Monday, April 26, 2010

Starbucks Pike Place Roast and Caffè Verona Review

I love the smell of coffee beans, ground coffee, and pots of coffee brewing. Every time I go down the coffee aisle of a grocery store I take in a big whiff. The smell makes me happy...I don't know why.

I have loved Starbucks over the years. My favorite drink there was the Apple Chai tea. I am definitely more of a tea person than a coffee drinker, but I do love a good cup of flavored coffee or espresso. My husband loved Starbucks' caramel frappachinos. The last time we went through their drive through; however, we got a little bit of hassle about making the Apple Chai tea because apparently Starbucks has now taken it off their menu and the caramel frappachino that my husband got was a new mix that apparently Starbucks thinks is better. We don't agree. Their new frappachinos now taste nasty. I really hope they go back to the original recipe. We probably won't be going there as much because of this.

Anyway, enough of my rant about that. I received a 12 oz bag of ground Starbucks Pike Place Roast coffee and a 5 oz bag of ground Caffè Verona free from BzzAgent. They are both home brewed coffee. To make the ground coffee taste the best Starbucks says to use cold, filtered water and a clean machine. Then you measure 2 Tbsp (10 g) ground coffee for every 6 fl oz (180 ml) water. Starbucks coffee is available in bagged form at all major grocery stores and mass retailers like Target and Wal-Mart. There are many variety of flavors available. Starbucks' beans are also grown and sourced ethically and sustainably.

FREE BREWED COFFEE:
If you take an empty specialty marked bag of Starbucks coffee to a Starbucks location you can get a free tall (12 fl oz.) brewed coffee. Expires 30 days after the "Best Before" date printed on the bag. Limit one per customer. Cannot be combined with other offers or discounts.

Fan Starbucks on Facebook. Follow Starbucks on Twitter.

ENTER TO WIN A KITCHEN MAKEOVER AND COFFEE EQUIPMENT:
Enter to win the Coffee At Home With Starbucks Sweepstakes. One grand-prize winner will receive a $40,000 Prize Package for a Kitchen Makeover, which includes a $39,000 budget for kitchen renovations of your existing kitchen through a major home improvement center—plus, $1,000 worth of Starbucks Coffee and coffee-making equipment. See full prize details. Plus one winner each month will receive a Coffee at Home gift pack (valued at more than $500), which includes various coffee-making equipment and a year's supply of Starbucks Coffee. You can enter every day through November 30th, 2010.

There are also some cool videos and recipes that you can partner with your home brewed coffee at starbucksathome.com.

MY THOUGHTS:
I like coffee well enough, but I would have loved it more if the Pikes Place Roast was flavored. My favorites are Irish cream and hazelnut. I tasted both coffee just with sugar and milk and they were good, but the Pikes Place Roast needed something more in my opinion. I put my Pralines and Creme Coffee-Mate coffee creamer in it and the coffee was instantly better. I can't really compare the Pikes Place Roast or the Caffè Verona with any other Starbucks brewed coffee because I have never tried any others. My neighbor who drinks quite a bit of coffee loves the Pikes Place Roast and raves about how wonderful it is. The Pikes Place Roast says it has a smoother finish and subtle flavors of cocoa and toasted nuts. The Caffè Verona I liked better. It is a dark cocoa that is rich, roasty sweet and bold...not bitter like some other brands I have had. It made a good cup just with milk/cream and sugar.

DISCLAIMER: Because I am a member of BzzAgent I received word of a BzzCampaign for the Starbucks. All information about the products I received from the media kit, the products and the Starbucks website. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any other compensation for doing this review.

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