Good Morning Gentle Readers,
My House Blonde sampled Starbucks Blonde at the store and was disappointed when she realized that, in the end, it was black coffee.
They were hawking it by the bag at the local Barista Shop recently. The Guy at the window offered to comp whatever concotion I had just ordered for The House Blonde, if we'd try a pound of Blonde. Seemed fair enough, given that Mrs TWC thought she might want to give it a shot.
I am a bold coffee kind of guy who prefers coffee to crawl down my throat on its own, so I bring my own set of prejudices with me to the breakfast table.
That said, Blonde is a solid coffee, but it isn't a great coffee. I get that Starbucks is looking to lure people like my grandmother, whose coffee was weak enough that the bottom of the cup was clearly visible when filled with Folgers from the percolator. Great stuff for twelve year old mini-me, but will it have broad appeal? I don't know, though I do know a couple of coffee hounds who prefer a mild cup.
Blonde Roast may attract a crossover audience from the Kona crowd I suppose. Good Kona is pricey. Blonde Roast is less costly than good Kona. Hmmm, come to think of it, even bad Kona is expensive. And it seems as though bad Kona coffee is the norm, but that may be my prejudices working again.
Blonde Roast reminds me of a good commercial coffee from the 1960's. Maybe Yuban. Maybe Farmer Brothers. It's pretty good, but I don't buy Yuban, I don't care for restaurant coffee, and I'm not likely to buy another bag of Blonde. Hmm, Bag of Blonde. There's a good joke there somewhere.
As Always,
TWC
