My Ode to Coffee

To say that I am addicted to Coffee would be an understatement.  In my house, I always have at least 4 different types of coffees, along with an espresso machine, a french press and of course a Senseo.  Even with all of that, I still manage to spend over $200 a month at Starbucks on lattes.  Yes I know - many people say that Starbucks coffee is not real gourmet coffee, but to be perfectly honest, gourmet or not, it tastes a lot better than most other coffees.

I have tried Seattle's best coffee, and it was too acidic.  How do I know this? Because after I drank it, I was almost ill and had heartburn (which I rarely ever have).  Caribou coffee is ok, but their decaf is terrible - it tastes like Seattle's Best.  Locally here we have Dilworth Coffee, and while their local house blend and decaf is delicious, their espresso leaves MUCH to be desired - too acidic and not strong enough.  I have also tried Gevalia, which is decent but not very flavorful and let's be frank, if I wanted to drink coffee flavored water, I would use a coffee maker (yuk).

So - with all of that, Starbucks remains number one for me - be it a sin or not, I love their stuff.  Although with all of the love I feel for Starbucks (and believe me when I tell you that it is a lot of love), I can safely say that I was very disappointed on their new "Via" product.  It was launched a few months back, and they had all this hype online and at the store.  Every time I went in, they offered it to me, with a smile and the endorsement of "it's the best thing ever". So - since I love Starbucks so much, I decided to try it.  I can safely say that It is not the best thing ever - perhaps it is slightly better than a shot to the forehead or an eye-punch but definitely nowhere near the vicinity of best thing.  It tastes like instant coffee, because - wait for it - it actually is instant coffee! DUH!

So with all the love I have for Starbucks, I have to say that I would much rather them just play down the hype and continue to serve good Fair Trade Coffee.  I also wanted to share a hilarious video my friend Jo Anne posted on Facebook about Starbucks sizes - if you want a good laugh, its worth watching.  Although I have to say my problem is generally opposite of this chick - I walk into non-Starbucks stores trying to order Starbucks sizes only to be greeted by unhappy people who tell me, "this is not Starbucks."