6 Starbucks coffee pairings that may surprise you
Food pairings can help bring out those subtle differences in flavor, body, acidity and aroma – and may even change the way you think about coffee.
What do you taste?
That’s one of the first things we ask at Starbucks when doing a coffee tasting. And for a lot of people, at first the answer is … well … coffee. But food pairings can help bring out those subtle differences in flavor, body, acidity and aroma – and may even change the way you think about coffee.
Here are a few of our unexpected favorites:
Komodo Dragon Blend + brie cheese
Komodo Dragon Blend® is a bold, spicy blend of Indonesian coffees, with a taste that is complex and buttery with layered notes of fresh herbs and warm spice. A creamy cheese like brie or a savory pastry brings out those rich earthy, herbal notes of the coffee.
Pike Place Roast + peanut butter
Starbucks Pike Place® Roast is a beloved brew – a smooth, Latin American blend known for its subtly rich flavors of chocolate and praline. Pair it with a spoonful of peanut butter to dial up those nutty notes, and you might also detect flavors of chocolate too.
Sumatra + green bell pepper
Starbucks® Sumatra is a bold and full-bodied coffee with rich herbals, rustic spice notes and a muted acidity. Its distinctive flavors – including a bell pepper – come from the way it is processed using the wet-hulling method, called giling basah. Taste the bell pepper and coffee side-by-side and you’ll suddenly appreciate the unique peppery notes in the coffee in a new way. (For the less adventurous, Sumatra is also delicious with rich cheeses, maple bars or cheese danish.)
Green Apron Blend + orange slices
Play detective with a slice of orange alongside Starbucks® Green Apron Blend™, a Blonde Roast blend of coffees from Africa and Latin America. The citrus flavor from the orange will help lead you to the notes of honeybell orange from the blend’s African coffees. Now try the coffee again with graham crackers and you’ll soon detect the nutty, honey notes of the coffees from Latin American coffees. This pairing is also delicious iced!
Single-Origin Ethiopia + popcorn
In a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony, popcorn is often served alongside the coffee, with the lightness of the popcorn complementing the complex flavors of the coffee. The traditional pairing works its magic with Starbucks® Single-Origin Ethiopia coffee, highlighting its juicy acidity and ginger blossom aroma, with notes of tangerine, lemon balm and sweet dates.
Espresso Roast + chocolate caramels
Starbucks® Espresso Roast has been at the heart of Starbucks handcrafted espresso beverages since the very beginning, a perfect melding of beans and roast. Chocolate caramels bring out the rich molasses notes and the bold, caramelly sweetness of the roast for a decadent flavor experience.
