Starbucks Pike Place Roast – Thumbs Up or Down?
Starbucks introduced Pike Place Roast last week. According to the company’s press release, Pike Place Roast is the result of significant customer input with the following objectives:
- “Starbucks newest, everyday brew”
- “Signature bold flavor with a smooth finish balanced by soft acidity and subtle, rich nutty flavor”
- Embracing “new quality standards for freshness including freshly roasted, hand-scooped, freshly ground and brewed with shorter hold times”.
- “Will be the first coffee to bear the new mark symbolizing Starbucks ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability through an expanded relationship with Conservation International (CI)”
- Available in all stores
Many suggest that the new Pike Place Roast offering is an attempt to address the common criticism that Starbucks coffee is too strong and burnt tasting. The familiar, bold, over-roasted style has been the signature profile that many customers identify as Starbucks coffee. Pike Place Roast may very well be an attempt to reach a different segment of the market that prefers a more toned down coffee.
As expected, just about any move that Starbucks makes today stirs up controversy and criticism. Some happy and loyal customers complain that Starbucks is selling out with this milder coffee profile. So you hear comments like “Starbucks is now trying to be more like Dunkin’ Donuts”.
If you listen to the noise level, Starbucks can never win. Either the standard coffee profile is too strong and bold, or it’s too meek and mild. In either case, there’s a contingent out there that is always eager to voice their opinion that “Starbucks sucks”.
Starbucks is under increasing competitive pressure today in the marketplace and they have a number of initiatives underway to improve quality and customer satisfaction. Good for CEO, Howard Schultz, for doing something about it. You may not agree with the change, but at least Starbucks is making a move. Nothing will improve without taking some action.
Bottom line, people just don’t like change. They like to stay in their comfort zone, where everything is easy to recognize and familiar. And if there’s the slightest nudge or push out of that comfort zone, it’s immediate grounds for whining and groaning.
To these folks, I suggest that it’s OK to embrace a little adventure and curiosity. Life is more interesting with a little variety.
For example, food is a great adventure. Lots of people routinely enjoy many different styles of food and cuisine. And the opportunity to try something new and different is exciting. Why should coffee be any different for the curious who seek a little adventure in life?
By the way, are you stuck on one and only one coffee? If so, I recommend our “coffee tasting course” now underway.
With Pike Place Roast, you now have more choices. You can still order your strong, bold, heavy roasted profile if that’s your preference. Starbucks continues to have that brew ready and available for you. And if you might like a more mild, less edgy coffee, you now have a great option with Pike Place Roast.
Personally, I enjoy many varieties of coffee. I find the differences between an East African and a Central American coffee satisfying and interesting to explore. And for me, a great Indonesian Sumatra or Sulawesi is always a special coffee experience.
And the variety goes for the roast level too. The roast is an important consideration to bring out the best qualities of a particular coffee. Hey, I like a coffee as strong and bold as you can get. But, for many coffees, I much prefer a lighter or medium roast that doesn’t overpower the more subtle characteristics of the coffee. With other coffees, for the right blend or single-origin, a darker Italian or darkest French roast with a dominant smoky or toasted quality is the only way to go.
I had a chance to stop in last week and try a cup of Pike Place Roast at my local Starbucks. Nice cup of coffee, actually. This is definitely not the classic Starbucks over-roasted, in your face profile. Definitely nothing burnt tasting about it.
I found the acidity a little more bright and lively than “soft acidity” as the press release suggests. Smooth, not overdone, but sufficiently perks up the palette. A nice body and pleasant mouthfeel. And a slightly nutty taste with soft fruit tones. This is clearly not a bland, mediocre coffee as some have complained. Different than the typical bold dark-roast at Starbucks that you might be accustomed to? Yes. But bland, not at all.
I did find it interesting that Starbucks brought back a version of the original logo for the introduction of Pike Place Roast, along with the slogan “Roasting coffee since 1971. The best cup then. The best cup now”.
The cup has the sleeve attached with the brown colored logo, similar to the cigar band motif of the original logo from the 1970’s. With a few differences. The phrase around the perimeter of the old logo was “Starbucks – Coffee – Tea – Spices”. The new logo retains the familiar “Starbucks – Fresh Roasted Coffee”.
And another more subtle difference. On the new image, the siren maiden’s breasts are covered by her flowing curls of hair. On the original logo, she was bare-breasted. Starbucks updated the logo to the more familiar green colored motif in the 1990’s, partly to address some controversy and customer discomfort with the original logo.
And a tip about the name. You might be tempted to ask for a Pike’s Place Roast. It’s a common mistake to attach the ‘s to Pike in the possessive form. But you’re sure to expose your lack of familiarity with Pike Place Market, the famous Seattle public market on nine acres for over a hundred years. Pike Place Market is the home of the very first Starbucks store, and the namesake for the newest Starbucks coffee blend.
So stop by a Starbucks and try a Pike Place Roast. You might enjoy something a little different from Starbucks.
Posted in Starbucks | 38 Comments
May 16th, 2008 at 6:24 am
Pike Place coffee sucks by all accounts. They don’t even offer the bolder brew in many stores any longer, leaving me no choice to take by business elsewhere (to smaller, independent, off-the-grid places). It’s a tragedy when in NYC there are hundreds of these all over the place….
May 21st, 2008 at 8:42 am
The new Pike Place (PP) roast blend is a sad excuse for coffee. And the previous poster is right, it’s difficult to get a cup of the stronger brew at Starbucks because 2/3 of the product offering is now PP and the bold offering is rather bold these days–today it was Verona which is very mild. Strong, bold coffee is what hooked many of us and made Starbucks part of our daily routine. In my opinion, this has been a very bad move on the part of Starbucks. Kind of reminds me of ‘new’ Coke…
May 21st, 2008 at 11:52 am
@missing my brew
For years, you would only catch me drinking the strongest, darkest, biggest, boldest coffees. The dark roasts made popular by Starbucks and other roasters in Pacific Northwest definitely brought a lot of loyal customers to Starbucks.
As I’ve become interested in recent years tasting and enjoying a broad variety of single origins, I find the darkest roasts often overwhelm the subtle taste sensations that these coffees can present in the cup.
Lighter and medium roasts (city, full city, full city+, light Vienna) are often more suitable to bring out all the taste and flavor nuances of great single-origins. You also have to brew ’em right and not over-extract.
It’s interesting to me as I’ve re-trained my palette to some extent, I often detect more ash and carbon taste sensations in the darkest roasts than I used too.
The medium, and medium dark roasts don’t necessarily mean weak coffee either. Plenty of deep, rich, lively, full-bodied and interesting tasting coffees at these roast levels. As mentioned, you have to brew correctly, and get a full extraction without over-extracting.
That being said, I’m always ready for a bold, dark roast when I’m in the mood. You have to choose suitable beans that hold up under the darkest roasts, but it’s more the dark roast than it is the characteristics of coffee beans that presents in the cup.
I agree, a mistake on Starbucks part if they expect to shift their customer target from the traditional bold, dark roast coffees to something moderate like Pike Place Roast.
I’m all for Starbucks broadening the offering, which would expand the customer reach. But not PPR at the expense of the bold. I’m sorry to hear people are finding that the classic bold offerings are not readily available. As you say, I hope Starbucks isn’t making the “new Coke” mistake.
Mark
May 25th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
disgruntled ~ you exactly echo my sentiments. For about a week, I went to between 3 and 5 different Starbucks trying to find a 3rd brew, even in the morning. Forget it, they don’t care. After 15 years of going to Starbucks almost every day, I no longer go any day. I have walked away to Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. They ALWAYS have a 3rd brew, and it tastes much better than I remember from the past. I am not here to try to convince Starbucks to give me what I want. I can use my time for much better things. I’ve voted with my feet. I’ve walked away for good.
May 26th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
[…] We’ve been receiving a fair amount of feedback that customers are frustrated tying to find a bold, strong brew at Starbucks since the introduction of the milder Pike Place Roast as the everyday coffee. We wrote about the introduction of Pike Place Roast last month. […]
May 26th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
OK, we were willing to give Starbucks the benefit of the doubt with Pike Place Roast. Our expectation when PPR was introduced last month was that the familiar bold/strong brew would remain available along with PPR.
We visited a Starbucks today to check it out. Apparently, as “disgruntled”, “missing my brew”
and “dNova” have pointed out, the strong/bold brew is not to be had.
Too bad, and clearly a bad move by Starbucks.
Posted a Pike Place Roast update.
Mark
May 28th, 2008 at 3:02 am
New Jersey fan here. Like others above, the two stores in my town sell PPR and nothing but PPR. I fully agree with the article’s comments about “adventure”, “variety” and “excitement”, but they just aren’t available at Starbucks any more. I wonder whether the author would have a different opinion if he/she was limited to just PPR at his/her store. I would assume so.
May 31st, 2008 at 7:05 pm
I have been a huge coffee and SBUX fan for years, and I have tried the touted PPR. Not a fan. Tonight I visited my local store to find that my only coffee options were PPR and decaf PPR : ( I voiced my frustration to the barista and went for an americano since I had already made the trip. I certainly hope this isn’t a permanent move by Starbucks.
Amanda
June 4th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Starbucks…bring back a bold/dark roast coffee option, all day every day!! Pike Place as only choice is just not good enough. One size does not fit all. I don’t like Pike Place. I don’t want a french press. I don’t want an americano. Why would I want to pay more for a beverage I didn’t want in the first place? I have not spent a cent in oyur stores since Apr. 14th, and I won’t until this is rectified. Ever hear of a big fat mistake called, “New Coke??”
June 12th, 2008 at 8:54 am
This Pike Place roast is terrible. McStarbucks coffee. The worst part is that getting the promise bold cup of coffee is impossible when most stores in my area either don’t brew bold, or stop brewing it after noon. This is a continuing misstep in the debacle that is Starbucks. The stores used to be clean, well staffed and customer service used to be paramount. Now the stores are no better than McDonalds as far as cleanliness, and customer service. Now their coffee sucks also.
June 14th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
I used to be a 3-a-day Starbucks half-caff junkie, and my office would order it for meetings and Friday breakfasts. Since this horrible Pike Place has been forced on us (regular AND decaf!), I haven’t been in weeks. The office now orders coffee carriers and pastries from other vendors, and most coffee drinking co-workers (about 12 of us) have joined in on a “boycott,” some saying “screw Starbucks” while sipping their new-found Caribou blend.
I won’t go back until I know they have any blend but Pike Place for BOTH regular and decaf.
June 25th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
I hate the new PP Market coffee. Being a lover of their deep roast coffee, the PP coffee & new logo seem cheap. Starbucks has lost their reputation for quality with me. I have only been in the store a few times while traveling since they made the changes and don’t plan to visit very often.
July 4th, 2008 at 7:11 am
as a dark roast coffee/caffeine junkie I think the Pikes Puke blend is exactly the kind of swill/barge water most middle-americans will probably love as they mistake it for good coffee. The taste of PP is barely a step above Nescafe and Folgers.
aside: the dark roast coffees at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf are vastly superior to PP.
Sad to see Starbucks pandering to the clueless american coffee taste.
July 25th, 2008 at 7:29 am
The real problem with Sbux Pike Place coffee is the promise of a high quality product when it is in fact the opposite. Less choice, less flavor, less variety. Sbux has begun to force this coffee on its customers because it has totally lost direction on what got it started, customer service and a high quality product. I find it maddening that they think that I have to go in every day wondering if my local Starbucks will have bold coffee even brewed (since many in my area either do it sporadically or not at all even in the morning). What are we going to do when xmas blend (a favorite) or Komodo dragon, come out again and still we are stuck with this weak swill that they call a “medium blend.” A true medium blend is Gazebo or Verona, or even House Blend (which is what they should have stuck with when they decided to do this switch over as it is very good and medium bodied). I am forced to believe that there is some other motivation behind pike place that either involves money (can you say cheaper beans in mass quantities anyone?) or just that they want to pander to the McDonalds crowd since McDonalds is coming after them now with espresso drinks. Let me tell you something starbucks, McDonalds now has cleaner bathrooms, better customer service and the only thing you had left was a better product. Good job throwing it all away. I am glad I sold all my shares I got there years ago and that I can actively short your company as it spirals into oblivion.
August 24th, 2008 at 6:13 am
I agree with every post before me; PP sucks and no alternate brew.
I wrote $bucks, and they said I can ask the barista to french press any brew I would like, though I would have to wait a little longer.
I laughed thinking of all the people standing in the morning rush line waiting for my french press brew.
Goodbye $bucks.
August 31st, 2008 at 8:48 pm
I’ve had it–five months of this crap (and sadly, I live in the land of Dunkin Donuts–there are a few indie coffee houses around and the odd Pete’s here and there, but for a decent cup of coffee, Starbucks is the only place on my route to work) and Starbucks corporate is still torturing us. Time to organize a proper boycott. Leave a comment on the blog–I’m hoping to collect enough comments to deliver to them and make it clear they’ve alienated their best customers.
http://madmadameriz.livejournal.com/10673.html
November 14th, 2008 at 8:46 am
I know I’m late to respond, but I too, hate Pikes Place coffee. The closest Starbuck’s to my house does not offer any drip coffee other than Pikes Place, but I am lucky to have two other locations that are still kind of convenient that do offer a Bold option every morning.
My problem with the Pikes Place roast is that it tastes like I made it at home. And, why would I pay $2 for coffee that I can make for less money at home? It’s flavor is slightly metallic, and reminds me of a slightly better McDonalds “Premium” coffee, which is also terrible by the way.
It’s Bold for me, and if more stores stop carrying a bold option, then I will stop getting coffee at Starbuck’s. Unfortunately, around me, Starbuck’s is pretty much the only option for a Bold option.
February 4th, 2009 at 12:39 am
I work for Starbucks, and I have to agree with some of you. I miss having some variety, and I felt that it increased my knowledge of coffee. I was more familiar with different coffees from different regions. On the other hand, when we had our weekly brew, customers were always complaining about inconsistancy. They didn’t understand that we were brewing different blends of coffee under different classifications. This was a way to give people the same cup of coffee consistantly, and at our store we always have a third choice.
February 9th, 2009 at 9:40 am
Pike’s Place (Poop) is absolutely a sad excuse for an offering at Starbucks. It may be fine at Dunkin Donuts or Speedway but shouldn’t even enter the radar near Starbucks. I believe this may be Starbucks’ attempt at saving some cash in these tougher economic times but it will only come back to bite them in the rear. Time to wake up and smell the coffee Howie…perhaps you need a cup of Gold Coast to jolt you out of this slumber
March 21st, 2009 at 10:23 am
I don’t know. All this negative talk about Pike Place Roast. Quite honestly, I like it. It’s not the cream of the crop, but its a decent coffee. I bought a pound of it for my coffee maker at home and its good. Just be sure to use the cleanest water u can find to make it. I’ve been drinking coffee for 20 something years, believe me I’ve tried it all. I think Dunkin Donuts and Samatra are among my favorites. If you all really like bold coffees, you all should try this Kenyan bold blend found at Gloria Jeans (If you can find one). That is the best tasting coffee I have ever tried. Do I think that Starbucks should make this their regular coffee, no. I think that Samatra should hold that place. I have this Starbucks next to my church that I make an appearance at every Saturday morning. They offer several coffee blends to the public as their “regular coffee”. My question to all of you…have you tried their instant coffee yet? Can’t wait to hear from u on that.
March 21st, 2009 at 12:43 pm
I have tried the instant coffee, and it is surprisingly very good. We actually had a blind coffee tasting at work, and I actually thought that it was a coffee press! The columbia is much better that italian roast in my opinion. You can get free samples of it at Starbucks.com! They’re kind of spendy is my main problem with the instant coffee. It’s 12 8oz. packets for $10! Yikes!
March 24th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
“Pike Place” is the WORST excuse for coffee I have ever tasted!!!! It tastes like artificial coffee FLAVORED WATER. It is a giant step backwards for Starbucks…..there are other coffee houses in my town I am seriously considering switching! I am not alone. I hear other Starbuck customers complain also. Starbucks should stop this insane experiment, and stop craming this crap down our throats.
March 25th, 2009 at 6:44 am
Oh give me a break. It is a Latin American coffee that is very similiar to Columbia or Guatemala. I don’t understand why everyone’s getting all worked up. It’s not my favorite coffee, sure, but I think you are being just a tad dramatic! Ask these “other” coffee shops where there coffee is from, and it will probably be within the same region. That is, if they even know.
March 27th, 2009 at 10:29 am
@Summer,
Good to have someone from Starbucks here to weigh in. I’m backing you up, a statement like “WORST excuse for coffee” is on the dramatic side. Which doesn’t really help people understand more about coffee.
And we also appreciate everyone’s opinion, it keeps things the conversation lively.
What we’re all about here is opening up the coffee experience for people, helping folks understand more about the wide variety of coffee available. That’s why we offer a “Coffee Tasting Course” to expand the coffee palette and learn more about the full coffee experience.
While I love a strong bold coffee, there is more to great coffee than just an over-powering dark roast component. The subtle flavors, body, finish and aromas that can stand out when you tone down the big bold strong roast profile just a bit can be very enjoyable. And there are so many satisfying examples of these interesting coffees from Central and South America to explore, whether it’s Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama, or Colombia, to name a few of my favorites.
No question, “Pike Place Roast” is a milder coffee, but I find it a very respectable Latin American. It would be interesting and fun to find out more about which origins exactly are in the blend?
One thing is for certain, coffee definitely brings out people’s strong opinions and passion. That’s just one of the things we love about coffee!
Thanks for sharing and looking forward to hearing more from you and our Starbucks friends.
Mark Harris
August 24th, 2009 at 11:09 am
Pikes Place tastes like they swept the floor of the warehouse, ground whatever they found and brewed it! I’ll make them brew – something else if that’s all they have to offer!
It makes me sick.
August 24th, 2009 at 11:18 am
BTW, I only drink coffee, with a little ice in the bottom to make it drinkable. So I can taste the coffee. I TASTE Pikes Place. I will never say ‘Oh, get me some of that tasty, Pikes Place!’ I am very emotional about it because I hate it and it’s ALWAYS served! Sometimes with no other choice than decaf! It IS a joke!
Just a little 2 cents from a customer.
Don’t employees get a free 1# of coffee per week. What is the stuff they are taking home?
December 31st, 2009 at 11:26 am
As a former Starbucks employee and coffee fanatic I was shocked when I tried their new Pike Place.
I left Starbucks to work for a more prestigious, small coffee shop that attracts “cult-coffee” goers. Our coffee shop competed in barista competitions and went to the coffee conventions…we took our job seriously!
My comment and question about Pike Place is that it is surprisingly good coffee, absolutely not what I expected from Starbucks!!! What origins do they use in the blend? I cannot find this information anywhere!
January 4th, 2010 at 4:54 pm
@Surprised, appreciate your comments!
Yes, there’s more to coffee than just a dark roast profile. In my book, Pike Place Roast is a respectable blend with an appropriate medium-roast that compliments the beans.
Starbucks doesn’t publish information about the origins that make up the blend, and I’m another that would be interested in more details. I always like to learn more about the coffee I taste.
Here’s my take … given the volume of PPR that Starbucks brews everyday, they can’t go too far outside for unusual or specialty origins. They want to keep the result consistent batch after batch, and go with predictable harvest in sufficient quantities. So the brighter acidity is safely a Latin American characteristic (maybe Costa Rica or Guatemala). Latin America is probably the major component, but there is some citrus/lemon perhaps from an African origin (maybe Kenya), and nice body might come from a Pacific/Asian component.
That’s my guess, although a bit general and vague. If anyone has more insight on the makeup of the PPR blend, let us know ….
Mark
January 25th, 2010 at 4:25 pm
I tasted the Pike Place roast. I rarely try a blend. Not a favorite to me. Give me a nice roast. medium to dark from a plantation, anywhere in the world and let me figure it out. Don’t mix beans from various growing areas and attempt to come up with a coffee to satifly the palate. Give it to me straight!
February 9th, 2010 at 2:40 pm
pike place is incredible coffee. i’d stopped drinking starbucks because of the trashy over-roasted taste of everything…
eventually i (with great difficulty) had to switch to decaf…i used to make fun of people who drank decaf, but my day had come. i could NOT find any decaf that tasted like coffee. the best of it was just endurable, and nothing more.
UNTiL i stopped into starbucks and tried their pike decaf…i know decaf coffees have about 10 percent residual decaf (10 percent of the original brews)…my guess is that pike decaf has even more…but it’s a small price to pay for a decaf that actually tastes like real coffee.
not only does it taste like real coffee, it is better than most whole bean brands out there. tasting it, i would not know it was decaf.
i do get a bit of a lift from it, so i’m guessing it has about 20 percent of the caffeine it’s normal coffees have, but i’ve tried decaf/normal coffee bean mixing before and the result still was awful. this pike decaf is a Godsend to those of us who want to (almost) get off drugs (caffeine) but still love our coffee.
now, if they could make a cigarette that wouldn’t give you cancer, i could go back to smoking.
January 12th, 2011 at 6:54 pm
Pikes places is gnats piss, horrible acidic metallic gnats piss.
February 9th, 2011 at 12:29 am
I don’t necessarily go for dark roasts but I prefer the African and Middle Eastern grown coffee regions- native coffee soils seem to grow better tasting beans, IMO. Now that Starbucks has dropped their birthplace of coffee beans and is selling this Pike Place Latin American acrid cardboard type coffee profile, I rarely go and never enjoy my favorite black coffee. The very idea that I have time to wait for a french press in the morning rush to enjoy a different flavor profile is ridiculous. I now have fun ordering exotic coffees from around the world and brew my own at home.
July 17th, 2014 at 5:26 am
Ridiculous quest there. What happened after?
Thanks!
Review my blog … Green Coffee Bean max Reviews, http://oktoberfestns.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/lederhosen-works-60-of-time-every-time.html,
September 16th, 2015 at 2:45 pm
Pikes is generic junk i perfer the dark rost and the locations around me stop serving the better quality roast and blond ..i think its a money saving thing…pikes in my opinion is the low cost one for company profits.
its bitter and tastless.
May 21st, 2016 at 3:59 pm
Starbucks is known to people who have a coffee palate as one of the crappiest places to get coffee but the PPR is probably the worst coffee ive ever had. I drank two cups of tall and my urine smelled like PPR and it was nasty. Still burned as ever. Starbucks why cant you make a proper cup of coffee….
December 20th, 2017 at 4:39 am
Majority of people on this comment section are knocking Pike Place. I hate Starbucks, but for once I found a blend I actually find tolerable from them and that’s Pike Place. I found it to be pleasant to taste. Yes it might not be the strongest blend of coffee but I find it an inbetween light and medium roast. Maybe I don’t have the fine prestigious palate of other posters. Meh..
February 19th, 2018 at 2:39 pm
THUMBS DOWN, definitely. While the gripe of SB being slightly overroasted is a legit one, the Pike Place bean does NOT cure that problem. Pike Place is a HORRIBLE-tasting coffee. It does NOT simply taste as though they backed off the roast slightly, it just tastes like a low-quality very sandy very dirty coffee. SB’s House Blend is far far superior by miles!
April 23rd, 2018 at 7:14 am
never liked it never will.