Starbucks VIA Instant Coffee Packets, Single Serve, Dark Roast Coffee, Italian Roast, 96 Packets

Love the packets for traveling. Tastes great and I like to be consistent in my morning coffee in hotels. No more calling housekeeping when they forget to restock. Remember to bring a spoon to mix it.

Great product

I like coffee that tastes like coffee beans, not like emaciated grocery store brands from the Fifties. I’ve always thought Starbucks fresh coffee tastes “burnt” so I stopped going there in favor of “The Human Bean” in Phoenix. And after reading about the owner of Starbucks, I did this subjective taste test to try and find an instant I could live with to “instantly” move away from giving my money to Starbucks Via. In my comparison of five brands, I used one teaspoon of instant and ¾ cup of hot water in each brand, kept it just black, and tasted it hot. Next, I added one teaspoon of heavy cream and 10 drops of Sweet Leaf brand vanilla-flavored extract and tasted it hot. Then, I waited until it cooled to room temp and tasted it again. Here are my personal findings with 5 being “worst”: 5. Waka Decaf – Slightly sour and brackish, tastes “instant” and gets worse as it cools. An absolute “no.” (1 packet per 8-10 oz.) 4. Jacobs Espresso – Watery, thin, and so “smooth” as to be tasteless, and they have the nerve to call this “espresso”? (No English instructions I could find—I guess they didn’t think it was worth the bother—and they’re probably right.) 3. Mt. Hagen Espresso – Also too smooth and lacking in taste, but has a wee more grunt and flavour than Jacobs. (1 packet per cup—I assume they mean 8 oz.) 2. Café Bustelo Espresso – Definitely better than the others but still “middle of the road” when it comes to true bean flavour. At least it tastes like coffee, even when cool. 1. Via Decaf Italian – IF you mix as instructed (1 packet per 8 oz.), it's too strong and has a slightly burnt taste . However, you can make a perfect travel mug of coffee by adding 16-20 ounces of hot water instead and just one packet of this very robust, powerful instant that actually tastes brewed. You also get two times more coffee for the money, via Via, because the packet makes such strong coffee. My tastebuds have failed to escape the Starbucks czar with this test, so maybe I should give those Fifties store brands another go.

Love Italian Via! So roasty and toasty rich tasting and easy! The price has us close to having to give it up though. I will miss it!