STARBUCKSVIA® Ready Brew Italian Roast Coffee (50 count)

My favorite is the Italian Roast. I never liked 'instant' until I tried this.This might sound a bit odd, but I love this even more iced (or at least chilled). I needed to go spend the day visiting an ailing relative at the hospital a couple of years ago. I dreaded not being near some decent coffee. I got the idea to pour a packet into a bottle (16oz) of water that I was taking along. At least I would have some coffee with me, right. How bad could it be? It was great!!Let me say that it takes a while (5-6 minutes) to dissolve and mix properly. I usually open the bottle, take a small sip of water (leaves a bit more room for 'shaking'), add the packet, shake, and then let it sit a couple of minutes before shaking again. Instant cold coffee. I later tried the Starbuck's Iced Coffee packets, but those are way too sweet for me. I do not like it sweetened. Those are made to dissolve quickly, but I would rather shake a little longer and wait a few minutes to have this Italian Roast.Of course, you could just add the VIA to a small glass of water, stir, and add ice (which I do if I am home).I find I use the 'bottle method' whenever I will be away from the house for hours. For me, I use a purse which fits a water bottle perfectly and it's nice to have. It's also very convenient to throw a few packets of VIA in my purse while I am traveling or away from the house all day just to have with me. You can get water anywhere, but not always a decent coffee.I realize the review should be ALL about the coffee, but I think anyone looking to purchase this product can be pretty confindent by the *star* rating that the taste is good. It is! I just wanted to add that Starbuck's made a customer of me BECAUSE of their VIA Ready Brew and not because I stand in line in one of their stores trying to figure out how to order a coffee. lol!Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew Italian Roast Coffee (50 count)March 2014...UPDATE:I purchase this Via Italian Roast all the time from Amazon. I love it! Cold! I just wanted to add, that when I order this through Amazon, it is shipped directly from Starbucks. In the 12-15 Boxes of Via I have ordered over the years, it is always fresh ... well within code. Only once did I receive a box that had an expiration date maybe 3 months out. Fine for me. I told you I love this Via!

Recently at work, we've been looking to cut costs and save money, and so the first thing to go was decent coffee. The swill that they're serving now is an abomination to coffee, so I finally went out and bought a pack of these 50 Starbucks Via Italian Roast instant coffee. Starbucks Via is pretty good, I mean, it's really good for instant coffee. I am fortunate at work we have a hot-water maker thing that works well and gives you piping hot water, which dissolves this coffee dust in a matter of seconds... barely requiring a stir.THe coffee is strong and tastes similar to the Starbucks Italian Roast you might get from the store; not the same, not as robust, not as "burnt" (something that I personally prefer), but still pretty damn good for instant coffee.Having irregular sleep patterns, this coffee has spared me the embarrassment of falling asleep in countless meetings. It works, it tastes good, it holds cream well. Only drawback is it leaves this muddy residue on the bottom of your cup. But, that ain't all that bad. It's not Sanka.

Purchasing Starbucks Via in these 50-package containers is the least expensive way to buy this great coffee. If you tried Starbucks Via Colombian Roast and were not impressed, try the Via Italian Roast, whose taste is far superior IMO. Update: I placed another order for Italian Roast directly from Starbucks via Amazon, since it was less expensive than ordering directly from Amazon. Starbucks sent Columbia Medium, not Italian Roast. I contacted Amazon who contacted Starbucks - kudos for Amazon! Starbucks agreed to refund my purchase price and emailed me an invitation to call their phone number, promising to then issue me a new order "at a discount with free overnight shipping". So I called ... and spent nearly an hour on hold and explaining the email invitation and again on hold and then re-explaining and so on! Finally, a supervisor agreed to give a 10% discount and guessed I would receive the "over-night" order in about four days (not including weekend days) and insisted that I sign up for a new account with them before they would do anything further. I wasted a lot of my time and experienced a lot of frustration with the Starbucks company!

I travel a good deal and don't always like the coffee choices I'm sometimes stuck with; in hotel rooms, on airplanes, in lousy restaurants, at conference halls, or even my mom's house. These help fill that void in an easy and lightweight way. The packets are small and versatile, so carrying a lot of them or getting through airport security is not a problem. The flavor is relatively robust, but I always add two packets, as I like my coffee strong.At a lot of places--even airports--you can get a cup of hot water for free. Thus, if you would otherwise buy a cup of coffee, these packets will save you a lot of money. This is especially true in higher-end places (think Vegas), where you will pay between $6.00 and $10.00 just for a cup of coffee.My only gripe about this product is that the packets are not easy to open. If you're at home or work and have scissors, it shouldn't be a problem. But when I'm traveling, I have to use my fingers. You can tear the packet easily, but unless you have a wide opening, it is tough to get the product out. Getting the packets to open wide just with your fingers can be difficult.Also, you need to have a spoon or stirring stick, as the coffee doesn't dissolve well without a few stirs.For my needs, it's a good product; affordable, easily transported, and flavorful.

While this coffee is not as good as fresh brewed it is very convenient and the taste is not bad. My office uses the single pod type coffees and I always find them too weak or flat in taste.I like the convenience of only needing hot water to make a cup of coffee. I sometimes do not feel like brewing a whole pot. I especially love the decaf version for later at night when I want a cup of coffee.Buying the 50 count does work out cheaper than the grocery store or Starbucks retail stores per packet. My package had a good expiration date although it took me less than a month to finish the whole box between home and office.I am ordering more of the regular Italian Roast and the decaf version.