity, but other folks are thinking about this, too. My local news website has a regular columnist on food topics, and today her column talks about the matter. (Link is to a Canadian news site.)

I agree with her. I was thinking about this yesterday and realized the "next intellectual step" in my argument was that once the cool goes mainstream, it's time to look to see what the next thing is rather than complain that what was cool 30 years ago is not so anymore. Not an indictment; a statement of practical reality: support the up-and-comers.

O.H.

 

[JimmyJoeMeeker]

Their hot black coffee tastes like burnt earwax. I only made the mistake of ordering it once.

However, their iced coffee (black) is delicious. They cold brew it. I only get it when I'm on vacation and they have a Starbucks at whatever hotel/resort I'm in, but I look fondly forward to a couple of them a day if there's a Starbucks in the building.