[keiferski]

Starbucks' goal, like all chains, is not quality per se, but consistency. The coffee at one Starbucks should taste the same as at any other, whether it's in Tokyo or Times Square.

To achieve that consistency, they tend to over-roast their beans -- to the everlasting chagrin of coffee lovers everywhere.

[alphagrep12345]

How does over-roasting help with consistency?

On a similar note, dunkin serves light roasts. I'd presume they also want consistency?

[keiferski]

It’s my understanding that Starbucks universally over-roasts their coffee to keep it consistent. Normally the roast time would depend on each individual batch.

Presumably they over-roast it because the most popular drinks have a lot of sugars and creams (Frappuccinos, etc.) so the coffee needs to be stronger. So, it’s not the over-roasting that makes it consistent, but the fact that every branch roasts it the same way.

Dunkin on the other hand seems to make a serious portion of their income from those boxes and their light roast black coffee, so they maintain consistency with a shorter roast time.

Of course most coffee places have various beans these days and this doesn’t always apply.