Starbucks Testing Clover in Boston, Seattle, San Francisco
Starbucks is trying out its new Clover brewing system in Beantown. The Clover is the $11,000 coffee machine that uses vacuum-press technology and computerized brewing cycles custom-calibrated to bean type to make single-pour cups of joe. The machine is lauded by coffee geeks, who say it brings out subtle flavors that are masked by conventional brewing methods.
The Boston Globe says about 30 Starbucks locations in the Boston area will get the units for testing, debuting there September 9. It's of particular interest to the company to test in Boston, as the city is rival Dunkin' Donuts' home turf. Clovers debuted yesterday in Seattle and will also appear in San Francisco on an unspecified date.
But you don't have to wait till your Starbucks gets one. There a a number of independent coffee shops worldwide (but mostly in the U.S.) that have them. Find one near you and try it.
Have you tried a Clover-brewed cuppa joe? I've tried a few bean varieties at a coffee shop near my house. So far, I actually could taste hints of blueberry in an Ethiopian bean I had but found a couple of the other varieties I tried too bitter. (I'm sorry, I can't remember which ones at the moment.)
Also note: Clover-brewed cups are way more expensive than typical drip coffee. Some people find it worth it, others don't. I'm on the fence. It's a nice treat once in a while. Do you or would you shell out the bucks for it?
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8 Comments:
Oh puh-leeze! Here we go again with yet another gizmo to jack up the price of coffee and who better to do it than Starbucks!? I'll stick with my Braun, Zabar's coffee and a measuring spoon, thank you very much.
RichardCrystal at 9:14AM on 08/27/08
I tried a cup of clover coffee at El Beit in Williamsburg and was underwhelmed. It had a more refined flavor, for sure, but the price point was too high. Also, it was such a big process to make one cup what with the squeegee all. I'd be more stoked if Starbucks just improved their brewing skills, but it seems like more than anything they just want consistency, even if that means settling on a mediocre cup of cofee.
JudgeFudge at 10:10AM on 08/27/08
I would try it just once. I'm not that devoted to drip coffee to shell out extra $$ for a cup. Prefer my Bodum 1-cup maker!
Allison Hemler at 11:21AM on 08/27/08
@JudgeFudge: Yeah, apart from my first couple cups of the Ethiopian bean, I have been underwhelmed by the cups I've had—at least for the price point. (More than three times what I can get it for at the deli, which recently started using good beans for its coffee and making a decent cup.)
Adam Kuban at 11:21AM on 08/27/08
didn't i read that a lot of indie places stopped using clovers once the company was bought by starbucks?
Also, i've been seeing the phrase "price point" creep in to the margins of normal conversation from the marketing and retail world where it (i assume) began... is there really a difference between saying "price point" and "price"? As in, "I wouldn't pay for a cup of coffee at that price" vs "at that price point"? what does the second formulation add in terms of information or specificity?
mr guy at 2:09PM on 08/27/08
THANK YOU, Mr guy! I'd like to shoot whoever the hell came up with that! You hear it everywhere and it seems no one can tell me what it means. Does it mean the same as "price range"? Or is it more specific?
RichardCrystal at 2:55PM on 08/27/08
Where at in Seattle and San Fransisco will they be at? Anybody know?
danhhoang at 3:53PM on 08/27/08
@mr guy: I agree. In this context (individual consumer), there isn't a difference between price and price point. However, from a marketing standpoint, price and price point are different things. An individual consumer just has their specific price where something is not worth buying. A statement of "at that price point" from an individual consumer would only be coincidentally accurate if the store was pricing with price points. So why say it?
wunami at 5:25PM on 06/08/09