Instant Coffee

Although Starbucks's instant coffee line, VIA, has been sold nationwide for over a year now, the coffee conglomerate wants more consumers to taste it. So much so that it's launched a new promotion, Taste Promise, encouraging coffee drinkers to try VIA.

If you don't like it, Starbucks will send you a free 12-ounce bag of ground coffee. To participate in the campaign, which started today and runs until August, Starbucks drinkers must mail in a proof of purchase of the VIA along with a downloadable form. In four to six weeks, a bag of free coffee will arrive at your doorstep.

Do you drink VIA? Are you interested in the Taste Promise?

Starbucks isn't just hoping to wow customers with flavored coffee; it's also going after that longtime Summer favorite, iced coffee. Beginning June 29, the coffee giant will sell VIA Iced Coffee, a spinoff of the instant coffee it has been pushing heavily over the past year. I got an exclusive preview of the drink while in Seattle for Starbucks Coffee College. To learn what I thought of it, read more.

A few weeks ago Starbucks sent us a sample of VIA, its new instant coffee. Being a bit of a coffee snob I was kind of grossed out but decided to try it on my upcoming climbing trip anyway.

The best thing VIA has going for it is its size — it's small. Normally when I pack for camping I bring the works: coffee beans, portable grinder, and a french press. I was so happy to have more space in my pack and I definitely noticed a lighter load on my back. Score one for VIA! Was it as good as the Blue Bottle coffee I normally bring with me? Uh, no. Not even close, but I didn't expect it to be.

I think the point of VIA is convenience — you can have a OK cup of coffee anywhere and it'll be easy. It's definitely the best instant coffee I've ever tried and it even tasted better than some drip coffee I've had. Although the Colombian blend I tried was a bit bitter at the end, it had a nice, mellow flavor too. For a touch of sweetness, I added another camping shortcut to the mix —shelf stable Horizon organic vanilla milk. My companion, who is no coffee snob, said it was the best cup of coffee he's ever had while camping.

Though I won't be using VIA at home, I think it's a good choice for backpacking, camping, or for traveling anywhere you need coffee quickly. From now on, I'll be bringing it with me on all of my climbing trips.

If you're a frequent or occasional instant coffee drinker, look out for a new kind of brew coming to a store near you. On Sept. 29, Starbucks will be rolling out its much-discussed instant coffee, VIA, in stores across the US and Canada.

When VIA Ready Brew was first introduced back in March, the insta-packets were only available in limited markets: Seattle, Chicago, London, and online. “Consumers have quickly adopted our instant coffee as their coffee while on the go,” CEO Howard Schultz said in a statement. “We were overwhelmed and humbled by the positive response from our customers and partners after tasting Starbucks VIA."

Unsurprisingly, Starbucks is not only marketing VIA as coffee on-the-go, but also as a creative element in the kitchen, playing a part in recipes from coffee sodas to cupcakes. Starbucks fans, do tell: Will you try out VIA once it hits your side of town?