On a typical Saturday afternoon, like many others, I am out running errands. This past Saturday I made a routine stop at one of the local Wal-Marts in my area. I had quite a few items I needed to purchase here as well as a get together with the girls at my house (I love planning parties) to plan for that would require stocking up on some favorite treats and coffee to sip on while we spent some quality girl time together. So off I went to Walmart to shop my favorite brand, Starbucks!
Upon entering the store, I was quickly side-tracked by the bakery area. The bakery had a plethora of options to choose from. Talk about a kid in a candy store! How was I EVER going to decide what to choose? Everything looked so scrumptious.
Then, that’s when I saw IT! The Starbucks Delicious Pairings display. All of the Starbucks Coffees were on display along with suggestions of bakery items that paired well with each type of roast. I like the lighter, more mild coffees, so I decided on the Blonde Veranda Blend. The Blonde Roasts pair best with citrus, milk chocolate, and nut flavors.
I continued to venture around the bakery area and ran into this nice surprise. They had a demo going on where you were able to taste one of these delicious pairings. On this day they were sampling the Blonde Veranda Blend with some some chocolate brownies. They even had coupons for $1 off of the coffee. Even better!
The barista could hardly keep up with demand! As soon as he would put a cup down, it would be gone! He was also very helpful in informing us about the blonde roast and how it is a delicate nuance of soft cocoa and lightly toasted nuts. Very mellow and flavorful, this coffee brews a delightfully gracious cup that’s perfect for welcoming friends and goes perfect with some chocolate brownies.
The Delicious Pairings Demo
Coupon for $1 off of Starbucks Coffee
Above is my sample of the coffee and brownie that I tried in the store at the demo. First I tasted the coffee, it was very smooth and flavorful. Then I gobbled up my brownie and followed it with the rest of the coffee. The brownie indeed did bring out the milk chocolate flavors in the coffee and I could taste a hint of nuts. After finishing my coffee, I went back to the main part of the bakery to pick up my coffee and tasty treats to go with it.
I ended up going with the Banana Bread, Chocolate Muffins, and the Turtle Iced Brownies. I thought these would be great choices as they were chocolate and nutty, which were both things that paired well with the Starbucks Veranda Blonde Blend. I grabbed a few more items then was on my way.
Tasting the Goods
Here is everything I ended up getting for my get together for the girls re-”treat.”
After having a tiny sample of the coffee in the store, I was craving an actual cup of it, so I decided to try it out and make some by myself at home. I also decided to try something a little different and make it using the old fashioned coffee percolator that I still have. When I have the time, I love using one of those over a regular, more modern coffee maker. It just tastes that much fresher to me for some reason.
My oh my. I could not have been happier with the way the coffee turned out. It was very sweet-flavored, smooth, not very bitter but there was a note of woodiness to it. There was no burnt flavor like in Seattle-type roasts, that you find in the darker roasts (which is why I am a fan of lighter colored roasts, I do not like that burnt flavor what-so-ever!) It is definitely a blonde. For those who like a a more mellow, lighter blend, then the Starbucks Blonde Veranda Blend is for you.
After sipping the coffee, I took a bite of the chocolate muffin! It exceeded my expectations hands down! It was heaven. Very moist and just a mouthful of delicious chocolatey goodness. Often times muffins are too dry for my liking and lack flavor. Not these muffins though! The Bakery at Walmart makes some wonderful muffins. Taking another sip of coffee, I could taste the chocolate flavors in the coffee more. The Veranda coffee and the Chocolate muffin definitely were very complementary to one another and helped the delicious flavors of each to shine through to the fullest.
I am normally a Starbucks shopper and frequent their retail stores and sometimes brew it at home. I might be brewing at home a lot more often though!
The re “TREAT”
Now it is time for the FUN part! The re “TREAT!” I love love love setting up and planning every last detail of a get together, party, meet-up, or vacation. So I had a lot of fun thinking of ideas for our special girls night. Here’s a peak at our special re “TREAT” filled with Starbucks Coffee, the Walmart Bakery treats, laughter, pampering, and just fun times hanging out.
Here is the table set up, of our yummy goodies. I asked everyone to bring their favorite coffee mugs, so make sure to take a look at all the fun mugs everyone brought with them! Everyone had a great time and complimented on how delicious the coffee was, that it tasted just as good as if we had bought it from a Starbucks store. The chocolate muffins were also a hit of the night as they paired the best with the Starbucks Blonde Veranda Coffee and those muffins are just so amazingly moist! The Turtle brownies were a close second as they were very moist as well with a soft gooey chocolate frosting with nuts on the top. The Banana Bread was tasty too. The bread was moist, with banana and nutty flavors. It also paired well with the coffee.
Mary, Nancy, and Jamie all enjoying their treats! We also enjoyed some pampering by giving ourselves some mani and pedis as well as rocking out on Guitar Hero! I had not played that in ages, and we always talk about playing. This was the perfect opportunity to bring it out and start playing again. My cat, Moe just had to make an appearance as well as he loves his Starbucks! He will CRY and WHINE at me for a taste of my Starbucks if I come home with anything from Starbucks! He will lick the cup CLEAN.
We all had a blast at our little re “TREAT” and I can see this becoming a regular thing for us to get together more and enjoy a cup of coffee (or two or three) and enjoy some tasty treats together. Especially when Starbucks and the Walmart Bakery make it so easy with their Delicious Pairings ideas! It’s the perfect way to catch up and unwind from all the craziness of the week.
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“I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™. #cbias #SocialFabric All thoughts and opinions are my own.”