Direct Answer: Yes. Starbucks buys and roasts high-quality whole bean coffees and sells them along with fresh, rich-brewed, Italian style espresso beverages, a variety of pastries and confections, and coffee-related accessories.
But having the “100% Arabica” label is just table stakes for premium coffee, not a promise to deliver highest-tier flavor. But then the species of bean is Arabica – because, even though it’s been roasted on an industrial scale to deliver consistency across time zones, the requisite volume is high enough to guarantee that you are getting mass-market roast-taste rather than the wide spectrum of what “Specialty Grade” Arabica has to offer.
For The Quality Skeptic: Yes It’s Arabica. But Is It “Specialty”?
Chances are, you’re torn between the green siren and your local third-wave roaster. So here’s the big difference in most “Yes/No” answers: Species vs. Grade.
Though Starbucks are 100% Arabica, they do not fall under the SCA definition of “Specialty Coffee” which is for coffee to be scored 80 points or above on a 100 point scale. * Starbucks enters the “Premium” commodity level in general.
The “Flash-Roast” Reality:
To appreciate quality, you need to consider the physics of roasting. *Arabica beans, which are grown at high elevations, are desirable for their acidity and floral/fruit flavors. Starbucks does roast much darker than most specialty roasters but still. Why?
- Consistency: A dark roast covers up the nuanced differences in individual crop harvests. If you roast a bean from Sumatra next to a bean from Colombia, carbonize both of them and taste them side by side, they’ll taste more similar than if you roasted them light.
- Milk Coverage: Most of what Starbucks sells is milk-based (lattes, Frappuccinos). Single origin Arabica, light roast Its sour flavor disappears completely with 12oz milk. A cross-cultural interpretation of coffee, the dark roasted Arabica lends just enough “punch” to combat the richness and sweetness of the dish.
The Verdict: You do get to drink 100 percent Arabica, but it’s a struggle to taste the terroir (the soil and climate personality) of that coffee bean. You are tasting the roast.
THE BRAND LOYALIST Why Your Choice Is Ethical, Not Just Tasty
For those who feel the need to dispute with coffee snobs why they go to Starbucks every day rather than pour-over shops, going with the “100% Arabica” argument is actually your weakest case. Instead, concentrate on the issue of Supply Chain Stability.
Starbucks is one of the largest buyers of Arabica coffee in the world, covering about 3% of global production. Since they require such large volumes of Arabica, they can’t depend on the unpredictable open market.
The C.A.F.E. Practices Defense:
Starbucks uses its exclusive protocol, C.A.F.E. (Coffee and Farmer Equity) Practices. C.A.F.E differs from Fair Trade in that it does not simply target the price floor, but that C.A.F.E combines quality standards with environmental and social demands.
The Logic: Starbucks is paying a premium over the commodity market price (the “C price”) to ensure farmers keep planting Arabica rather than switching to alternative, simpler crops — or hardier, yet lower-quality Robusta.
The Data: By verifying more than 99% of their coffee via this program, they guarantee the “100% Arabica” you’re consuming is helping to sustain a vast network of farmers that could be bankrupted by price fluctuations in the commodities market.
The Verdict: Your cup of joe is 100% Arabica, however the true selling point here has to be the consistency and the ethical infrastructure brewing underneath that cup — not as much it being $&$bucks’ “best tasting” bean on earth.
For The Home Brewer: The Supermarket Shelf Conundrum
When you buy a bag of Starbucks “Pike Place” coffee at Costco or Walmart, you may wonder if it is the same brew as the brand’s in-store variety. The solution is yes, it is still 100% Arabica beans: The Freshness GAP is the unseen perpetrator.
The Nitrogen Flush Factor:
Gourmet coffee beans are often roasted several months before they make their way to grocery stores and onto the shelves.
The Process: Starbucks flushes their 100% Arabica beans with nitrogen to prevent the beans / coffee from becoming stale (oxidation) during shipment. They remove oxygen from the bag and replace it with nitrogen, then seal it with a one-way valve.
The Reality Check: This stops you getting rotten beans, but it stops the bean from aging without any artificial control. The moment that bag is opened and the oxygen hits the beans, they deteriorate way more quickly than a bean purchased fresh from a local roaster.
Calculated Decision Guide:
- Check for “Best By” date. Starbucks usually puts this date 34 weeks (or roughly 8 months) after roasting.
- Do the math: If there’s a “Best By” date of January 1, 2025, count backwards by 8 months. That is the date your coffee was roasted.
- No More Guesswork: The BeanEnvy coffee scale with timer not only provides real time feedback on your grind size, the built-in timer ensures you won’t over or under-coffee your cup of joe.
The Verdict: It’s the same Arabica, but grocery store supply chain logistics rob the bean of all those volatiles that make Arabica special.
Coffee Basics: Why ’Arabica’ Matters (And Doesn’t) For The Coffee Novice
You hear the word “Arabica” and you think it must be the equivalent of “Fancy.” Here is the no-nonsense translation of what you are actually imbibing.
The Biology:
There are essentially two types of coffee:
- Robusta: Grows short, grows fast, bugs stay away longer, twice the caffeine level but tastes burnt-rubbery / oaty. It is cheap.
- Arabica: High growing (mountains), fragile, 1/2 of caffeine contains complex sugars and acids. It is expensive.
The Starbucks Paradox:
Starbucks uses Arabica simply because it’s not as repulsively bitter, rubbery and disgusting as Robusta. But, because Starbucks roasts so dark (bingo), they also bring a different sort of bitterness…char/ash.
Newbies to coffee like this drink black Starbucks coffee, taste the bitterness and think “I guess I don’t like Arabica”.
*Correction: You probably do like Arabica, you just might not like Dark Roasted Arabica.
Test: Sample Starbucks “Blonde Roast.” It is the same 100% Arabica but roast ed for a shorter period. If that tastes tea-like with bright, acidic notes, those are the true flavors of the Arabica beans shining through.
The Verdict: “100% Arabica,”-Starbucks, you are a good floor. It will ensure that you’re not sipping down crappy filler beans, although it won’t guarantee anything flavor-wise until looking at the roast level.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: But is Starbucks coffee a “Specialty Coffee”?
A: Not strictly. Starbucks is totally 100% Arabica, but they mostly stay in the “Premium” end of the commodity spectrum rather than fully SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) which would require a score of 80 or more points. For Starbucks, global consistency is more important than the ephemeral flavor characteristics in which many high-scoring specialty grades specialize.
Q: Why does Starbucks roast coffee so dark?
A: There are two reasons that Starbucks coffee is so dark. It’s roasted that way to mask variations in flavor from bean to bean, and to give it the pungent kick required of an espresso roast — which can cut through all those luscious Frappuccino and latte toppings (milk, sugar, fat).
Q: Are the Starbucks beans you buy at the supermarket as good as those sold in the cafes?
Q: So are you saying that they’re the same 100% Arabica beans?
A: Yes, yes but freshness is a huge part. Store bags have nitrogen flushed to preserve and frequently sit on shelves for months (Best By dates 8 months from roasting) losing the volatile oils that give coffee fresh flavor.
Q: What are C.A.F.E. Practices?
A: C.A.F.E. (Coffee and Farmer Equity) Practices is Starbucks internal standard for verification that combines the aspects of quality with economic, social and environmental performance. Starbucks pays premiums over the price of the commodity markets to make sure that farmers can continue growing Arabica beans rather than switching to less profitable crops through this program.
Q: Why does Starbucks serve only Arabica beans, and not Robusta?
Q: It seems that Starbucks just prefers Arabica coffee because it doesn’t share the harsh, rubbery bitterness generally found in Robusta beans. Arabica is grown at higher elevations and has more complex sugars and acids, whereas the cheaper, less delicate Robusta contains twice as much caffeine, and an aroma that’s often likened to oatmeal or burnt rubber.
References
- Entity: Starbucks Coffee Company. Object: Global Social Impact Report. Year: 2020. Outcome: Herald Verifying 98.6% coffee sourced against C.A.F.E. Practices; purchase volume not compared to global supply.
- Entity: Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). Subject: SCAA Protocols | Cupping Specialty r.Cupping s.VENDEDOR_TraderQC.Issue01 -10) Coffee. Year: 2015 (Standard revision). Outcome: Establishes a standard for “Specialty Coffee” of 80-points or higher on a 100-point scale, as opposed to “Premium” or commercial grade Arabica.
- Organization: The National Coffee Association (NCA) What is it? Object: Coffee Bean Classifications. Data: Distinguishes Arabica (Coffea arabica) from Robusta (Coffea canephora) based on cytoplasmic DNA count (44 in the former, 22 in thr latter), lipids/sugars content (+/−60% difference).
- Entity: Consumer Reports. Purpose: Coffee Taste Tests / Freshness study. Background: Just some general observations on nitrogen flushing and staling between supermarket bulk whole bean ‘coffee’ vs. something at least as recently roasted as FRESH but could literally be a days old roast (a package grind – no mylar or any clear-vacuum sealed packaging).
