Food Reviews and Related Observations

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Review: Starbucks' Pike Place Roast

Two days ago, Starbucks launched its new house blend, dubbed the "Pike Place Roast" after the ubiquitous coffee dispensary's original location. The announcement was surprising; food-service chains rely on consistency to maintain their customer base as much as they rely on taste or value. For McDonald's or Burger King to modify the palate of their signature menu items would be unthinkable. However, Starbucks has eschewed the inherited wisdom of the fast food business and reformed its basic cup o' joe. Having tasted the new blend, I can say that analogizing the change to an overhaul of the Big Mac is no exaggeration. Even the most seasoned customer would be unable to identify the Pike Place Roast as Starbucks coffee on taste alone.

The old blend, which I believe was more literally branded the "House Blend", was unrefined, to say the least. I once saw it rather aptly characterized in the LA Times as "scorched"; burnt, acidic, all angles and edges, like molten, Sumatran lava. The House Blend was robust in the sense that it was not short on flavor. However, it failed to deliver the carefully balanced medley of flavors that is the hallmark of a good, coffee shop blend. It was melted plastic where it should have been smokey and woody, and bitter where it should have been sweet and floral.

By contrast, the Pike Place Roast is not only delicious, but also perfectly tailored to the purpose of mass coffee distribution. It's a light roast of decidedly mild and unacidic beans. While the flavor of the new blend is less dramatic than that of the old, the retraction brings the subtler tastes in the coffee back into balance. Although french roast fiends will still have to seek out their local, independent coffee houses, the Pike Place Roast has a balanced, sweet character that is likely to please the average coffee drinker. Additionally, the significant scaling back of the blend's PH factor left my esophagus and my stomach feeling grateful for the change. In short, the Pike Place Roast is a decent imitator of a better coffee shop's Kenyan light roast.

My impression is that Starbucks' gambit will pay off. The company is clearly in the midst of renovating its marketing agenda; the macho size menu now includes "short" among its listed options, and the cups have been redesigned with a crunchier look. Undoubtably, these efforts are all part of a long-term push to regain the coffee shop cred that Starbucks has all but lost in pursuit of drive-ins, airport locations, and the company's inexplicably dogged support of new Paul McCartney projects. Although Starbucks may never be Soma, I can't deny that the change is for the better.

6 comments:

charliegirl said...

I go to Starbucks 7 days a week and have ever since they opened. I usually order a grande half caff, which is half decaf and half regular coffee. Ever since they started brewing Pike and only Pike, I have stopped going to Starbucks as i do not like the taset of Pike Place and that is all they seem to be brewing. What a disappointment. It tastes incredibly bitter from the very first sip. I liken the taste to the smell of an old ashtray. Truly unpleasant. Even the manager of my local Starbucks store said she doesn't like Pike either. Starbucks has lost me as a customer...gold card and all. I have tried Pike several times and finally gave up. I feel like Starbucks got us hooked on good tasting coffee and now they are changing over to this cheaply made, bitter brew. As for me, I'm off to find a better tasting cup of brew.

Zardoz said...

Starbuck's Pike Place coffee is by far the worst "gourmet" coffee I have ever tasted. Reviewers all over the web claim it is good, a well-balanced, more watered-down version of Starbucks old brews. I have tried this coffee no fewer than fifty times at at least ten different Starbucks around Chicago, and can say without a doubt that most reviews are wrong, and that Pike Place is an utterly terrible coffee - even more strong and bitter than Starbucks old but more refined and well-balanced brews. Characteristics of Pike Place:

- aroma like burning plastic.
- so acidic you could probably wash mortar off bricks with it.
- extremely bitter, so that by pouring out and displacing 1/3 of the venti cup of coffee with milk or hot water, it is still intensely bitter.
- burnt tasting, as if you dropped in some ground charcoal in during the brewing process.

If you like these characteristics, then you will absolutely love this coffee. To me, it's undrinkable, unless you are desperate for caffeine, which was the case when I bought it. But, of course that is like repeatedly hitting yourself on the head with a hammer...

Any other gourmet coffee is better, especially if it has any of the characterstics that it should: sweet or floral notes, balanced flavor, interest, uniqueness, pleasant aroma.

Anonymous said...

Charliegirl and Zardoz (especially) hit the nail on the head! The coffee tastes hideous not to mention in Virginia They began serving ONLY Pikes Place after 4PM at first, Then moved the time to 1PM, then to anytime after morning. I feel like Pavlov's dog as far as they are concerned.

Anonymous said...

I was looking for starbuck reviews after they started blonde. I was surprised somebody liked Pike. I can't stand either of them. Maybe we just got use to the strong smooth taste of their originals. Even the house blend seems weaker these days.

Anonymous said...

Pike Place is one of the worst gourmet coffees I have ever had. Folgers is better than Pike IMHO. Pike Place has very little body. It is acidic. Yet, the worst thing about Pike Place, is the bitter aftertaste it leaves. The most bitter aftertaste I have ever experienced. It lingers in your mouth for 30 minutes after you finish drinking it. Zardoz is absolutely correct. This coffee is a joke. Starbucks seems to be taking down bad reviews of Pike online, on Amazon, and other internet review areas. Trying to keep their ego intact it seems.

Anonymous said...

Pike place is one of the only coffees that does not hurt my stomach I'd love to know why just in case they stop making it. Anyone have any ideas?