Comments on: Starbucks Caffè Verona!

By: chamomile

chamomile — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 20:17:28 +0000

I love Verona! I work at another coffeeshop, but I would drink Verona over anything we serve any day of the week. It’s a perfect dark roast without going over the bridge into burnination.

By: Karl Dahlquist ~ karldotcom

Karl Dahlquist ~ karldotcom — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 06:12:53 +0000

I had to laugh at the part that said old Jake O’Shaunessey’s was “long gone”
….as I remember eating/drinking there a couple times during my UW days (it was more known as a great Irish Whiskey Bar to go to for pre- and post- Seattle Coliseum events such as the Sonics games.)

Regarding the comments regarding whole beans in So Cal….I have to say I hardly ever see any beans at stores that have an expiration date more than six month into the future. I was checking out the supermarket this afternoon and most of those were 4 to 5 months. I wonder if there is a step off in quality between the Kent Roasting Facility and the one in Carson Valley, Nevada (where I assume the SoCal beans are source) I know the PPR I have purchased was roasted there when they had those dates in the beginning.

By: Melody

Melody — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:03:59 +0000

(@DeniseR, CD, Nathan, LatteRose, PamWestcott, Brendan206, Venti_Bold, and DG too!) – Thanks for so many great comments! This is a popular one, glad to see so many fans of it. And DG, I totally appreciate your thoughts too. I confess, I’ve never tried Verona as an espresso shot. It makes sense that it might be good for that too.

By: Pam Westcott

Pam Westcott — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 23:47:00 +0000

Verona is my absolute favorite. I wish Starbucks would start brewing it regularly again! And now, excuse me while I go hunt for some chocolate.

By: DG

DG — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:23:55 +0000

You know what. I appreciate Caffe Verona for its occassional espresso making powers but it’s not for me (not really an espresso person either so that might be why lol) My friend swears by it though! Great post!

By: BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL

BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:46:50 +0000

I meant to say sell coffee that is only 4 weeks old. I can taste the difference between starbucks and peet’s based on mostly freshness. They could grind and brew drip all the coffees older than 4 weeks old and therefore really vary the BOLD.

By: Brendan206

Brendan206 — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 08:18:52 +0000

Verona has a special place in my heart. When I was in college, the snack bar in the student commons switched from generic coffee to Starbucks Coffee during my junior year, and they brewed Verona and Estima all day, every day. I always had plenty of unused flex dollars, and instead of junk food, I got myself a Grande cup of Verona (the smallest size they offered) several times per week. The nearest real Starbucks was over 20 miles away, but a cup of Verona was never more than a short walk away.

I really like Verona’s flavor profile: dark, but not too bitter; sweet, but not syrupy; acidic, but not overpowering. It seems complex and balanced, in all the right ways. It holds its own against strong flavors, like dark chocolate cookies!

Melody, thanks for detailing the history of this coffee! I always thought it was a dessert coffee, but I guess I didn’t have all the details.

By: Melody

Melody — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:10:32 +0000

(@Newsblugger) – Welcome to my site. Do you have a twitter profile? Anyways, I suggest that you get to your local Starbucks in the morning, and be sure to ASK what is brewing.

Hopefully, Casi Cielo will be brewing; You’re more likely to find it before 11 am or noon at your local Starbucks. That’s a great place to start with coffee. If no Casi Cielo, ask for the “bold pick of the week”. Don’t be alarmed at the words “bold pick”. A long roasted coffee has often beautiful sweet notes due to the caramelization of the beans.

By: newsblugger

newsblugger — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:03:54 +0000

I had coffee once when I was a kid, it was awful, ugh that bitter taste. Sure it was filter coffee but still. Or it might simply have been something else, my mother probably didn’t want to give me something that made me run around an extra hour added to the 8 hours I were already averaging a day!
However, thanks to your site I will probably go to one of the local Starbucks (there is like 8 of them outside my doorstep) and have a cup.

By: Melody

Melody — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 01:59:13 +0000

@BostonStarbucksRebel – Some time ago I was sending out coffee as a twitter prize, and someone (I don’t remember who) tweeted me that that coffee I sent was the freshest tasting Starbucks coffee he has ever had.

I sometimes get the impression that some stores just don’t sell very much coffee. Today I bought 7 pounds of Verona, which will be mailed as twitter prizes (yes, each one rung up individually).

The expiration date on the Verona is September. The pull date on those bags is about 8 months, that means that the Verona coffee I’m mailing out was likely roasted within the past 30 days at the Kent Roasting Plant.

But on many occasions, I go home to Orange County and visit family, and if I’m in a Starbucks, it’s not that uncommon to pick up a bag of whole bean coffee that has a pull date coming up within the next 60 days. That’s nearly a 6 month old bag of beans.

Both are drinkable to be sure, and both may even be highly enjoyable, but side by side, the coffee at 30 days will have way more flavor.

Maybe Orange County, California is just too warm to sell much whole bean coffee!

I don’t know! But I like your idea of sending much smaller quantities to each store.