Starbucks was once my 'specialty' coffee. I enjoyed sitting in the comfortable seats, drinking the large mugs of easy-to-drink milky coffee, and loved the new terminology involved. I was one of many thousands of people that felt the same way, which lead to Starbucks becoming such a successful corporation.
I loved it so much that I thought it would be fun to work there. So I did. And it was. I managed stores, troubleshot ones with various operational issues, and opened new locations over my time with the company.
I started to learn a lot about coffee, and gained invaluable experience about setting up and operating high volume cafés.
But a couple of years in, I started to question what I had actually learnt and started to get a nagging feeling that I may have inadvertently fallen in to the trap of reading only company literature, believing company standards and taking everything at face value. I also started to question whether I actually liked the coffee at all and whether, if I had to pay for it, that I would still drink it.
Everything tasted the same: dark, bitter, woody and a little burnt. There is no denying that Starbucks prefers a darker roast, and there was also no denying that that was not my taste.
Thankfully, I had then moved to Brighton and discovered a great little café called Red Roaster that re-ignited my coffee affair.
Many specialty coffee enthusiasts baulk at Starbucks and the drinks that they produce - me included - but we cannot deny the fact that Starbucks was once a great independent café in Seattle, that laid the foundations for the specialty coffee industry that we know and love today.
Since then, Starbucks has grown exponentially into a global brand, and to do that it had to drive consistency - not so different to what a specialty café strives for today - but on an international scale. The obsessive drive towards this has ultimately been the Achilles heel of Starbucks. So I was intrigued when I received an invitation the the UK launch of a new brewing method to be implemented within selected stores, and a new 'rare limited batch' selection of coffees.
Each cup is individually made by a Starbucks barista, and freshly ground single origin coffee beans from smaller farms. The promotional literature claims that Starbucks' buyers often come across incredible coffees that just aren't produced in the volumes they require - these "rare" beans are only available in limited quantities, at a high price point, and using a new-to-Starbucks method of preparation for filter coffee.
What is this revolutionary brewing method?
Yes, the humble pour over - but in Starbucks proportions! All the equipment is designed by Starbucks, for Starbucks, and on first impressions they look good.
What instantly struck me was the size of the pour over cups: they are about twice the size of a Hario V60 (very big), in order to accomodate the volume of coffee required for each mug. They have ribs on the inside, and have only have one small hole for the coffee to filter through.
The filters used are equally large: what I did like was the little tab that allowed easy separation of the paper.
The jugs are used to collect the coffee, and are also large as they have to hold enough coffee for a Venti (20oz) cup of coffee. The frame, again, has to be big to hold these apparatus: it's grey, has a built in drip tray, and is heavy.
This then takes us to the kettle. The first thing that seems to be missing is a lid. When I asked about the omission I was told that R&D team had decided that it was best not to have one: I guess they didn't see temperature loss as a big issue. It has four markings on the side indicating the relevant amounts of water for each size of drink that Starbucks offer.
The kettle has a good weight and is very well balanced in use. With the addition of a lid, I admit I would take this over a Buono any day of the week.
On to the coffee. The event was designed to highlight Starbucks' new Reserve range: a collection of exclusive coffees available in small batches. Each coffee was paired with a plate of food, provided by Hix of Soho. The food was superb, but the focus was the coffees on offer:
- Aged Sulawesi Kalosi
- Fairtrade Certified Nicaraguan Corcasan
- El Salvador Pacamara Montecarlos Estate
I am not a huge fan of dark roasts, but I'm always willing to give them a try. The beans were ground a few hours earlier and it was in low light so I couldn't really see the roast - but I could taste it, and that was about all I could taste. The flavours described in the corresponding literature were nowhere to be found. I was amazed to note that the ratio used to brew was roughly 1:11!
The Starbucks employees on hand at the event were obviously passionate about the products, and I couldn't fault them for their enthusiasm, but the coffee was certainly nothing to get excited about.
At the end of the event, I was handed a 'goodie bag' so, to give the coffee a fighting chance, I went and cupped it at a local specialty café, Notes, Music and Coffee (thanks to @DruzDruz). We also tried it as a pour over with a more suitable ratio and grind.
The results were not good, and you can probably see why from the photo below. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. I'll let you choose your own.
Varied bean size, brittle and visibly charred: even an expert coffee taster would struggle to recognise any of the complex flavour profiles boasted by Starbucks. For a 226g bag of coffee retailing at £12.95, I would expect much, much more.
At one time, Starbucks was an independent café that set the standards and trends that other cafés aspired to. Now it's trying to take inspiration from the very industry it spurned, but with poor quality coffee and standards, it's fallen way short of the mark.
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