Starbucks..instant coffee

It's like saying, "Well that's the best ************* I've ever had." And everyone agreeing.

it tastes like coffee, and the samples were free.

i will enjoy it.

I still think mcdonalds coffee is better than anything at starbucks. the best instant coffee i've had was tasters choice. is the starbucks kind better than that?

Originally Posted by fdbaker

Click to expand...

Might be great for backpacking.

+1. Immediately what I thought of.

As instant coffee goes, its pretty good. And readily absorbs in cold water. When all I care about is the caffeine, this stuff will work great.

Via is by far the best tasting cup of instant I've ever had. I tried it black (I drink all my coffee black now), and it's almost as good as real Starbucks. It's definitely better than McD's brew, which doesn't taste like anything.

That said, I hardly ever go to Starbucks. I usually grind my own beans and make my own coffee.

Who runs Starbucks? $1 a serving for instant coffee, really?

Yes of course it's probably the best choice for camping/back packing, but is this incredibly tiny niche going to provide enough business for this product - of course not.

Any one who can afford $1/serving coffee at home surely can afford a proper grinder and coffee maker. I can get super high end artisan stuff from the coffee nazi here for like $9/lb and it'll make a whole lot more then 9 cups!

Originally Posted by Cavalier

Click to expand...

Who runs Starbucks? $1 a serving for instant coffee, really?

Yes of course it's probably the best choice for camping/back packing, but is this incredibly tiny niche going to provide enough business for this product - of course not.

Any one who can afford $1/serving coffee at home surely can afford a proper grinder and coffee maker. I can get super high end artisan stuff from the coffee nazi here for like $9/lb and it'll make a whole lot more then 9 cups!

Howard Schultz is a whole lot smarter than you.


I agree with chorse123 that this is a brilliant idea. The instant coffee market is barren; if Via just becomes nearly as successful as Frappuccino, Schultz will once again get to laugh all the way to the bank.

like someone said before it is pricey but i read up on it and it's suppose to taste just like the real thing minus the bitter after taste

Originally Posted by whacked

Click to expand...

Howard Schultz is a whole lot smarter than you. I agree with chorse123 that this is a brilliant idea. The instant coffee market is barren; if Via just becomes nearly as successful as Frappuccino, Schultz will once again get to laugh all the way to the bank.
Don't get me wrong, he's obviously a much more successful man then me-- but I attribute most of the success to the original concept; selling an affordable luxury/escape during the day for a couple bucks-- not the coffee, cannibalizing expansion, etc etc that proceeded. "Almost as good as real starbucks" for $1 a cup???? what???At a $1/serving I just can't see this being successful. Any one I've seen drinking instant is doing so because they don't spend a lot of money on coffee and want to pick a big nasty thing of instant up for $5, otherwise they'd be grinding some nice beans up for their cup of joe. This reminds me of when in marketing class a few years back or so, we had to pick a company to pitch an investment to for our "boss" (yeah it's silly..) and people gave presentations on Starbucks, Home Depot, etc. Me? Google (I would have made sure to get out at 700 though!)

Originally Posted by Cavalier

Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong, he's obviously a much more successful man then me-- but I attribute most of the success to the original concept; selling an affordable luxury/escape during the day for a couple bucks-- not the coffee, cannibalizing expansion, etc etc that proceeded.

"Almost as good as real starbucks" for $1 a cup???? what???At a $1/serving I just can't see this being successful. Any one I've seen drinking instant is doing so because they don't spend a lot of money on coffee and want to pick a big nasty thing of instant up for $5, otherwise they'd be grinding some nice beans up for their cup of joe.

This reminds me of when in marketing class a few years back or so, we had to pick a company to pitch an investment to for our "boss" (yeah it's silly..) and people gave presentations on Starbucks, Home Depot, etc. Me? Google (I would have made sure to get out at 700 though!)

Google, thus far, has been an one-trick pony too.


What you're ignoring is the huge (consumed in the) office coffee market. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters made wave by just producing K-cup (pods) for Keurig coffee machine. Similarly, Phillips Senseo machine is a big hit in the at-home space. VIA should be a potent competitor for both.

when i lived in europe instant coffee was big there and the espresso tasted great

Is it that "cold brewed, concentrated" type of instant?

There's a few places around here that have been manufacturing it for years (seems a bit of a niche).

It is good, if anything too smooth, some of them remove so much of the bitterness it lacks a lot of the taste coffee has.

If I rember right, all of McDonalds coffee is made from concentrated, cold brewed mixes.

I like Starbucks French Roast coffee. They never brew it at most Starbucks bricks and mortar locations. Pike Place roast is not so good,to my taste, especially since I prefer a darker roast.

So Starbucks haters, maybe you just don't like their light roast coffee.

The other day the girl at my local SB gave me a taste of the instant Italian Roast. I couldn't have told you it was instant.

Who will buy this? Travelers who want Starbucks coffee wherever they go. At one dollar per serving, it's cheaper than a tall (Starbucks small) coffee.

I received the starbucks colmbia whole beans package from a friend and use it with my press for my daily cup and it's solid. Not as miserable as some here make it out to be

On the whole, I think Starbucks has improved quite a bit recently. Their espresso is still pretty bad, but the drip is good. I think they've dialed back the roasting a bit.

I'm happy to hear that Via is largely well-received. I've not tried it yet, but I'm leaving on vacation next week will definitely grab a pack before I go. I do wonder where Via's status will be after this promotional season. I can't imagine it'll remain as prominently displayed as their beans, and I even have a hard time believing it'll remain in the stores. I'm wondering if their ultimate plan is to sell this mostly in grocery stores, a la Frapaccino.