Happy Mother’s Day weekend! Hope you’re having a good weekend and are ready for this week’s Sunday Fun Day Giveaway! This week I’ve reviewed something near and dear to my heart – coffee. I love starting my day with coffee and without it, I just can’t seem to function very well. It’s one thing that definitely gets me going.
One company that’s synonymous with coffee is Starbucks. It’s pretty much a household name and these days, they’ve come up with another delicious coffee product. Starbucks Natural Infusions are Starbucks’ newest coffee that come in flavors including vanilla, caramel and cinnamon. Since it’s Mother’s Day, I recently hosted a special tea & coffee brunch with girlfriends. We enjoyed a great afternoon together over delicious brunch favorites with tea and Starbucks Natural Infusions to pair them with.
Brunch Menu
Classic Tea Sandwiches
Chive Deviled Eggs
Spinach & Mushroom Quiche
Raspberry Lemon Shortbread
Creamy Fruit Mini Pies
Pumpkin Spice Scones
I’m a fan of coffee and I’m not really brand loyal with the brand I drink day to day. However, usually I like a specific Mexican style coffee called Café Bustelo. But ever since being introduced to Starbucks Natural Infusions, I’m definitely sticking with these flavored coffees for awhile. The first thing I noticed about these coffees is the aroma. The delicious flavors are so infused within the coffee that they give off such a clear aroma. Even as the coffees brewed, my kitchen was filled with the sweet smell of the flavor of the coffee. Sometimes with flavored coffees, you can smell and taste how artificial it is but with these Starbucks Natural Infusion coffees, it’s nothing but the real flavor that shines through.
One sip and you’ll see how neatly (and deliciously) coffee and real vanilla fit together. High-quality Latin American arabica coffee beans are perfectly roasted to complement carefully selected natural ingredients, creating a lush, smooth experience that’s everything a flavored coffee should be.
With our given menu, the coffees paired really well. For example, the vanilla worked very well with the Creamy Fruit Mini Pies and even the Raspberry Lemon Shortbread. It had a very smooth and sweet flavor that had a nice aroma of vanilla. This coffee is a great everyday flavor. It’s clean, smooth and subtly sweet without any overpowering flavors.
Imagine our delight when we combined high-quality Latin American arabica coffee with carefully selected natural ingredients to create an ambrosial caramel concoction. Our coffee is a rich, dark complement to caramel’s confectionary charm – a deep, satisfying brew with just the right drizzle of buttery sweetness.
I liked how the caramel coffee went with the lemon bars. It had a really nice buttery flavor to it that seemed to highlight the buttery crust of the lemon bars. This would be my absolute favorite of the three flavors because caramel is my all time favorite flavor when it comes to most desserts to begin with. If I want something a bit indulgent, this would be the flavor I’d go to first.
The ideal coffee break is all about balance: a peaceful interlude, yes. But one with a little something spicy to stir the senses too. Which sounds a lot like Starbucks® Natural Fusions Cinnamon. It’s a heady cup, redolent of coffee, spice and botanicals, all working in perfect harmony. To strike this careful flavor balance, custom-roasted arabica beans are ground together with real, natural ingredients. The resulting brew is enhanced with just the right wash of warm, inviting cinnamon.
And hands down, the cinnamon coffee was perfect with the pumpkin spice scones. This was the boldest flavored coffee of the group and it was warm and inviting. This would probably be my top choice when I want to enjoy coffee on a cool day and especially on fall and winter mornings.
Overall, I found these coffees to be exactly what they claim to deliver – a deliciously flavored coffee made with select beans and specific roasting to accentuate the flavors they come in. Besides, I have yet to find a Starbucks product that I didn’t like! So for all those coffee or even Starbucks lovers out there, this week two readers will be receiving a set of Starbucks Natural Infusions Coffee! Each set includes a package of Starbucks National Infusions Vanilla, Starbucks National Infusions Caramel, and Starbucks National Infusions Cinnamon coffees.
Some guidelines:
– Giveaway is only for those who live in the United States – my apologies to my international readers!
– You must have a valid email address (within your comment or blog link) so that you can be contacted if you win.
Deadline: Thursday, May 12, 2011 at 12 midnight CST.
One winner will be randomly chosen by Random.Org’s Interger Generator based on the number of your comment and will be announced on Friday, May 13, 2011. Good luck!
Full Disclosure: The giveaways are sponsored by the same company that provided me with the food related product to review. Products I review and offer as a giveaway are ones I personally recommend and would use/enjoy myself.
Venti Soy Carmel macchiato… MMMM MMM MMM. Happy Mother's Day
I order plain ol' black coffee. Like a robust roast………..mellow is good too.
Iced caramel macchiato! I always get that or the warm version.
I usually order an iced coffee
I usually get an iced skinny caramel skinny macchiato during summer and a pumpkin spice latte during winter- with an extra sprinkle of cinnamon on top!!!
I always order a Peppermint Mocha.
Thanks
charisscharity at yahoo dot com
I order Hazelnut Cappuccino. Thanks!
sharonjo at gwtc dot net
Too many to name… the Cinnamon Dolce Latte is my all time fav, the soy latte is also very good and at Christmas time I LOVE the white peppermint mocha – YUM!
I usually order a venti latte brevee style or when in season, a venti salted caramel hot cocoa. Sooooooo good
Venti nonfat vanilla latte, either hot or iced – yum!
My usual order has changed recently, since I finally started drinking coffee. So these days I usually go for a plain old cup of decaf (hot or iced depending on the weather).
I usually order a grande caramel macchiato with nonfat milk. YUM!
26summer at excite dot com
I usually order a non-fat latte. I enjoy reading your blog! You have great recipes and are babies are only a couple of days apart! I hope you had a great Mother's Day!
We don't have one conveniently located to us so I don't go there often. However, when I have, I loved their hot chocolate.
ljyoung85 at gmail.com
iced coffee with caramel! oorr caramel frapp…or iced green tea frap! heehee. i love starbucks, can you tell /:
Venti nonfat cinnamon dolce latte, no whip. 🙂
I love their Iced Coffee, slightly sweetened. Yummy.
I had a chance to sample those awhile ago and the cinnamon was definitely my favorite. Of the three it definitely has the strongest aroma and flavor.
I usually get a Skinny Vanilla Latte – lots of flavor, without all the fat & calories.
Tall skinny cinnamin dolce latte 🙂
A hot Caramel Macchiato with whip cream is my choice when I feel like splurging.
I'd get a hot chocolate.
As soon as it starts to get a little warm I head straight for a Mocha Frappuccino. They are so addicting!
I try and order something different every time. I don't go every day, so there is plenty of variety to try something new!
I order iced or hot chai latte.
lynne at fairpoint dot net
If it's cold outside, I usually just get a grande bold coffee and then mix it up to taste myself.
If it's hot out, I'll go for an iced grande caramel macchiato.