Evil corporate conglomerate and place to pick up Sonic Youth records, Starbucks has rolled out their instant coffee with a big promotional blitz.

So all biases aside, how is it?  Well, I tried the Colombian single.

I probably should say I am in no way a coffee snob.  Like many an addict, I don't really care about the quality of my fix, I just care it's handy.  So while I do know what a good cup of coffee is, I often will grab anything that remotely resembles coffee- whether it is the frozen coffee at work or instant coffee at grandma's house.

I have spent a large chunk of my life working at restaurants, but at the same time, I do recognize the need for a product like this.  It was well into my adult life before I had a coffee maker at home, and even still, I generally will grab the pop-a-can-and ready soda in the morning. 

To cut to the quick, the Starbucks single is good.  It is a packet of microground coffee that resembles those Crystal Light single packets.  I was actually expecting grounds at the bottom when I was done, but there were none.

I liked it, and although you certainly need hot water to pull it off, find it better than a lot of options- such as Folgers or the stuff.comes out of frozen coffee machines.  Connoisseurs (and snobs) will say it's not as good as the brewed stuff (it's not), but "Ready Brew" is a pretty damn good replica. 

As for whether I would buy it?  It is 3 packets for $3 (if I am not mistaken) or 12 for $10.  Seems sort of pricey, though I suppose you pay for convenience.  I'll probably stick to the free stuff at work (nothing beats free), but in different circumstances, I would consider it.  Nah, probably not, I'd probably hit one of the local coffee joints, but it is pretty good.