The new coffee is lousy. I much prefer the over-roasted and burnt taste if that it what you call it. No reason to go to Starbucks anymore if they are going to serve this watered-down swill on a long-term basis.

I won't spend my money there again after a couple of horrific cups over the past several years.

I'll stick to my homebrew of Dunkin Donuts and A couple scoops of whatever dark roast is on sale.

...And no tip cup

I'll take the brewed coffee at SBC or Peets over Starbucks, but all three are an improvement on Dunkin' or Timmy's. The best is what I make at home with fresh-roasted beans from my local Whole Foods Market :)

@Michael Belisle: I'm sorry, but if you are describing the taste of water as "round", you are making shit up. I don't care what your credentials are.

@Michael Belisle: Talking about RBI's would be analogous to discussing the caloric content of coffee. I fail to see how either would be considered pretentious.

Using airy language to describe some ephemeral aspect of a pitcher's wind up would absolutlely be pretentious and I WOULD call that out.

Coffee is serious business. No disputing that.

@Neecy: My dad is one of the McD's people that grabs coffee and a muffin for $1.50 every morning- he can't miss it. He's not fussy about coffee, though, so long as it's not too weak. I'm not even a Starbucks groupie myself, except for fall time when the Pumpkin Spice Lattees are around. I prefer going to the little locally-owned shop for organic, fair-trade roasts that are delicious!

I have access to DD coffee at $5 a pound and at that price I have turned some of my far away friends into coffee snobs as well.

Kudos to Starbucks for recognizing the undrinkability of their blends.

I judged each cup of water (A to D) on clarity, nose, body, taste and finish. Three tasted slightly sweet, bland and round but one had a slight mineral flavor, a thinner body and a clean refreshing finish. [leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com]

But seriously, people who review food for a living at a reputable newspaper like the Chicago Tribune didn't walk in off the street and start making shit up like you contend.

You have a light fruity and nutty aroma.

Coffee is serious business. Why can't we take coffee seriously without being accused of pretentiousness? Maybe you'll understand after studying your SCAA Flavor Dynamics Taste Training Kit again.

Or do you have a hobby? Sports perhaps? OK, let's say it's sports. I have news for you: when you talk about RBIs or FTM-A, you sound pretentious. (Please do elaborate on your hobby if it's not sports.)

No matter which Starbucks I go to it is always the same nasty taste. I try to avoid their coffee like the plague but to their credit, they do have a strong foothold in most establishments.

I have yet to try Dunkin Donuts coffee though I know people rave about it.

I'm no snob, but I know what's good, and DD isn't.

In San Francisco, I get my daily Dunkin Donuts fix right at home. I subscribe to DunkinDonuts.com for a scheduled delivery. I buy about six weeks worth so even with the cost of shipping, I'm paying less than $10.00 a pound.

@modenastradale: I know you didn't reply to me, but I wanted to respond because I think you hit on the disconnect going on here, even if you misinterpretted trujunglist's reference to the chocolate post from earlier today.

I totally agree with most of what you wrote. I absolutely don't think that it is pretentious to drink gourmet coffee. I probably feel the same way about beer that others in here feel about coffee.

However, describing coffee as:

"...light fruity and nutty aroma, a smooth feel on the tongue but nice body and no wimpy finish. This lighter roast (clearly a response to widespread complaints about Starbucks's penchant for over-roasting) allows a broader spectrum of flavors and aromatics to emerge..."

is absolutely pretentious and its kind of funny to some of us that some people (Sherryness for example) take coffee so seriously that they are offended when it is pointed out.

I like Starbucks well enough, but I agree with the general opinion that their beans are overly-roasted. I much prefer the 3 lb bag of Costco organic that we grind and brew at home. We use a Burr grinder, filtered water, and a gold-plated filter drip brewer. Rich and smooth.

@trujunglist: Don't hate on people who appreciate quality; that just means there's more crappy food for guys like you.

I'm sorry you've never had a good coffee in your life :(

@Kristinap815: Truly some of the best I've ever had.

I will dare to say it. Dunkin Donut coffee sucks. I know it's super cool to love DD coffee for some reason. But honestly. It's gross. And if this new Starbucks blend tastes like DD coffee I will cry.

I had it, it was OK, not that much different, except it did -feel- like it had more caffeine. Both I and a co worker said it made us a bit jumpy.

One word: Stumptown

You DARE compare Timmy's to McD's? BLASPHEMY, I say!!!!

On a more serious note, you are right, of course, that when you get down to it, its a matter of personal taste. I did a stint at McD's in my teens, and many loved their coffee. My own Mother prefers the anemic brew they make at the local 7-11.

Starbucks obviously has enough of a loyal following, even if I don't care for their product. With so many individual preferences when it comes to coffee, its no wonder there's a coffee-shop on every corner (and sometimes in-between.)

@trujunglist: Yikes. Small chip on the shoulder?

It isn't snobbery to take pleasure in the delicate flavors of foods you love, or to have high standards of consumption. I myself don't really care for coffee, but I have deep love for chocolate and red wine.

My diet doesn't allow me to eat much chocolate -- so you can bet that when I do indulge, I want it to count! Similarly, I won't drink inferior wine. It's not because I have money to burn (I don't); it's because I drink wine for the flavors, not to get drunk. I buy the good stuff. I just buy it very rarely.

I've always thought that, as a country, our consumption habits are so strange. We've always focused on quantity over quality, even in areas (such as chocolate and coffee) where quantity isn't the problem. We'll overstuff ourselves on huge portions of mediocre food from chain restaurants - even though a reasonble portion of better food would cost the same.

On top of it, there's often this knee-jerk aversion to anything perceived to be "gourmet." A friend once told me, "I'd never eat anything so pretentious that it has truffles in it." It seems odd to turn a plate of food into such a statement of identity. (I later served the friend some pasta with black truffle. He said it was incredible, of course. "What's in it?" "Oh, just tasty mushrooms.")

Countries like France and Italy have many flaws. But, I do believe they're ahead of us on their attitudes toward consumption.

@Neecy: How can you stand it?? I'm a proud Canadian, but it tastes watered-down, generic, and weak. It's truly the McDonald's of coffee. To each their own, though.

Sbux don't break what wasn't broken.

@MercuryPDX: well i do love me some moolates, but is that even considered a coffee drink? what about a frappachino or however they spell it.

It goes down quicker. ;)

@rjhiggins: I'm telling you....DON'T MESS WITH THE COFFEE MAFIA. All it takes is for one of them to have missed their cup this morning and BLAMMO!!!

And we have our winner of the pretentious-bore-of-the-day award.

WOOT! I won an award!

So, were you born with the stick up there or somehow get inserted later in life?

hey i think we can at least all agree coffee is best served HOT!!!! coffee is about the only thing that doesn't taste bad after microwaved (at least i think). i'm a slow sipper, so my cup gets cool before it's gone.

Agreed.

Many things taste great when they're free or the employees are going out of their way to do something new.Wait til the free coffee Wed are done and the barristas think they have the new brew down pat.

i'd hate to see where we'd be as society without our daily caffeine dose. it all makes since now. coffee is a government conspiracy to make us work more and sleep less. of course it's addictive, makes it easier to coever up. that's why kids won't drink it, at least until the government figures out how to get rid of those damn child labor laws.

seriously though, think about how productive we'd be without it.

That sounds like you're advocating killing the environment by airlifting fresh-roasted beans over here. They're using the same equipment and bean sourcing in Europe. Although some countries have a longer, uninterrupted tradition of good coffee*, theoretically you can get the same stuff here, just not in Starbucks.

I support my local** coffee roaster (Duncan Coffee Company), thank you.

* A "wag of my finger" goes to the percolator and pre-ground robusta beans (e.g. Folgers). Your economies of scale killed American coffee in the mid-20th century. A tip of the hat goes to Starbucks for bring Coffee back.
** Local is defined as within a 150-mile radius, close enough for overnight ground.

Yes, they plan to switch back in two weeks. Cleverly, they'll substitute High Fructose Corn Syrup for sugar when they bring back the old Starbucks. People will be so happy to get the old stuff back they won't notice the HFCS until years later.

@trujunglist: Don't we have anything better to do than sit around our computers and talk about Stabucks new coffee? I don't.

And we have our winner of the pretentious-bore-of-the-day award.

For chrissakes, it's a cup of coffee from a chain that has thousands of stores. Most customers drown the coffee in cream, syrup and sweeteners anyway. They ain't looking for "depth and complexity."

Eh regardless, if I'm going to buy coffee I'll get Peet's. I'd rather make my own because I'm Cajun and like coffee with chicory, which no chain sells 'round these parts.

I refuse to believe anything at Starbucks that isn't syrup-ed or frothed within an inch of its life such that there is no coffee taste left would ever taste good. I love coffee, which is why I don't go to Starbucks.

@Nelsormensch: "As an American expat now living in Vancouver, if I had to return to the Motherland, I'd miss Tim's something fierce."

Just move to Columbus, Oh we have lots T.H around here its great. I agree the mocha is great.

*reads own link*

Goddamit. The concept was explained to me by a co-worker and I didn't check to see if she knew what she was talking about. I guess that makes me a... non-taster?

A lot of our customers show interest in starting their own shops. Most of them never follow through, but one of our hardcore customers just took over management of our locations. She is loving the coffee life. It's the only addiction that can lead to a legit career!

I prefer my coffee beans to be individually hand roasted, one at a time in a spoon, over an open flame. That way it's like drinking pure pretentiousness.

As for this Starbucks, I just wish we had more Caribou Coffee locations around me! We have one that is about 25mins away, and in between that and my house is probably 4 or 5 Starbucks. There's actually a Dominick's (grocery) that has a Starbucks in it, and about 100 feet in front of the store there's a standalone....Starbucks! Then about three blocks down they're putting in....a Starbucks! :(

As a hobbyist coffee roaster, I was very interested in seeing if they came up with something new. I've tried it two days in a row now, and have come to the conclusion that it's probably a columbian base with a bit of brazillian mixed in for complexity.

Now, with that said, it's not a bad cup of coffee but it's not a great cup of coffee. I found almost no complexity in it, but it's not always bad thing. Sometimes coffee can just be drunk to be drunk. I didn't experience the bitterness which I've seen other people talk about, but I will agree that it feels "watered-down". For a South American blend, it's hardly as acidic as I would've thought but it did touch a bit on the acidic side.

It's a little refreshing to know there's a "semi-decent" cup of coffee at Starbucks. Even if I didn't roast I probably wouldn't make it an everyday coffee. It's a decent "I need a cup of coffee but not free office-sludge coffee" coffee, but it's missing depth and complexity.

Anyway, could it be that the over roasting isn't even the problem? Seems to me that they are just getting cheap beans and over roasting them to hide the bigger issue: quality! I could be incredibly biased because I work in the coffee biz, but they seem to have quality issues overall.

It's got a light fruity and nutty aroma, a smooth feel on the tongue but nice body and no wimpy finish.

Man....don't mess with the coffee mafia.

Isn't some level bitterness typical of a good light roast?

I tried the new blend yesterday, but wasn't impressed. It was pretty bitter, even with my usual cream & sugar added.

I'll stick to making my own coffee at home via french press.

I did like the new plastic stoppers for the holes in the lid!

I'm no expert, but I think Maxwell House is the best tasting coffee. Even folgers tastes too burnt.

Fox Hollow Coffee all the way - I haven't needed to step foot in SBs since finding this bliss is a cup!

As for backbroken you saying that is as much as me saying "its just wine" or "its just a cigar." For many people (more so than wine I might add) its not JUST coffee.

Pike Place tastes like flame-broiled skunk piss.

Jeez, everyone is so f*cking picky.

This morning I switched back to the Gold Coast and was much happier.

@backbroken: If you want to be snarky, get thee to the WordPress help forums.

Honey Dew's flavored syrups are way sweeter, plus they add more sugar.

barely tastes like coffee at all in fact

Anybody know where I can get Dunkin Donuts coffee in the SoCal area?

Just joshing you, sarusa.

In the meantime, the marketing seemed to work, a big line at SB today, every single person ordered the damn cup. I'm such a sheep, BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH

It's actually cheaper then DD by about .10, at least where I live ($2 vs 2.10 for a large)

It's coffee. Get over it. If you want to write pretentious beverage reviews, get thee to the wine section where you belong.

I can't speak for the everyday roast as I haven't tried it yet, but what I can say is that there was about a five year gap between visits to starbucks for me. At the beginning of the five year gap was winter of 2002. I infrequently visited starbucks back then, and finally just gave up on them due to the burnt flavor the coffee had. Fast forward to November of 2007. I can honestly say it tasted like in that five year gap, there had been some improvements. While the coffee did still taste a little like the beans had been slightly over roasted, it no longer tasted burnt to me. It wasn't perfect, but it was a great big leap forward from the last time I had visited a starbucks. If these rumors about the everyday blend are in fact true, I'll have to give it a try.

When I feel like paying to much for coffee I think I'll just keep going to Caribou Coffee. Yeah I know it's probably the same as Starbucks, but it's taste better to me.

Okay I'll probably go try it, but I tell you now I won't like it.

Still tastes like crap. Think Folgers mixed with Maxwell House and add too much water.

Pike Place coffee is a cheap gimmick.

I had a cup yesterday and I thought it was terrible. It tasted bitter, yet watered down.....