Giveaway: Whiskey Barrel-Aged Sulawesi 

I’m going to give away one 4 ounce bag of Whiskey Barrel-Aged Sulawesi. It is a thing. Wow. Starbucks officially released this coffee on Monday, March 6, 2017. It will blow you away. I’ve brewed it at home. I’ve ordered the Con Crema drink, and I’ve had it as the cold brew. I strongly recommend that you read this article here for the details.

Shortly after its release, I received a few Facebook messages with people asking me if I could secure them any of this coffee. Yesterday, Thursday March 9, 2017, I stopped by the Roastery on my way home from work thinking I’d buy some coffee – I wanted more for myself at home, plus I decided I would mail it off to a few people. It was sold out. I had several Roastery partners tell me that yesterday, the Roastery sold their entire week’s worth in one day. I heard that I should come back on Friday (today), as they were trying to get more.

Today, at 7:15 AM, I dropped by the Roastery on my way to work. There was a crowd of people at the scoop bar, and one partner trying to get all their orders for the Whiskey Barrel-Aged Sulawesi. I have been visiting the Roastery since before it opened. I have never seen a crowd at the scoop bar in the early morning.

So today, I bought a little more. I bought some for myself for home, a little to send, and I have one single extra 4 ounce bag of it. This is NOT in Flavorlock packaging, so it needs to be consumed quickly.

How to enter this giveaway:

I’m going to do a super quick giveaway. I can’t imagine that very many people will enter, but here’s what you will win, if you are chosen (at random) as the winner. The winner will receive the pictured beautiful bag of Sulawesi, plus one $15.00 Starbucks Roastery card. Leave a comment below. Tell me why you want this coffee, or tell me what your favorite whole bean coffee at Starbucks is. You have less than 24 hours to enter. I have to get this in the mail because it is a perishable item. You must leave a comment before 6:30 PM on Saturday, March 11, 2017, Pacific Standard Time. If you win, you assume all the risks of consuming a perishable item. Only one entry per person. You must be over the age of 18 to enter. You must have an address inside the United States – no FPOs or APOs. (The puzzle in the background of the photo is not included in the giveaway). The winner will be selected at random. I’m going to write all the names on little cards, throw them into a Starbucks bag, and draw one at random. Your comment has to be meaningful. You can’t just write, “I’m writing this because you told me to leave a comment.” I am the sole decision maker of whether you left  meaningful comment. Please enter with a real email address, because I will contact you via email if you win. If you fail to respond to my attempts to reach you, you forfeit any prize. I will update this article at the bottom with the winner, and send an email. You have exactly two weeks from March 11, 2017, to claim your prize, otherwise it’s forfeited and I just keep it. If you win, brew this coffee as soon as possible. The freshness standard for coffee NOT in Flavorlock packaging is only 7 days. Again, I am not at fault or at risk if you choose to brew coffee you’ve kept hanging around your kitchen. You cannot preserve a coffee by putting it in the freezer. 

Going back to my experience this morning, at the Roastery at 7:15 AM. I was in awe. I really was. I have heard stories of old of people lining up to get Christmas Blend upon its release, with such excitement over a whole bean. While I don’t personally remember that early era of Starbucks, as I saw the congregation of people swarming in on partner “LB,” I thought ‘Something right is happening here.’ It’s hard to explain but I thought back to the stories of old of people lining up for Christmas Blend or Anniversary Blend, and I thought it pretty cool that the Roastery can evoke some of that passion for a new coffee.

By the way, this evening on Facebook, I saw a comment from a Roastery partner who mentioned that today the Roastery sold out again of this whole bean. There’s a chance they won’t offer it again (or at least very, very, limited supplies) as a whole bean coffee because they have to conserve their supply for the beverages that use this coffee.

Again, if you need any background on this coffee, read this.

I know that a few readers collect the Reserve taster cards. You can use this website to see how your collection compares to the U.S. releases of Reserve taster cards.

There is one other Starbucks coffee that has a history related to whiskey: Do you know the true Caffè Verona story?

Congratulations Dave Peterson!