It was only a matter of time before the company caved in. Surrounded on all sides by companies who put out cups of coffee that make the venerable Venti look like a thimble full of tapwater, Seattle coffee giant Starbucks has finally announced plans to roll out a test size of a new, even larger size top of the line drink. The new size, Trenta, is a staggering 31-ounce cup of iced or frozen blended coffee, versus the Venti 24-ounce large frozen (or 20 ounce hot). The test markets will be warm-weather places like Phoenix and Tampa, but if it does well there it’ll roll out across the rest of the country.
It’s about time! I can walk into any gas station in the area and get an enormous cup of coffee for like $2. We’re talking normal brewed coffee or machine-mixed cappuccino. It’s not as good as a venti sugar free, skim milk vanilla latte, but it’s a whole lot cheaper, and there’s a whole lot more of it. When it comes to iced or frozen drinks, size matters.
I can understand being reluctant to roll out hot drinks that large (since you can just make those yourself), but cold drinks need to be in bigger sizes, especially in cities with serious summers. Otherwise, you’re just losing business to companies willing to put out big gulps of sugary coffee blends or extra-large cold tea drinks.
Tags: trenta, Starbucks, Starbucks to debut new extra large coffee, Starbucks to sell 31-ounce giant coffees, caffeine overload, Phoenix, Arizona, Tampa, Florida, test markets for Starbucks