Starbucks SuperPremium Coffee Liqueur?

[Carolyn Tillie]

In this morning's Forbes

The basics:

The Seattle-based coffee shop chain, along with the Jim Beam unit of Fortune Brands Inc. (nyse: FO - news - people), is developing a premium coffee liqueur to be sold in bars, restaurants and liquor stores -- but not in Starbucks' 7,800 retail locations, the companies said on Thursday.

and on a scarier note:

Starbucks plans to announce similar product deals with other companies in the next three to six months, Smith said, declining to elaborate.

[Squeat Mungry]

and on a scarier note:

Starbucks plans to announce similar product deals with other companies in the next three to six months, Smith said, declining to elaborate.

Starbucks like a cancer grows...

[Toliver]

I think a partnership with Armour is next...bacon flavored coffee!

[Carolyn Tillie]

and on a scarier note:

Starbucks plans to announce similar product deals with other companies in the next three to six months, Smith said, declining to elaborate.

Starbucks like a cancer grows...

I've got it! They are going to partner with The Oxygen Bar - Sushi & Sake Bar!

They are going to make you BREATHE it in through your pores....

[phaelon56]

I think a partnership with Armour is next...bacon flavored coffee!

No no no.... just give me coffee flavored bacon and I'll be happy. Leave the coffee alone!

[beans]

For all of you Starbucks haters (I know you are out there) would you give this a try?

Well, they are working with Jim Beam for just such a product.

Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq:SBUX) and Jim Beam Brands Co., a unit of Fortune Brands, Inc. (NYSE:FO), today announced a development and distribution agreement to develop, manufacture and market a Starbucks-branded premium coffee liqueur product in the U.S. The product will be tested in two U.S. markets later this year.

The premium coffee liqueur product will be available for sale at licensed establishments, such as restaurants, bars, and retail outlets where premium distilled spirits are sold. The product will not be sold in Starbucks retail stores.

Press Release here.

Cheers!

[MGLloyd]

Well, they did work with Redhook up here in Woodinville to create an espresso stout. The first few batches had a bag of ground coffee steeped in the wort after the final boil; the subsequent batches used a liquid coffee concentrate prepared and shipped over by Starbucks. It actually was not half bad.

So creating a Kahlua-like product seems like a logical brand extension.

[DrinkBoy]

I think this is a great idea. Hope Seattle is one of those two test markets!

I was a fan of Starbucks coffee from back before they even sold brewed/espresso coffee. They were just selling beans back in those days, and from just a couple different locations. There were a few other gourmet roasters around Seattle, and after trying most of them I discovered that Starbucks beans just had the rich and robust flavor that struck a chord with me.

I may still prefer Starbuck's "Latte's" from a historic loyalty perspective, but in general their latte's are essentially just as good as anybody elses. What I'd -really- love to see is somebody serving properly "pressed" coffee at these "to go" type of espresso joints (I expect there are places, I just haven't seen them yet). This is the only way to really get the full flavor of the coffee.

-Robert

[cdh]

Depends on their marketing and pricing strategy. I'm not a believer in many products that proclaim themselves to be "SuperPremium"... that is a decision for the market to make once it has sufficient information to come to a conclusion.

If they price it at Kahlua+50%, there's no way in hell I'd think about buying it.

If they price it even with Kahlua, then I might try when next I run out of Kahlua.

If they price it at at Kahlua -20% then I'd go out of my way to try it.

After I've tried it, I'll decide whether it is worth buying again, and at what price point.

[phaelon56]

What I'd -really- love to see is somebody serving properly "pressed" coffee at these "to go" type of espresso joints (I expect there are places, I just haven't seen them yet). This is the only way to really get the full flavor of the coffee.

Uhhhh.... there is such a place. It's called Stumptown Roasters, located in the Hawthorne neighborhood of Portland OR (they now have some other locations as well). All the coffee they serve is made in 32 oz press pots and then poured directly into air pots for serving. They also make a mean latte. Their "Hairbender" espresso blend is well known outside of Portland and available by mail order.

Rumor has it that Stumptown is high on the favorites list of the folks at ESI in Seattle - they are the US supplier of La Marzocco espresso machines and in a good position to know who's really got the goods.

[fatdeko]

I actually spent a goodly amount of time with 2 guys in the R&D dept of Jim Beam 2 nights ago. After several Knob Creeks we'd addressed all that's wrong with the industry, the market and the Red Sox so not much else to address but the future and that's when they laid down their plans for the Starbux project. Test marketing June-August in Texas and Minnesotta--at least I think Minnesotta, or was it Wisconsin? Full product roll out slated for January '05. Price point is above Kahlua, but they swear the quality will blow the competition away. Base spirit will be Rum, my guess is from Ron Rico since they own it. It will be branded as a Starbux product rather than as a Beam.

(I couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that I was actually enjoying hanging out with these two guys--liquor company suits usually make my skin crawl--till I realized they weren't Sales & Marketing.)

They seemed awfully curious regarding my strong negative reaction to Jack Daniel's lowering the proof to 80. My suspicion is Beam has or is considering doing the same so keep an eye on those labels! Beam Black Label has turned into a priority for them so I can see them repositioning it as the "full" proof spirit while dropping the octane of the White Label.

I also learned that Booker Noe had recently shuffled off this mortal coil and as far as this whiskey drinker is concerned, we've lost a national treasure.

[beans]

First welcome to eG fatdeko!

Please share with us any liquor insight you may wish to disclose.

They seemed awfully curious regarding my strong negative reaction to Jack Daniel's lowering the proof to 80.  My suspicion is Beam has or is considering doing the same so keep an eye on those labels!  Beam Black Label has turned into a priority for them so I can see them repositioning it as the "full" proof spirit while dropping the octane of the White Label.

The folks at Modern Drunkard started a petition, which I don't believe will do a single thing toward that effort to return Jack to 86 proof. They stated something similar to the distillers have "messed around with Jack again."

While I respect those that are irked by this new development.... My response? Big whippy skippy. Honestly, how much of that special cool, cave, limestone water needs to be added to bring it down 3 percent?

But then I'm not a much of a Jack Daniels drinker, so take it for what it is worth!

Perhaps we need a new thread discussing the reasoning and rationale of this new decision?

I also learned that Booker Noe had recently shuffled off this mortal coil and as far as this whiskey drinker is concerned, we've lost a national treasure.

Indeed.

[judiu]

Good grief! How in the h**l are they goin to market this watered down crap; "Jim Beam Lite"? Yuck!

[beans]

judiu - welcome to eG.

No! Not Jim. Jack. It was reduced to 80 from 86 proof. (New thread?)

SO, how about that coffee liqueur Jim Beam is working on with Starbucks?

[judiu]

Actually, it sounds pretty good, except I wish they'd use Jim as a base. I had a shooter one time with Kaluha & Bailey's with Jim Beam as a float on top. Most excellent!

[beans]

For clarity's sake:

Jim Beam (white label) already is 80 proof.

Jim Beam (black label, aged 8 years) is 90 proof.

Jack Daniels has been reduced to 80 from 86 proof.

I think this coffee liqueur will taste like Starbucks coffee and not as coffee and shot of Jim Beam.

But I guess we'll see, eh?

[judiu]

I'll have to check with my guys at Crown Liquors, see if they've heard about it. If the company is doing rum as a base liquor, it'll end up tasting like Tia Maria. Maybe they'll use vodka or a neutral spirit. As long as it's not too sweet!

[fatdeko]

You're absolutley right Beans. Beam IS 80 proof. Why did I think it was 86 or 90?

[BlackHive]

Well it has been nearly a year... has anyone tried this? What is it like? How is it compared to Kahlua? Less sweet, I hope...

[Lan4Dawg]

Well it has been nearly a year... has anyone tried this?  What is it like?  How is it compared to Kahlua?  Less sweet, I hope...

←

I have not tried it but it is literally jumping off the shelves at the store. We are not talking a major marketing ploy either just a simple stand alone shelf display of product which is some what buried. It seriously out sells Kahlua.

in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

[spiritchild]

I was recently asked to incorporate the Starbux liqueur into a drink list I was creating here in NY. The restaurant was French/Vietnamese and the drink needed to reflect that. I am not a fan of coffee liqueurs myself and so immediately thought "Oh great, now I have to grin and bear the shame of making an "Espresso-tini" / TGI Fridays type drink?!"

After much thought, I decided to go with the Vietnamese aspect and looked to Vietnamese coffee for inspiration. If I remember correctly, the coffee is dripped into a glass already containng condensed milk, thus producing a layered effect, and the drinker stirs it herself. OK...before I get thrown onto a new thread for Vietnamese coffee:

I came up with the following drink for the Starbux stuff: I infused condensed milk with cardamom and orange peel (and a little extra zest). Then I layered the thick condensed milk into the martini glass followed by the Starbux followed by a shot of espresso chilled with Grey Goose Vanilla. It was pretty good...and I don't usually like those types of drinks. I think the orange and the cardamom gave it an edge.

I suspect the stuff might marry well with Pisco. ...

Edited March 31, 2005 by spiritchild (log)

[DrinkBoy]

Well it has been nearly a year... has anyone tried this?  What is it like?  How is it compared to Kahlua?  Less sweet, I hope...

←

I've been playing around with it for the last little bit... I -really- wanted to like this stuff, since I've been a fan of Starbucks for a long time... but I don't. By itself, it has a nice and assertive coffee flavor, which should be expected, but I feel that it just overpowers any drink you try making with it.

I recently wrote about this on my enimic blog

.

[kvltrede]

Well it has been nearly a year... has anyone tried this?  What is it like?  How is it compared to Kahlua?  Less sweet, I hope...

←

I've been playing around with it for the last little bit... I -really- wanted to like this stuff, since I've been a fan of Starbucks for a long time... but I don't. By itself, it has a nice and assertive coffee flavor, which should be expected, but I feel that it just overpowers any drink you try making with it.

I recently wrote about this on my enimic blog

.

←

Robert,

Did you do a head-to-head tasting with Starbucks and Kahlua or any other coffee liqueurs? I don't drink much coffee liqueur except for the occasional Black Russian or a couple fingers worth on ice so I'm not too concerned with the cocktail possibilities of the new Starbucks liqueur. I'm mostly curious as to the price point vs. quality. Heck, I don't even buy Kahlua. I'm perfectly content with Sabroso at less than half the price of Kahlua. I find it hard to believe the ubiquity of Starbucks is going to prompt sufficient sales that people will spend the extra $5+ for Starbucks over Kahlua.

Thanks.

Kurt

[natasha1270]

I bought a mini-bottle to try at home and compare with my trusty Kahlua. Since I usually have it in either a White Russian or over Vanilla Ice Cream, I decided to make some white Russians. I was very careful to measure the drinks equally. My first impression was the drink with Kahlua was (very) slightly darker than the Starbucks version and I wondered if this might translate into a stronger coffee taste. As I went to take a sip, I noted another difference: the scent. The Starbucks had more of a coffee smell to it – very pleasant while the Kahlua smelled "sweeter". As far as taste, Starbucks also had an ever so slightl (to me) more coffee taste to it and again the Kahlua had a slightly sweeter taste. But I wonder if the “freshness” of my Kahlua might be in question and might try it again with a new bottle to compare.

N.

[dahlsk]

My husband and I recently bought a bottle of the Starbucks after sampling it at a major liquor store in our area. It was on sale for $19.99 for 750 ml. Definitely a stronger coffee taste, and my husband swore it was responsible for keeping him up that night. Anyway, I can't see drinking it in anything except for a white russian or on the rocks as I think it would overpower other ingredients. Perhaps on ice cream? It was also less sweet and viscous than Kahlua, which was good for me. I don't know if we'll keep buying it, but it was good to try this one time.