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Starbucks Via tastes mediocre just like instant coffee should

By John Dodge | Oct 13, 2009 |

I’ve taste-tested two varieties of Starbucks new Via “ready brew” coffee and it tastes just like instant to me. I rate it a solid C- compared to fresh-brewed java or not quite as good as the “not too terribly terrible” assessment made by fellow blogger Dana Blankenhorn.

Starbucks did blind testing to see if it could fool its customers, but I don’t drink coffee with a blindfold. From Oct. 2-5, Starbucks customers could see if they could blindly pick Via Columbia or fresh-brewed Pike Place. I’m not sure if Starbucks compiled the results.   

My coffee happens to be Starbucks French Roast, a dark and hardy brew that we buy in 2.5 pound bags of whole beans at Costco.  I drink two cups every morning. Via-agra is not even close.

I tried the Italian Roast and the Columbia versions. Both tasted like instant with that somewhat bitter freeze-dried after taste.

It didn’t have the punch of the freshly-brewed French Roast. Actually, I twittered about Via and got the following response from a former colleague: “Chew it raw, no water. It’s a repurposed Tasters’ Choice trick from college…” Make sure you brush afterward.

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  •  
    1

    John Westra

    10/14/09 | Report as spam

    Five Taste Tests in Three States in One Week... Net savings $22.50!

    I was traveling to see U2 in concert in VA, during the recent VIA Taste Test Challenge. During my trip I participated in five separate taste tests, in five different Starbucks in three states, over the course of the week.

    My conclusions: Powdered instant coffee dissolves more thoroughly in hot water than granulated instant coffee. As for the taste; I correctly ID'd VIA all five times. Bottom line; its instant that tastes more like Starbucks (bitter!?) than Tasters Choice.

    I do have to thank Starbucks for the "Taste Test" though. It meant five free cups of coffee in the three airports I passed trough, saving me about $22.50!

  •  
    2

    Bdass

    10/15/09 | Report as spam

    RE: Starbucks Via tastes mediocre just like instant coffee should

    I always think Starbucks coffee tastes as crap as a bad coffee can be anyways, isn't that why tey have all those different additions, skinny, soya, sweeteners etc to hide the taste

  •  
    3

    TG2

    10/15/09 | Report as spam

    RE: Starbucks Via tastes mediocre just like instant coffee should

    @Bdass & all

    Bdass ... you should try a Venti Americano. Starbucks Venti Americano is 4 shots espresso, diluted with hot water, to make a total 20oz drink. Its slightly more than their "freshbrew of the day" but doesn't have the additives to make it milky-frothy-foofoo'd.

    Alternatively, get a coffee of the day, but have them fill it only 2/3rds to 3/4ths full. Have them put HOT Water into it to fill the rest of the way ... obviously if you could take over doing this you'd find a much happier medium for their fresh brew to hot water ratio ... but you should get close with 2/3rds or 3/4ths to the rest water.

    Starbucks, in my opinion, brews too strongly. Their only recommendation is to draw less coffee into your cup and add hot water ... when I use to make starbucks at my previous office, I made it like I did at home.. 1/2 cup grounds (or 4 x 1/8th cup measures) to a full pot (approx 64 to 70 oz) of water. This made the perfect drinkable cup..

    Especially for you Bdass .. you're paying for it, so why shouldn't it be to *your* liking ... have them fiddle with your cup ... you'll be happier!

  •  
    4

    TG2

    10/15/09 | Report as spam

    ps - forgot to mention - via taste test

    And I forgot to mention.. I did the taste test 4 times.. caught the stuff every time... To me just saying "it tastes like instant" is enough .. but to those that have no problem with instant coffee, generally its slightly more acidic, bitter, almost the cusp of rancid in my mind. And that's not to say that pikes place blend is much better than that.. because it as a coffee is far from perfect, and because its similar to the harshness of instant, that's the only reason I could figure Starbucks used pikes place for the comparison...

  •  
    5

    LeonBA

    10/28/09 | Report as spam

    Well, it is instant coffee, after all.

    This sounds more plausible (from my perspective, being Not A Fan of instant coffee) than Dana's review. I'll still keep an open mind if I get a chance to taste it, but I won't go out of my way to find a sample.

    btw, did you mean to say the Starbuck's French Roast is a hardy (tough) or a hearty (robust) roast?

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John Dodge

John Dodge has answered the call of journalism for 33 years, most of the time covering technology, engineering and business. While he's run magazines, newsweeklies and web sites, reporting and writing always took up half his time. He has have plied his craft at the WSJ, Boston Globe, PC Week (now eWeek), EDN, Design News, Electronic Business, Bio-IT World, Health-IT World, the Lowell Sun, Haverhill Gazette and Newburyport Daily News. He would have like to have been around when Boston supported seven or more newspapers (1940s) and while steam locomotives still pulled trains, but that era was nearly over by the time he raced into the world. That said, he has been blogging and shooting and editing video, writing for web and other online contents tasks for years now.

He has won numerous journalism awards in the past two years, including two Eddie Golds, one Neal finalist and the IEEE Award for Distinguished Journalism all for his reporting and coverage of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Besides his family and myriad hobbies, reporting and writing is why he gets up in the morning. His personal blog focuses on netbooks and is called The Dodge Retort.

John Dodge

John Dodge prides himself on completely independent journalism. His opinions, observations and reporting are not influenced by any financial holdings. He holds no shares in computer, electronics, software or Internet companies. He also has no business affiliations with organizations except with those for which he creates content as a freelancer.

Dana Blankenhorn

Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist for nearly 25 years and has covered the online world professionally since 1985. He founded the Interactive Age Daily for CMP Media, and has written for the Chicago Tribune, Advertising Age's "NetMarketing" supplement, and dozens of other publications over the years.

Dana Blankenhorn

Dana Blankenhorn has been a technology reporter since 1982, a business reporter since 1978, and a writer for as long as he can remember. His Schwab IRA has a few tech stocks in it, most notably some Intel and Applied Materials bought over 10 years ago. But the vast majority of his tiny fortune (emphasis on the word tiny) is invested in mutual funds. He presently writes for no one else but ZDNet, SmartPlanet and himself. But if you've got an opportunity let him know. If he takes the gig he"ll first add it to this disclosure page.
The Thinking Tech blog focuses on technologies such as virtualization, smart electric grids, enterprise 2.0, open source, data center management, green technology and the intersection between the innovation and application of these advancements.

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