Instant Coffee from Starbucks?

If you want your coffee cheaper and quicker than your local Starbucks barista can pour it, keep your eyes peeled for a new offering from the coffee chain. Starbucks is planning to launch an instant version of its coffee in the not-too-distant future. The instant coffee – which Starbucks reps say replicates the taste of its fresh-brewed drip – has been in development for 20 years and is being produced by a company called Via. Reportedly, the instant coffee will sell at its cafes for $2.95 for a pack of three, and $9.95 for a pack of 12.

This might not be the best time for Starbucks to release another supermarket type of coffee, since their preground coffees did not fare well in a recent Consumer Reports taste test. That said, instant coffees (like Nescafe) are very strong internationally, so it’s entirely possible that even if the product isn’t a big success in the US, it could still be a success for the company in general.

There’s no release date scheduled for the instant coffee, but CEO Howard Schultz has said that the product will get a significant marketing push when the time comes.