Starbucks use Arabica coffee beans for all of their coffees and hand crafted coffee drinks, and, according to the Starbucks Coffee Engagement Manager, this is because arabica beans have an elegant and interesting flavour profile which can be blended into new and interesting tastes.
This article looks at the type of coffee beans favoured by Starbucks and the features of Arabica coffee beans which make them the preferred base for most artisan and hand crafted coffee drinks.
What are Arabica coffee beans like?
The type of coffee beans used to make coffee definitely influence the experience of the drink, and Arabica beans tend to have a slightly sweeter and smoother taste than the other three well known types of coffee beans.
Arabica beans have flavour notes of chocolate and sugar in their flavour profile, notes that are pleasant to most coffee drinkers, and which don’t contain any flavour elements that might be jarring or startling.
These “unexpected” kinds of flavour notes, though, are attractive to coffee connoisseurs, who look for them, analyse them, and use them to intensify the flavours of their own drinks.
However, the reassuring and more recognizable flavour profile of Arabica beans make them useful for coffee houses who serve coffees to huge numbers of customers every day.
According to Starbucks, more than 60 per cent of world coffee production comes from Arabica cultivators, and the reason the beans make for great coffee is because of the attitude at which the Arabica trees grow and thrive (between 3,000a and 6,000 feet).
At these elevations, the heat of the days and cool of the nights slows the growth of the coffee cherries (the fruit of the coffee trees), which gives the fruit more time to develop.
Coffee experts claim that this prolonged growth time makes for a more refined and subtle coffee taste.
What are the other types of coffee beans like?
The four main beans are Arabica, Robusta, Liberica, Excelsa, and they all have distinctive features and flavours.
- Arabica beans (with the soft, mild, and sweet profile) and are considered the world’s original coffee bean
- Robusta beans, which have a harsher stronger flavour and are higher in caffeine
- Liberica, grown in Southeast Asia, and are described as fruity and woody
- Excelsa, grown in a range of regions, including Chad in North Africa, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Excelsa beans are the rarest and most expensive bean and are described as tart and fruity.
Some coffee roasters use a combination of blends to produce their coffee, especially when pursuing a certain feature they want to emphasize, such as intensity of flavour or strength of caffeine.
Why does Starbucks like Arabica coffee beans?
Starbucks prefer Arabica beans because they provide an attractive smooth coffee base on which to build their specialty crafted coffees.
Starbucks are known for their inventive and ever changing artisan drink menu, and to which they bring a variety of flavours and textures.
Popular artisan coffees need a mild and pleasing coffee base with which to start so that there are no sharper coffee notes interfering with the new flavour blend. Arabica beans provide this perfect base.
Starbucks also market their own brand of Starbucks coffee made from finely ground espresso roast coffee. Customers use these to make their own lattes at home, and the flavour notes are described as molasses and caramelized sugar.
Consider, for example, the Iced Caramel Brulée Latte, which is made with 2 shots of espresso, milk, caramel Brulee sauce, whipped cream, topping, and ice. This drink, along with most of the Starbucks artisan range, can be personalized to however you want it.
Therefore, the coffee base needs to be present but unobtrusive; allowing other ingredients to modify the drink to suit customer taste.
What are some of the Starbucks hand crafted coffees which rely on Arabica coffee?
Starbucks create both hot and cold hand crafted drinks, and most of these can be further modified in some way: in flavour, sweetness, type of milk used, and in size.
- Iced Chocolate Almondmilk Shaken Espresso, which can be personalized by adding syrups, chai, sauces, extra or less coffee (which is added as “espresso shots”)
- Iced White Chocolate Mocha, which can be changed by adding spices, by using different milk, or by changing the type of chocolate used
- Starbucks Cold Brew Coffee, which coffee lovers will change by adding nut syrups or coconut milk, sauces or cream
- Iced Starbucks Blonde Caffè Americano, which is personalized by adding sauces syrups, cold foam or even a dash of lemonade
Other Starbucks coffees are made to showcase very precise and individual flavour profiles, and these, too, depend on the arabica coffee flavour to provide that all important background supporting role:
- Pumpkin Spice Latte
- Apple Crisp Macchiato
- White Chocolate Mocha
- Honey Oatmilk Latte
- Espresso Con Panna
- Starbucks Reserve Hazelnut Bianco Latte
Why does Starbucks need Arabica coffee beans?
Starbucks pride themselves on a continually changing menu and on delivering new and unexpected drink creations.
These drinks are often introduced to coincide with celebrations such as Christmas and Halloween and so will reflect the season and the location of the stores.
- Caramel Brulée Latte
- Fudge Brownie Hot Chocolate
- Toffee Nut Latte
- Gingerbread Latte
- Toasted White Chocolate Mocha
- Chocolatey Gingerbread Latte
Other Starbucks drink creations are introduced, enjoyed briefly, and then make way for more drinks. Some of the more creative offerings included:
- American Cherry Pie Frappucino
- Summer Berry Panna Cotta Frappuccino
- Birthday Cake Frappuccino
- Pop’zel Coffee Frappuccino
If the coffee base to these (sometimes bizarre) creations were too strong or too intense, the novelty of the added flavours would not work because the flavours would be obscured.
Starbucks also offer online ordering through a Starbucks app, and customers can personalize coffees through this app in every way possible – through size, intensity of flavours, sweetness and ingredients. The attraction of these options is that anything can work so long as the coffee base on which the drink is built is pleasant, smooth, and authentic.
Hi, I’m Jen Williams, chief editor and writer for ThirstPerk.com.
I’ve been drinking coffee and tea for most of my life, but it wasn’t until I started working at Thirstperk.com that I became an expert on the subject. I’m a total caffeine addict who has spent hours upon hours reading about and experimenting with the different types of coffees out there in my search to find the perfect cup of joe.
I’ve been a tea lover for as long as I can remember as well. I grew up in a house with a mom who loved to drink herbal tea, and I think that’s where my love for tea first began. These days, I’m always on the lookout for new and interesting teas to try, and I love experimenting with different brewing methods and flavoring combinations.
