Every once in a while a coffee just captures me. It swoops in out of nowhere, and perfectly occupies a space in my heart. I heard about this new coffee at the Seattle roastery and was intrigued; Réunion Island Bourbon Pointu Varietal. There was little to no information about it, and it was expensive and very limited. As luck would have it, my coffee angel, Melody, sent me some. It sat on my desk, and I would just stare at it thinking, what am I going to do with you?.
That same day, I went on a walk with my friend. We walked along the trail behind my house, the trail I used to explore as a child. Along the fencing, was a huge bush of honeysuckle and jasmine. Suddenly, a huge wave of memories hit me. I carried that feeling and those scents home with me.
I came home inspired, filled with nostalgia, and I knew I wanted to do something to pay respect to the love and lore of Réunion Island.
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I remember when Burundi Ngozi was first introduced to the Starbucks Reserve line. It was in 2013, I was living in Seattle, and it was one of the first Reserve coffees I had there. I was obsessed with the black tea like aromas and cinnamon spice notes. Now, it’s been 5 years, but Burundi Ngozi has come back around a few times, and each time it steals a little piece of my heart.
The latest single origin release comes from East Timor. East Timor Tatamailau. This washed dark roast has herbal notes with a cocoa finish.
A few months ago, Starbucks Canada launched Blonde espresso, and there were rumors that it was coming to the states as well. There are a few test stores, but the vast majority of stores did not get it. As usual, I am spoiled and got a sample to try and share with my partners, but surprise! All stores received a shipment to brew as a 2017 limited edition Blonde roast, and I could not be more excited.
My regional director was kind enough to purchase me a year long Roastery 
Starbucks is testing the facebook @ work platform, and I am in the pilot for it. It is essentially, facebook, but only for Starbucks partners, and you can only access it by logging in with your global username and password. It is actually a very cool way to interact with partners all over the globe! I joined the coffee tastings group (naturally), and there were a few partners challenging each other to use fruit as a vessel. Kenya in grapefruits, Colombia Las Margaritas inside a pear, Willow blend in a lemon, it kind of turned into a coffee tasting throwdown. I decided to join the fun and serve up the real pumpkin spice latte.