Recently, I have seen a lot of talk by sbux partners on here about how espresso "expires" after 10s and is "oxidized" into worthlessness. For whatever reason, it seems that people genuinely believe this theory has a scientific basis. It... doesn't. At all. Sbux created this myth for a couple reasons. First, their machines are set to pull very fast (and weak) shots, with crema that breaks down quickly. Secondly, they were having issues with partners "pre-pulling" shots before rushes. This entire concept is completely false. Period. If this were true, espresso drinkers would have to slam their drinks like shots at the bar, and Americanos would be unpalatable and toxic. Think about it. Coffee is coffee.

Sure, espresso is best when fresh - just like a cup of drip, but this whole 10 second expiration thing is total bullshit. Think about it... does it really make sense? There are a million subtle nuances of the coffee world, but this particular one is created and exaggerated into ridiculousness.

I assume 99% of you are going to think *I'm* the one who is full of it. Look this up. Seriously - sbux is lying to you.

Statistics are here!

You can now see the number of people who have visited your journal, your individual entries, a chart of comments, readers of the RSS feed of your journal, and the last 100 logged-in users who have visited your journal directly (if you've enabled My Guests).

Things you should know:
-Stats are completely anonymous (only My Guests is tied to username); only numbers are recorded, not any other information
-The times and dates in the graph are based on server time, which is UTC/GMT
-The light grey number at the top left corner of the graph is the statistical outlier
-While the graph may go back in time to this summer, the stats-gathering server was not on constantly, so previous stats may be missing. Today, and going forward, full stats are collected and displayed.
-If you opt out of My Guests (meaning that your username will not show up on other people's reports and you will not be able to view your My Guests tab), it does not affect your use of the rest of the Stats - if you're a Paid or Permanent user, you'll still be able to see all the rest of the information on this feature

( Page-by-page walkthrough )

Tags: my guests, statistics

If you have a Paid or Permanent account, you can now send 10 of your non-Paid friends a $10 coupon. Your friend will be able to purchase a Paid Account for $9.95 (instead of $19.95) for one year by enrolling in our automatic payment plan or make a manual payment of $15 (instead of $25).

• All Paid and Permanent accounts can send out the coupons by clicking here (it's also under Friends -> Holiday promotion in the site header)
• You can also send to people not on your Friends list by manually entering the username in the field provided
• If your friend declines the invitation, it will be returned to your available invitation pool and you'll be able to send to someone else
• You can send the invitations until January 15th

Do any of you remember this? Does anyone have the link for the long list of these things? I can't remember, but it was amazing!

Starbucks workers who know what fairy food (or sponge candy) is (see: http://www.spongecandy.com)...

Well, okay, if you LIKE fairy food, you should probably take an equal amount of chocolate curls and caramel brule topping and eat them. Because it pretty much tastes like fairy food (which I cannot find in my new location) and it makes me happy and feel like I'm home. :D

I started looking up photos of matcha powder in order to reply to another thread in this community, and came across many horrors of matcha pastries and other debacles. I know there are many people out there that enjoy matcha, but I'm definitely not one of them. I've inhaled matcha too many times. I've covered myself in matcha far too many times. I've covered the floor, cabinets, wall, and counters in matcha waaay too many times. Thus, all of these following pictures make me want to ralph.

( MOAR HERE )

Boredom tonight led me & another barista to attempt to make the most disgusting tasting drink ever. & I believe we succeeded.

( Drink #1 )

As a former partner of a very hectic DT store, I have many fond memories of my barista days and of my awesome co-workers (the exception being the unhinged rage-a-holic SM, but that's a whole other story). I made some comix awhile back based on my experiences and below the cut is one I hope everyone likes. Enjoy!

( clickage for picage )

you've been working for starbucks (or coffee in general) when talking to a voworker about your love life you make a milk analogy...

To the couple who ordered two venti ristretto five shot 175 degree extra whip with caramel drizzle and extra topping caramel brule lattes, but wanted us to let the shots sit for a minute before pouring them into your drinks:

YOU ARE A MORON. You did not sound superior when you asked me if I knew what a ristretto shot was because I was confused as to why you wanted them, but wanted me to let them expire, since that sort of defeats the purpose. You just sounded stupid. And like a total bitch. And you probably got decaf so maybe next time you're going to fork over $15 for two ridiculous beverages, trust that we probably know a hell of a lot more than you do, and let us do our damn jobs without being a condescending jackass. I get that you want your drink to be "special," or some shit, but really, you're just STUPID.

UGH.