I just tried the new Starbucks instant this morning. I like it then again I like Starbucks coffee. I got the $1.00 off coupon so it will go towards a 12pk of the Italian Roast coffee
Starbucks might be decent instant but I will never know I do not buy coffee bar foo-foo coffee. IMO the best instant I have ever had by far is NesCafe in the round fat jar, ie made in Mexico. The Mexican style is different from normal NesCafe it is darker/richer in color and taste. Funny thing it is also less expensive than regular US style Nescafe.
I agree completely. I bought a 12 pack (had to order it from the web) in August - it is the best instant coffee I've found, you'd be hard press to tell it from a fresh cup of their coffee. Nice to see I can now get it easily.
I had this liquid coffee once (once), I think it was called java juice or something. Tasted like boiled acorns.
so, yeah, I might spend about $30/yr on camping coffee.
That's a point. I might be willing to spend money for something 'special' on the trail but not at home. A couple bucks added to a camp trip would be OK but I don't forsee myself doing 85¢ coffees at home...not at four-plus cups per day.
FB
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"...inalienable rights...include the right to a clean and healthful environment..." Montana Constitution
It's $12 CDN for 12 servings, so for me it's a buck a cup.
And yes, that's outrageous.. rapacious green aproned crack dealers...
so no, I won't pay it at home, when I can make real coffee for a lot less cash. On the trail I will pay it. at least until someone makes something as good for less cash.
Starting with the presumption that coffee on the trail is not optional and given that I've hauled every conceivable form of coffee and coffee device (okay, except the handpresso), Via is the current best-of-show.
Competetion being what it is, now that S-bux has taken it national others will follow with drinkable instants. I'll go out on this here skinny limb and predict that by next hiking season we'll have at least one more drinkable option. The remaining question is whether S-bux will see fit to expand Via's "flavor" selection or packaging alternatives. I'd of course like a larger, dosing container but don't know whether it can be kept fresh that way.
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6800
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
I finally tried the Via, and it's not bad. It's certainly far better than the usual US domestic instants (Folgers, etc.). However, I still prefer the Mt. Hagen Organic instant (a German brand found in high-end health food stores such as Whole Paycheck) as it's less bitter.
I generally eat a cold breakfast without hot beverage. If the mornings are really cold (as on my trip earlier this week), a cup of hot tea hits the spot.
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
I saw it at my local Costco yesterday, $0.66 per serving IIRC. An Aemricano at S-bux (which would probably be the equivalent of this product) is what, $1.50 to $2.00, so in comparison this is much cheaper. On the other hand, I can buy my favorite locally roasted coffee for $10/lb and each cup I brew in my french press costs me $0.22. So, economical if you don't home-brew your coffee, expensive if you do. Seems like a good thing to travel/hike with, not so economical for those of us who prefer not to drop $5/day for "gourmet" coffee.
MNS
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YMMV. Viewer discretion is advised.
You can't buy a 250ml coffee at the green apron brigade without trying very hard, and often they won't understand - it's called a short in Starbuckese...
A Grande is something like about 2 or 2.5 cups worth of coffee- so it would take 2 or 3 VIA's to be the equivalent. Methinks it costs about the same as getting a coffee at the green apron shop.
Or at least put it this way - in the hot hex this weekend there was a big ol' pot of water on the Svea on some pretty chilly mornings. After a boil, Two via's went into my insulated mug with 500ml of water, another via went into my little 1 cup cup with 250ml of water, and then a cup and a half of water went into my breakfast. Shut down the stove, and then I'd drink the uninsulated single while my breakfast was cozying, then eat breakfast and then tie into the insulated mug's worth.. Gosh, October and I'm in full on winter mode
So I was sucking back 3 vias (3 bucks canadian worth) of coffee a morning - more or less to drink my "normal" amount of coffee.
So I was sucking back 3 vias (3 bucks canadian worth) of coffee a morning - more or less to drink my "normal" amount of coffee.
And notice me whining about the cost of my habit, but happily digging out more cash to hand to the green aproned crack dealer to feed that monkey on my back.. mmmm.. nice monkey.. starbucks is evil.... nice monkey...
Once you admit that you're a hypocritical addict, it's much easier to accept..
Pretty soon everybody on this thread will have to call ourselves "Bill".
I can't talk; I'm a coffee snob who can't start his citified day without two double espressos from our Italian machine. We get our beans from a fire-roaster in Reno. Where I once shot...oops, wrong song.
So this topic will be one of endless fascination, as new coffee products come and old coffee products go. I noticed Via in the REI impulse purchase display by checkout last weekend. Who will rise up to compete?
Cheers,
Bill
Originally Posted By phat
And notice me whining about the cost of my habit, but happily digging out more cash to hand to the green aproned crack dealer to feed that monkey on my back.. mmmm.. nice monkey.. starbucks is evil.... nice monkey...
Once you admit that you're a hypocritical addict, it's much easier to accept..
For home Use I agree that real coffee is the way to go. VIA is the defacto standard now for trail coffee though.
There was some strange imported instant expresso I once used that was pretty good, but it came in jar. The VIA packets are easy to carry. The Italian roast is what I drink at home and now I have it in an instant form for the trail as well.
Lets hope that someone get some competition out soon.
phat, It's $12 CDN for 12 servings, so for me it's a buck a cup. And yes, that's outrageous.. rapacious green aproned crack dealers...
I love canadian humor. I miss it.
Early, before businesses opened up for the day, I would sit with the business owners in an unnamed small border town. I would drink tea. They would drink coffee... and make great outrageous remarks about just about everything.
Quote:
ConnieD, *buck$ hurts my stomach and my pocketbook.
I'm not nearly so creative as a canadian.
...
REI had a Cup-pour-ri, that looks it would be used for loose tea and stir in a cup of hot water.
I decided to try it.
I used Peet's Arabica Java Mocha coffee. Great coffee.
The only way I can figure to have fresh ground coffee at the trailhead is either to have a small amount ground (aka Peet's) and use a small manual Pump-n-Seal vacuum pump at the trailhead to keep the air from deteriorating the coffee.
The other thing I might try is making small vacuum-pak packets at home of fresh ground coffee. I keep my coffee "makin's" in an Aloksak to avoid food odors in the pack anyway.
If this seems excessive effort, I have actually purchased the GSI coffee grinder and coffee press to prepare the coffee at the trailhead. I'm not doing that anymore. It just seems so, not "nature".
I think chocolate covered coffee beans may be a UL-ultralight backpacker's answer. I do love to "smell the coffee" however.
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6800
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
As mentioned earlier, I prefer the taste of Mt. Hagen organic freeze-dried coffee to Via. It's also a lot less expensive--the same price as the package of 12 Via servings (1.4 oz.) gives you 3.5 oz. of Mt. Hagen in a jar. The thing that makes Via so expensive is those individually packaged servings!
I've found Mt. Hagen coffee at Whole Foods and at a Portland-area chain, New Seasons. I haven't checked PCC or Central Market in Seattle, and I don't know about nation-wide chains other than Whole Paycheck (er, Foods). Fred Meyer used to carry it in their organic section, but stopped doing so about six months ago. Evidently I was one of the few who bought it. The threat of doing all my shopping at New Seasons (which did lead them to carry packages of a half-dozen eggs) didn't work for the coffee!
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
As mentioned earlier, I prefer the taste of Mt. Hagen organic freeze-dried coffee to Via. It's also a lot less expensive--the same price as the package of 12 Via servings (1.4 oz.) gives you 3.5 oz. of Mt. Hagen in a jar. The thing that makes Via so expensive is those individually packaged servings!
I found Mt. Hagen organic freeze-dried coffee 3.5 oz at www.organicdirect.com with free shipping for $7.59. Other websites charge more including shipping and handling fees.
Evidently, it is claimed that you get 60 wonderful generous sized cups out of this jar. Some other instant coffees claim that you get "up to" 105 cups (6 oz per cup) out of 7 ounces of instant coffee.
I'm going to order some, probably in both decaff and regular.
Thanks for the suggestion of this coffee.
If it isn't good, keep your eye out for a deflated self inflating mattress some night. :-)
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6800
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
I don't have a self-inflating mattress, sorry.
Thanks for the source; I'm sure it will be helpful to those not having access to a market that carries it. I generally drive down to the closest New Seasons Market once a month anyway for things that just aren't available around (like organic meats) here since "Whole Paycheck" bought out Wild Oats and closed nearly all the Wild Oats stores. The cost of driving there is therefore "sunk cost," unlike the shipping cost for ordering online. NS also gives me a 10% senior discount for shopping on Wednesdays, which pretty much pays for the gas.
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
Registered: 08/11/09
Posts: 82
Loc: Illinois(I just live here)
ok, so it's decided that Via is good for backpacking.. For us less manly men, how do you carry sugar around for flavoring your Via properly? I keep trying to man up and drink it black but just can't get the hang of that. I've got a great little canister for car camping but not sure I want to haul it around backpacking.
ok, so it's decided that Via is good for backpacking.. For us less manly men, how do you carry sugar around for flavoring your Via properly? I keep trying to man up and drink it black but just can't get the hang of that. I've got a great little canister for car camping but not sure I want to haul it around backpacking.
thoughts? I'll try them out this weekend!
john
I just bring the indiviual packs of sugar, raw sugar, honey, splenda, sweet n low, etc with me. You can pick them up at Starbucks also
Starbucks was outlawed in my town, but they exploited a loophole and managed to set up a 12' square store inside the existing Safeway.
I went in today (for the first time) to check out this Via stuff, and was accosted by not one but two eager Starbucks staff, whose sole responsibility, it seemed, was to stand around this cubicle and chat about Via.
They asked me where I'd heard of it, and were visibly and (apparently) genuinely delighted to hear my tale of "backpacking" and "the Internet".
Most interestingly, one of the eager helpers assured me that this wonderous stuff would dissolve in any liquid whatsoever, hot or cold, which I thought a possibly useful property.
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It's easy to be a holy man on top of a mountain. -- Larry Darrell
Most interestingly, one of the eager helpers assured me that this wonderous stuff would dissolve in any liquid whatsoever, hot or cold, which I thought a possibly useful property.
Disturbing.. While I like the product I'm not sure I like the marketing...
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