Before <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/starbucks-peppermint-mocha-a-love-story/">Peppermint Mocha</a>, before <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/redcupdesigns/">red holiday cups&nbsp;</a>– there was Christmas Blend. This beloved holiday coffee was Introduced in 1984, back when Starbucks had only five locations in Seattle and they didn't sell drinks and food, just whole bean coffee, tea and spices. The new coffee blend showcased Starbucks artistry in roasting and blending with an expert combination of lively Latin American beans and mellow Indonesian coffees. The finishing touch was the addition of rare, spicy Sumatra beans that were painstakingly aged for three to five years for a full-bodied, spicy and rich cup of coffee.

core/paragraph

Customers quickly snapped up the hand-scooped bags of Christmas Blend, and the air in stores was soon filled with the roasty-sweet aroma of Christmas Blend. The roasting plant ramped up production, as more and more shipments arrived each morning to meet the growing demand, their white metal bins still warm from the fresh-roasted beans inside.

Ever since that very first holiday, Christmas Blend has become a cherished part of the holidays, whether it’s shared around a table or given as a <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2021/holiday-beverages-and-red-cups-arrive-at-starbucks-nov-4/">perfectly wrapped gift</a>. Its legacy continues with this year’s vintage, created by Starbucks team of expert coffee developers to honor its rich heritage while bringing in new coffees from Latin America, Africa and Indonesia and considering brewing methods such as iced and cold brew.

All of Starbucks coffees are made with 100% arabica coffee, verified as ethically sourced by <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2020/cafe-practices-starbucks-approach-to-ethically-sourcing-coffee/" target="_blank">Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices.</a> Here are the holiday coffees you can enjoy this year from Starbucks – with that warmth, that spice, and that richness you have come to love:

core/heading

core/media-text

Starbucks Reserve Christmas 2023

Starbucks VIA Instant Christmas Blend

* Keurig, K-Cup, and the K logo are trademarks of Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., used with permission.

Here’s the scoop on Starbucks holiday coffees and Christmas Blend, a beloved part of the season since 1984.

An insider’s guide to Christmas Blend and Starbucks holiday coffees

Stories to inspire and nurture the human spirit

Starbucks Stories

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2019/01/Photo_TBD-320x411_1-1.jpg

Starbucks Corporation

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2022/10/Starbucks-Christmas-and-Holiday-Blend-Coffee.jpg

https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2022/an-insiders-guide-to-christmas-blend-and-starbucks-holiday-coffees/

twitter:card

twitter:description

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2022/10/Starbucks-Christmas-and-Holiday-Blend-Coffee-1024x498.jpg

twitter:image

twitter:title

When Starbucks opened its doors in 1971, fresh-roasted coffee and loose-leaf tea was scooped by hand into wax paper bags, with the black ink letters of a rubber stamp declaring its contents – like Sumatra, House Blend and Italian Roast.

core/image

But by the time Starbucks transformed from a whole-bean coffee retailer to an Italian-style coffeehouse in 1987, the packaging became a vessel for storytelling. First came coffee stamps, illustrated stickers that were themselves little pieces of art. Designs could be playful, romantic or bold, much like the coffee itself. Then in 1995 came Blue Note Blend, the first coffee to be sold in packaging printed with colorful graphics. 

These new “rollstock” packages offered an even larger canvas for sharing each coffee’s unique story through images and words. The packaging often incorporated stamp designs that echoed the old-school stickers until 2011 with the <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2011/starbucks-celebrates-40-years-of-great-coffee-with-new-look-new-global-prod/">update to the Starbucks logo and brand identity</a> and <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2012/starbucks-blonde-roast-coffee-the-lighter-roast-perfected-available-in-reta/">launch of Starbucks® Blonde Roasted coffees</a>.

Designing a new core coffee bag can be a daunting task. Unlike seasonal coffees such as&nbsp;<a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2021/starbucks-christmas-blend-the-story-behind-the-beloved-holiday-brew/">Starbucks® Christmas Blend</a> (or even <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2017/20-years-of-starbucks-holiday-cups/">holiday cups</a>!) core coffee packaging does not change every year. In fact, the design is intended to last at least 10 years. So, how does the bag tell the story of the beans inside?

Sergio Alvarez, coffee/tea development lead on Starbucks Coffee team, partnered with the Starbucks Creative Studio to share the stories behind the beans – starting with tasting notes and descriptive words to highlight the flavors of each unique coffee blend.

“We have a very unique and thoughtful way that we develop coffee blends at Starbucks and we wanted to make sure that came through in how we describe them,” Alvarez said. “Depending on the blend, depending on the roast and depending on the region, there are different flavors that we associate with each of these special coffees.”

Although the coffee flavor profiles are the same delicious coffees customers know and love, the new packaging uses more descriptive and culinary terms to describe the flavor notes – like Veranda Blend®, which was updated from “mellow and soft” to “toasted malt and milk chocolate” and Italian Roast, which went from “roasty and sweet” to “dark cocoa and toasted marshmallow.”

Alvarez and the Coffee team also shared the history of many of Starbucks most beloved blends to inspire the designers. Organic Yukon Blend®, for example, was created in 1971 after a customer requested a coffee that would help keep his fishermen going during the fishing season in the Bering Sea. In the new packaging, Yukon Blend evokes that same independent spirit of Alaska with a mountainous scene set in the Yukon Valley.

“Our coffee reminds us of people, or moments, or experiences, and we were able to explore that in the way we approach our coffee packaging,” Alvarez said.

Translating those stories into art was a fun challenge for the Creative Studio’s designers and illustrators, as they sought to weave together past, present and future while tapping into Starbucks new creative brand expression.

“Our legacy has used hand-done illustration to bring warmth and brand connection. We wanted to continue to tie a thread to our new packaging,” said Derek Shimizu, associate creative director for the Creative Studio. “We also wanted to make sure we were staying modern while looking forward into our brand.”

The strategic selection of colors is one of the most important elements of the design. With every creative brand expression since the packaging refresh of 2011, and again with the most current update from 2013, designers have used palettes of gold, copper and purple to signify roast intensity. The new designs continue using those visual cues to identify Blonde (gold), Medium (copper) and Dark (purple) roasts.

Now, what to draw? Illustrators would often start with iconography and motifs that recall past designs. An Italian scooter found its way again on to the front of Italian Roast, as did the roses that adorn Caffè Verona®. And it wouldn’t be Komodo Dragon Blend® without its eponymous lizard. They also worked to incorporate coffee cherries and botanicals into the designs to highlight the origins of coffee.

Designers also consider what they call the “architecture” of each bag to make it easy to shop for their coffees, whether they are in Starbucks stores or the grocery aisle. They created a badge system that is consistent across the roast spectrum with design details that clearly identify roast and tasting notes. They highlighted Starbucks commitment to responsibly grown coffee by bringing the ethical sourcing stamp to the front, underscoring the company’s commitment to positively impacting the lives and livelihoods of coffee farmers and their communities. There's also a traceability code on the back of the bags sold in Starbucks stores that can connect customers in the U.S. and Canada to where the coffee is grown using the <a href="https://traceability.starbucks.com/#/">Starbucks Digital Traceability tool</a>.

“Our current packaging was artful and expressive, but every bag had a different typography, different icon placement, which made it a little bit hard to navigate or find where you were within the roast,” said Shimizu. “We wanted make all of those elements straightforward and easy for the customer to navigate with this refresh.”

<a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2022/starbucks-debuts-new-whole-bean-coffee-packaging/">Learn more about the five new coffee bag designs</a>, and read on for a deeper dive into three of them.

Veranda Blend is a smooth and mellow Starbucks® Blonde Roasted Latin American coffee, and its packaging makes you feel like you are sipping coffee in a lush garden. The bag is grounded in golden hues, with delicate hummingbirds flitting in and out of the scene, a nod to the coffee’s lighter roast. Accents of a Starbucks dark <a href="https://creative.starbucks.com/color/">“house green”</a> and periwinkle on the coffee cherries and foliage further highlight this coffee’s story. “With the illustration, I wanted to transport our customer to a lively veranda in Latin America and then to give a sense of place,” said designer and illustrator Yumi Reid. “I wanted people to feel like sipping amazing coffee the coffee farmers created there – really feel like being there in Latin America where this amazing coffee comes from.”

Named after Starbucks first store, in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, Starbucks® Pike Place® Roast is served fresh every day in Starbucks stores around the world. A smooth, well-rounded Medium Roasted blend of Latin American beans with subtly rich flavors of cocoa and praline, makes it the perfect brewed coffee.

Bridget Shilling, Pike Place Roast’s illustrator and designer, felt a special connection to the Pike Place store – her husband worked at the market for several years.

“Being assigned to work on Pike Place was a special moment for me. I just think there's something magical about going to the Pike Place store and celebrating our history as a brand,” Shilling said.

She was inspired to showcase the heritage of the store with a design inspired by old-fashioned luggage stickers on a rich, copper background, and included the original brown logo, a coffee stamp, and Pike Place’s iconic Public Market Center sign. But her favorite is her homage to Rachel the Piggy Bank, the life-size bronze sculpture that has served as the market’s mascot since 1986. (There’s also a <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2017/hidden-history-at-starbucks-pike-place-market-store/">replica covered in coffee beans</a> that stands sentinel above the front door of the 1912 Pike Starbucks store.)

Sumatra coffee has been on the Starbucks menu since 1971, and the Sumatran tiger which lives on the Indonesian island, has been its symbol ever since its first coffee stamp. To convey its bold and full-bodied flavor, designer and illustrator Abby McCartin used deep-purple colors to emphasize the dark roast of Starbucks® Sumatra with pops of greens and blues along with foil on the tiger stripes and plants.

“I created an interesting effect by adjusting the scale of the tiger in relation to the palm trees and jungle landscape, noting the similarities between shapes of the tiger and palm leaves. Layering them adds an element of fun and mystery; you definitely see the tiger stripes at first glance, but once you look closer you find more,” McCartin said.

Leslie Wolford, who first joined the company as a barista 30 years ago when coffee was still scooped into paper bags, is proud of the new whole-bean packaging and looking forward to seeing it on shelves.

“Everybody brought their ideas and their own expression and elements to the table to bring our coffees to life in a different way,” said Wolford, who is now a coffee/tea development lead for the Coffee team. “I think it's just that evolution of people, partnerships and growth in the company and how we tell our story, and thread that back to who we are as a company and how we're moving forward into the next iteration of what Starbucks is as a brand.”

New packaging designs are available on our <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2021/you-can-still-work-from-starbucks-with-virtual-backgrounds/">Virtual Backgrounds</a> page.

core/separator

Lineup of newly designed Starbucks coffee bags

Starbucks whole-bean coffee packaging has a brand-new look. We’ll go behind the scenes to learn about the inspiration behind the new bag designs.

Introducing the next generation of Starbucks coffee art

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2022/08/SBX2022-Packaging-Refresh-Fact-Sheet-FeatureHorizontal.jpg

https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2022/introducing-the-next-generation-of-starbucks-coffee-art/

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2022/08/SBX2022-Packaging-Refresh-Fact-Sheet-FeatureHorizontal-1024x498.jpg

As Starbucks celebrates its <a href="http://stories.starbucks.com/fifty">50th anniversary</a> this year, we take a look back at one of its most beloved coffees, Starbucks Christmas Blend.

Starbucks Reserve Christmas 2021

Line up of Holiday coffee bags on green background

As Starbucks celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, we take a look back at one of its most beloved coffees, Starbucks Christmas Blend.

Starbucks Christmas Blend: The story behind the beloved holiday brew

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2021/10/SBX20211103-HOL_Coffee-FeatureHorizontal.jpg

https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2021/starbucks-christmas-blend-the-story-behind-the-beloved-holiday-brew/

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2021/10/SBX20211103-HOL_Coffee-FeatureHorizontal-1024x498.jpg

Every November, colorful bags of Starbucks holiday coffees arrive in stores, beckoning to be scooped up as a gift or as the perfect <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/2019-starbucks-holiday-coffee-and-pairings-guide/">accompaniment to a festive meal</a>. The original Christmas Blend, introduced in 1984, has been a holiday tradition at Starbucks even longer than the <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/starbucks-peppermint-mocha-a-love-story/">Peppermint Mocha</a> or <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2017/20-years-of-starbucks-holiday-cups/">red holiday cups</a>, beloved for its special blend of Latin American and rare aged Sumatran beans. Over the years, the holiday coffee family has grown to include new varieties like Starbucks <a href="https://www.starbucks.com/menu/product/295/whole-bean">Holiday Blend</a> and <a href="https://www.starbucks.com/menu/product/770/whole-bean">Christmas Blend Espresso Roast</a>, with fresh twists on the classic recipe.­­­ Their packaging helps tell the story of more than three decades of coffee passion and craft – if you know where to look.

“The coffee packaging is always like these little jewels that show up in the store that cue the holidays,” said Jeff Wilkson, creative director for Starbucks, whose team led this year’s holiday design. “They are so beautiful and they have a little bit of shine to them.”

When Starbucks first introduced Christmas Blend, it was packed into plain brown paper bags to be brewed at home. But as Starbucks transformed from a whole-bean retailer to a coffeehouse, its bags became vessels for visual storytelling starting with decorative adhesive stamps and later with higher tech packaging that uses a printed laminated film, called “­­rollstock,” with a FlavorLock™ seal to help the beans to taste fresh longer. The new rollstock packages offered a larger canvas for sharing each coffee’s unique story through images and words. Christmas Blend could &nbsp;<a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2016/12-years-of-starbucks-christmas-blend/">wrapped as a treasured gift</a> – bedecked with boughs of holly, snow-filled scenes, or shimmering ornaments – along with tasting notes and brewing tips from the blend’s creators.

The artwork for the 2020 Starbucks holiday coffee bag draws from this long and vibrant tradition. Each one distinctive, with traditional reds, greens and gold with highlights of sugar plum and candy pink. They also tie into this year’s holiday cup design, with iconography pulled from the ribbon cup – like the Siren’s crown, tail and scales.

The coffees inside the bags are just as beautiful. Inspired by the original flavors of the holiday blends, Starbucks team of expert coffee developers built upon their comfort, tradition, and familiarity while also bringing new coffees from Asia, Africa and Latin America. They also considered brewing methods such as iced and cold brew and savory pairings as well as sweet.

“What I love about all the holiday coffees this year is that there are so many new origins and so many unique, extraordinary sensory experiences, across the portfolio,” said Mary Mayorquin, senior manager for Starbucks Global Coffee Strategy and Development.

Christmas Blend Espresso Roast

Starbucks® Holiday Blend

Starbucks Reserve™ Christmas 2020

Starbucks Reserve™ coffees have a keepsake card affixed to every package, each is its own work of art like the coffees themselves. Since 2015, Starbucks Reserve™ Christmas has been a vibrant, modern expression of the holiday, with savory spice notes and a bright sweetness. The blend, roasted at Starbucks Reserve™ Roastery locations, features three rare and remarkable coffees: Hacienda Alsacia™, <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2018/5-things-to-know-about-starbucks-farm-hacienda-alsacia/">from our Starbucks Costa Rica farm</a>, returns with hints of citrus alongside aged Sumatra, long treasured for its earthy, aromatic spice. New this year is the inclusion of full-bodied Sulawesi coffee from the Indonesian archipelago. These hand-selected beans, cultivated by smallholder farmers, bring a delicate butterscotch sweetness to the 2020 blend. This year’s artwork reflects the rare and magical elements of these three coffees coming together. Orange, butterscotch and warm spices all inspired the colorways, iconography and textures in this artwork with greens and reds coming in to help further celebrate the holiday season.

Available at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us?">Starbucks Reserve Roastery</a>&nbsp;locations and&nbsp;select stores that offer Clover™-brewed coffees&nbsp;in the United States and Canada.

* Keurig, K-Cup, and the K logo are trademarks of Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., used with permission.

Lineup of Holiday coffee bags on green background

The packaging of Starbucks holiday coffees share the legend of more than three decades of coffee passion and craft – if you know where to look.

The story behind Starbucks Christmas Blend coffees

How a tradition began: The story behind Starbucks Christmas Blend coffees

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2020/11/SBX20201105-HolidayCoffees-Feature.jpg

https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2020/the-story-behind-starbucks-christmas-blend-coffees/

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2020/11/SBX20201105-HolidayCoffees-Feature-1024x498.jpg

Long before the original Eggnog Latte was steamed or the first shavings of chocolate sprinkled atop a <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/starbucks-peppermint-mocha-a-love-story/">Peppermint Mocha</a> — there was Starbucks® Christmas Blend. The beloved brew, first scooped in 1984, is a holiday tradition known for its full-bodied flavor that complements nearly everything on your holiday table. What began with original Christmas Blend has expanded to new varieties like Starbucks Reserve™ Christmas and Starbucks Christmas Blend Espresso Roast with fresh takes on the classic recipe and roast.

With so many sweet and spicy holiday flavors to choose from, we turned to Andrew Vagner, Starbucks Stories designer, coffee connoisseur and resident foodie, for this year’s guide to Starbucks holiday coffee and food pairings. 

Starbucks Christmas Blend + Cranberry Bliss Bar

For 35 years, Starbucks customers have celebrated the holidays with this full-bodied spicy and rich cup of coffee with dark-roasted Latin American and mellow Indonesian coffees. The finishing touch is the addition of rare, spicy Sumatra beans, carefully aged to bring out their deep notes of cedar and sweet, black licorice. Enjoy a coffee press of Christmas Blend with a Cranberry Bliss™ Bar to experience the tartness of the cranberries and orange drizzle mingling with the lively citrus flavors in the coffee. Or better yet – add a box of six to a pound of coffee to give as a gift. 

Also available in decaf, ground and Starbucks VIA® formats.

Starbucks Christmas Blend Espresso Roast + Gingerbread Loaf

Since 2010, this seasonal coffee has been tailor-made for espresso enthusiasts, inspired by the flavors of Christmas Blend and Starbucks® Espresso Roast. Like Christmas Blend, it is made with Latin American, Indonesian and aged Sumatra beans, but with a unique recipe and roast profile that add acidity, herbal notes and a deep spiciness. The dark roast balances spicy with caramelly sweetness for an intense flavor experience that pairs perfectly with a slice of Gingerbread Loaf. While Christmas Blend Espresso Roast was crafted with espresso in mind, its cedary and herbal flavors shine with any brewing method.

Starbucks Holiday Blend + Sugar Plum Cheese Danish

In 2013, Starbucks Coffee wanted to offer customers a unique medium-roast blend for the holidays and created a recipe that also features bright Latin American and smooth Indonesian coffees was born. The result is an elegant flavor with layers of maple and herbal notes that are balanced with a medium acidity and body. Asian-Pacific coffees are usually a great match with cheese, and here a Sugar Plum Cheese Danish brings out the herbal notes from Starbucks Holiday Blend’s Indonesian coffees. Enjoy a nice, slow cup of Starbucks Holiday Blend as a pour over or Chemex to fully experience its sweet and layered flavors.

Starbucks Christmas Blend Blonde Roast + Snowman Cookie

For over four decades, Starbucks was famous for its darker roast coffee —until Starbucks® Blonde Roast came along in January 2012 and introduced customers to the mellow, flavorful coffee on the lighter end of the roast spectrum. Ten months later, customers got their first sip of Starbucks Christmas Blonde Roast, with subtle flavors of spice with warm, woodsy aromas and soft notes of brown sugar and allspice. Starbucks Christmas Blonde Roast was made for buttery cookies (like the seasonal Snowman Cookie) as well as candied nuts, shortbread and winter fruit pie. Best enjoyed brewed or as a pour over coffee.

Available as a whole-bean packaged coffee in select international markets, and as a featured brewed offering in Starbucks stores in the U.S. and Canada.

Starbucks Reserve Christmas 2019 + Holiday Turkey &amp; Stuffing Panini

Since 2015, Starbucks Reserve™ Christmas has been a vibrant, modern expression of the holiday, with savory spice notes and a bright sweetness. The blend, roasted at <a href="https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us/visit">Starbucks Reserve Roastery locations</a>, is composed of two exceptional Starbucks Reserve coffees: Hacienda Alsacia™, grown at Starbucks own coffee farm in Costa Rica – the only one of its kind – and hand-selected Aged Sumatra. A savory sandwich like the Holiday Turkey &amp; Stuffing Panini complements a coffee press of Starbucks Reserve Christmas with notes of cinnamon and cloves from the stuffing and the sweet citrus from the cranberry sauce. A new holiday classic.

Available at <a href="https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us?">Starbucks Reserve Roastery</a> locations and <a href="https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us/locations">select stores that offer Starbucks Reserve Clover™-brewed coffees</a> in the United States and Canada.

2019 Starbucks holiday coffee and pairings guide - Starbucks Stories

2019 Starbucks holiday coffee and pairings guide

Here’s your guide for exploring the world of Starbucks® Christmas Blend, a sweet and spicy holiday tradition that complements nearly everything on your holiday table.

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2019/11/SBX20191104-Holiday-Pairings-Featured-Image.jpg

https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/2019-starbucks-holiday-coffee-and-pairings-guide/

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2019/11/SBX20191104-Holiday-Pairings-Featured-Image-1024x498.jpg

Christmas Blend

Christmas Blend - Starbucks Stories

Home

https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2019/01/Starbucks_Logo_Hi-res.jpg

https://stories.starbucks.com/tag/christmas-blend/

English

Our aspiration is to be people positive—investing in humanity and the well-being of everyone we connect with, from our partners to coffee farmers to the customers in our stores and beyond.

People

Planet

Coffee is at our heart, inspiring our craft and driving innovation—in our drinks, our food, our stores and new ways we bring the Starbucks experience to you wherever you are.