Gold Coast Blend finally returns to Starbucks. It’s been on a hiatus for a while. The first week of February, you’ll find it back in stores, in its all-new packaging:
Look for Gold Coast Blend to called out and highlighted in baskets in stores (of course, all starting the first week of February), and available as the daily dark roast drip brew coffee for one week. Gold Coast is one of the iconic Starbucks blends that many people love. It briefly was known as Gold Coast Blend in “Morning Joe” packaging, and then disappeared from Starbucks stores, as the coffee’s packaging went through a re-design. In September 2013, Starbucks announced that their “Morning Joe”partnership had come to an end, and the coffee disappeared from stores (temporarily).
From the StarbucksStore.com website, I found this description of Gold Coast:
Starbucks® Gold Coast® Blend
This is a serious cup. Big. Bold. Syrupy, complex and refined. A coffee that means Chicago to us. When we opened our first stores there in 1987, we wanted to introduce a blend that would honor the city, and this is it. Our master coffee blenders brought together the heft of beans from Latin America and Indonesia with a bit of roasty sweetness from our dark Italian Roast. Creating a taste every bit as sophisticated as the neighborhood we named it after. And hearty enough to go up against the famously bitter winters.
And there’s a little more:
Gold Coast Blend® is a sophisticated, full-bodied coffee with waves of flavor that evolve as the coffee cools.
Intensely satisfying, it features Latin American and Asia/Pacific coffees accented with a sweet touch of Italian Roast. Because of its great depth and complex taste, this whole bean coffee goes well with a range of food pairings, holding its own alongside flavors such as maple, chocolate, caramel or cheesecake.
I hope you get a chance to pick up a pound of Gold Coast and enjoy it too. I’m totally looking forward to it coming back too. I hope that East Olive Way picks this coffee for a coffee seminar soon. It is a multi-region, dark, full-bodied, low acidity coffee.
I noticed that if you Google, you can still find a few images of the old Gold Coast Blend packaging on StarbucksStore.com – Here you are – Do you have a favorite?:
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I’m so excited for this return! It’s the last coffee I need for my new passport. Ironically, I didn’t like this coffee the first time I had it. It’s actually my favorite now!
@Melody – thanks for the good news, I have been missing a good cup of Gold Coast. I like the sophisticated look of the new package.
Sure hope Starbucks stays away from the association with Morning Joe. That little escapade was quite an affront to those of us who really know what the Gold Coast is, and it is sure not New Yawk.
I had no idea it had gone away. We’ve had in Canada all this time. It wasn’t ever called Morning Joe here though.
Just put it back on the shelf today!
This is my favorite coffee. I think the woman and dog give off an uppity vibe. I liked it better when it had pictures of Chicago, from whence it came (if I’m not mistaken).
Being from Chicago, and Im embarrassed to admit that ive never heard of it, this makes me very excited to try out… also, I was a frequent customer at Intelligentsia, which might explain why I missed out on some early SBUX jewels… once again, always a jewel of a blog!!
@Nathan – I haven’t seen it on shelves yet here, but it should be very soon! Yay!
@Brent – It’s been a woman and a dog on the front of it for a long time. I don’t actually remember the scenes from Chicago on Gold Coast (though I 100% believe you that they were there). In the late 1990s, a lot of the coffee stamp images went through big changes. The change that I remember the most is that to me, it was always befitting that Italian Roast was represented by the leaning tower of Piza, and still in my mind that’s what it is!
@LaunceBugbee – Let me know what you think of it when you get the chance to try it!
I don’t remember if I have ever had Gold Coast, but I was buying the Morning Joe quite regularly & enjoyed it very much. Good to know they are the same
@bmommyx2 – Yep, they’re the same! Glad you like this one too!
I really like the older coffee designs. They still have some decorations with the Gold Coast and Viennese (never even heard of it) blends in stores near me.
Yay! Thanks for all your info Melody! I totally agree with DadC…. how horrible when they did that “morning Joe” bit. yuk! Have been keeping my eyes out but not seen it yet, maybe this week…assuming I venture out sometime! 😉
Thanks for the good news about Gold Coast Blend returning! Do you know if it will be released in K-cups? With Starbucks’ new long-term agreement with Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, and more of the Starbucks seasonal coffees appearing in K-Cup format, perhaps we will be lucky and see Gold Coast in K-Cups also!
I’m happy to see it return for everybody else. I love GCB, but I can’t drink it anymore. I have no idea why, but just one grande or venti GCB makes my heart race within 2 hours or so of drinking it. For me, it’s actually been frightening a couple times. So I stay away from it. Like all the newer packaging, I like what they did with the packaging for the GCB. So to everybody….. Enjoy!!!
@Denise – Are you still not sick of winter yet? It sure is beating the heck out of me at work. And these temperatures are giving me flashbacks to the late 70’s, only it feels worse at this age. I hope you’re enjoying it and all is well! 🙂
gold coast is my favorite bland, and i am so so so so happy it’s back! (well, almost back!) i love the packaging design, it is really sharp looking. i do wish it would be released in verismo pods, kcups or via, but i haven’t heard anything about that. i’ll be perfectly happy with whole bean 🙂
gold coast makes a delicious shot of espresso too 🙂
@Chgo: I posted in some older thread: I SURRENDER!!!!! had fun on 1/17, went ice-skating and now (at MY age) am kind of done. just done. snow ok, cold ok, but both extremes ??? yep. I’ve surrendered!
About time! In my view, it is the best coffee they make!
@Denise – That is my philosophy, one or the other! Its just brutal and we still have over 2 months to go, until it will hail, flood and storm all over again. We only have 2seasobs now in Chicago. Summer and winter. I hope you read my reply about the Yirgacheffe in the other thread. Stay warm and safe over next 48 hrs.
seasons…. God I hate using my phone. =P
@chgo… you should know better… Chicago does indeed have two seasons…winter and road construction. 33 years of Chicago winters… UGH! I’m proud to say I’m from Chicago, but I’ll take the rainy winters here in Seattle any time. #jussayin.
Oooh! I can’t wait to try this. It sounds so fun! 🙂
LOL!!! @launce bugbee – I must admit that you certainly caught me off guard with that one, but so true regarding construction season. I do know better.
Bring on the Gold Coast k-cups!!