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Starbucks instant coffee
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Oct 3, 2009 at 12:56 pm #1532703
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Oct 3, 2009 at 8:36 pm #1532793thanks to the suggestions that via may be good enough for backcountry coffee. i tried a sample this evening and was pleasantly surprised that yes, it is FAR better than JavaJuice or Medaglia D'oro (or tasters choice, right)
if anything, that barista gave me a paper cup that might have influenced the taste most.. it is an instant.. who thought however that it is real beans, super fine grind and no chemical processees.
this is not going to out-do some of my Guatamalan Huehuetenango in a french press, but it will do just fine. the 8oz sample was plenty strong, just the way i like it.
thanks, Justin
Oct 4, 2009 at 6:07 pm #1532950AnonymousInactiveI got on to see if anyone had thought to try this… and whoa! I am gonna go try this for myself in the morning! …on my way back from Peet's, that is.
Oct 4, 2009 at 8:54 pm #1532997I picked up a bunch today for an upcoming weeklong trip. I whipped up a sample for myself this evening and was pleased. The coffee has a bit of an instant coffee aroma, but the taste is surprisingly good. Much closer to real coffee than instant coffee. It's not that different from regular Starbucks coffee. If anything, it's a bit easier to drink. There's less of that strong burnt taste that seems to exist in all Starbucks coffee.
It's hard to argue with the weight of this stuff too. It's just 4.2g for a one serving packet. That means you can get 7 cups of coffee on an ounce weight. I don't think I'm going to be lugging in freshly ground beans any more. For a week long trip, I used to have close to a pound of coffee along, since I drink it morning and evening. I'm going to be carrying about 2oz of coffee now instead of maybe 12oz.
When I made my sample cup this evening, I did use about 10 ounces of water and I found that a bit weak. Coffee lovers will probably want to go with 8 fluid ounces as per the instructions for a stronger brew. I know I will. This means that one packet does not make a lot of coffee, but I think I'll be able to live with 8oz worth in the morning. The alternative is making two packets, but that would be an awful lot of coffee unless you made it really strong using about 12oz of water.
This coffee dissolved impressively quickly which is great. Other instant coffee I've used in the past were a bit of a pain to get it all dissolved. The barista mentioned that it dissolves great even in cold water. So if you didn't want to heat water in the mornings but still wanted a caffeine fix, you could still have cold coffee. In the winter you could even make an iced coffee, but who wants that in the winter?
The only real downside to this stuff is the price. Here in Canada it's $12 for a 12 pack. They also sell this in 3 packs which I'm guessing are about $4.
One plus is that everything is already measured out for you in individual serving packets. This makes it easier to pack correctly and to avoid using up your coffee too early in the trip. No more guessing how many scoops of fresh grinds to bring for a trip.
Oct 4, 2009 at 9:42 pm #1533004Boy I'm glad I'm happy with Folger's Singles.
Oct 4, 2009 at 11:05 pm #1533018Joe, i'll send you a couple of packs of the VIA. gimme your address, you'll never drink Folgers again.
Oct 5, 2009 at 7:23 am #1533061But I like drinking Folgers! Last thing I need is another expensive habit…………like I tell my kids, I'm just gonna say no…….(as I go make my Americano with the computer controlled expresso maker my son brought home when he worked at Starbuck's)
Oct 5, 2009 at 9:41 am #1533108You can order 48 servings from Starbucks on-line for $34.95. Around $0.72 per serving. Me, I like a big cup of strong coffee. I'll probably end up dumping 2 packs into ~12oz of water.
Oct 8, 2009 at 12:56 pm #1534342I saw the instant SBucks the other day. $10 for 12 single packets……. kinda steep. Plus I like my coffee really strong. I'd probly use 2 packets per cup. I don't recall any free samples though. I didn't buy it. I figured you all would be on it and I would wait for a review.
I usually use Tasters Choice, mostly because I'm lazy and there is no fuss with grounds and clean up and what not. Maybe I'll give this stuff a try.
Oct 9, 2009 at 2:57 pm #1534819I tried some today. One packet and 7 oz of water. Not bad. Certainly better than Folgers singles, and WAY better than any instant (I'll go without if instant is the only thing available). No where near as good as fresh brewed coffee (I'll still take fresh with me), but certainly drinkable.
One packet for 7 oz is not what I would consider all that strong. If you like really strong coffee you will want one per 4-6 oz.
It is really expensive. To make coffee as strong tasting as their brewed coffee it will cost as much to make it with "via". But it certainly is light. I'll probably take some along as "emergency" coffee. ;-)
Oct 9, 2009 at 4:22 pm #1534859After reading so many good comments about the Nescafe Espresso from the Netherlands I finally found some online and bought it, at great cost. I don't understand the enthusiasm for it. To me it just tastes like strong instant coffee. Same bitter off-taste that you find in most instants. I like the Maglia D'oro espresso much better. Put in just a bit of sugar to dampen the instant coffee off-flavor and it almost tastes like coffee. Good enough considering how much pack weight it saves.
Still waiting to try the Via. Somebody described it as being as good as Starbuck's regular coffee. That isn't much of a recommendation. Their coffee is OK, most of it seems over roasted and uninteresting.
For what it is worth, I roast my own coffee. And I always grind it just before making it. I don't know if that means I have a good appreciation for coffee, but I sure am picky.
BTW, putting freshly ground coffee in the zip bags you can find at the BPL, sorry, forgot what they are called, really helps maintain the flavor. Much better than your typical zip bag.
Oct 9, 2009 at 4:51 pm #1534866"Still waiting to try the Via. Somebody described it as being as good as Starbuck's regular coffee. That isn't much of a recommendation. Their coffee is OK, most of it seems over roasted and uninteresting. "
thank you!
rest assured you're not the only one who thinks it (sb) is over-rated.the via is the best instant ive tried. medaglia, is better than javajuice and folgers and tasters choice and… but it is not as good as via.
is it worth 90¢ for an 8oz cup of coffee? for now, yes.
*how to end your $5 latte addiction*
buy a cuisinart dcc-1200 and a burr grinder. proceed to make fantastic coffee. (and DONT refrigerate your beans, ever)Oct 9, 2009 at 6:13 pm #1534889Starbucks coffee is VERY overrated and overpriced, BUT… They make one heck of a good cup of INSTANT coffee. If you try and compare it to say, 100% blue mountain kona coffee then yes, you will be disapointed. But it's instant and it comes in a small and convienient package that I just mix with water and viola! good coffee. For the backcountry, I'll stick to Via. How gourmet do you need to be when you're wiping your bottom with twigs and rocks? Just food for thought…
Oct 9, 2009 at 6:20 pm #1534891I had Starbucks once…. and it was completely overpriced and it tasted like it had been on the warmer far too long… bleh. If their instant tastes like that I'll pass… not to mention I think the price is ridiculous. I think I'll go make a tea… lol.
Oct 9, 2009 at 8:34 pm #1534918I tried one of the free samples and the instant Starbucks is fine although, as someone posted earlier, Taster's Choice has a premium blend in the little 0.1 oz tubes that tastes just as good and it's cheaper.
You are right though. the coffee served at Starbucks is really lousy.
Oct 11, 2009 at 9:15 pm #1535446Call me cheap (or frugal) but I went to our local Target's Starbuck and asked the girl for a couple of free samples to try out. She gave me 2. Smile when you ask.
Nov 22, 2009 at 5:14 pm #1547240I'm trying to put together a summary of backcountry coffee methods on my blog. Most notably missing is cowboy coffee… any other methods I should include?
DM
Nov 22, 2009 at 5:50 pm #1547247I had a free sample I tried on an overnight Friday.
Not bad, better than most other instant for sure.I'll be sticking with cowboy coffee- fresh ground oily beans of my choice, way more kick, and a little grit for good measure :)
Nov 22, 2009 at 6:47 pm #1547256MSR Mugmate (works for tea also)
Filters (Montbell and others make a filter holder that sits on your cup)
Turkish
Single shot Moka potNov 23, 2009 at 8:19 am #1547357H2JO! with a nalgene collapsible cantene 1.7 oz + 2 oz
Nov 23, 2009 at 9:31 am #1547380ULTRALIGHT JAVA DRIP
That's what I use also. Swapped out the Melitla single cone for it.
Nov 23, 2009 at 10:32 am #1547398I have had great response from many coffee snobs by bringing a small strainer (bandana works too, but might affect taste ;). Boil water in a pot, throw in grounds, cover for 2-3 minutes, pour into individual cups through strainer.
I think that the reason why the coffee bag methods fail to deliver is that the coffee on the interior does not get fully expressed, similar thing happens to tea. Effectively over expressing the grounds closest to the edges.
Cowboy coffee is decent, but the occasional grounds in the coffee is quite alarming to some people. You can throw in egg shells (hi scouts!) or stick a burning stick into the pot.
Nov 23, 2009 at 12:55 pm #1547444Calling Kiwis. You guys have an awesome organic instant coffee. It comes in a resealable foil bag with about 8 servings. Want to look for it online. Forget the name.
Nov 23, 2009 at 12:58 pm #1547446I tried out the Starbucks Italian. Not bad at all. It blows away the Nescafe Espresso. I was really disappointed in it. And for it costs to get the real Dutch stuff here in the US. Don't understand the hype at all. The Medaglio Oro is second, with a big lead over the Nescafe. I could probably live with either the Via or the Medaglio. Normally I only drink coffee black, but I found that a pinch of sugar helps kill the "instant" taste in the Medaglio.
Though neither comes close to my freshly roasted Sulawesi after a day or so of out-gassing. Too bad ground coffee goes flat so fast.
Nov 23, 2009 at 1:21 pm #1547453> ULTRALIGHT JAVA DRIP
Yeah, works well. A little coffee dust gets through, but so what?
Cheers
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