As a coffee lover and all-around curious folk, if one may decide to investigate the blender that Starbucks uses there is an easy way to discover that.
There is a high chance that Starbucks near them might be using a Vitamix blender (a pretty pricey piece of equipment). But if one wants to buy the same for their kitchens at home, then they definitely can.
As a coffee drinker, one of your biggest questions is probably, “how do they make my latte so smooth and creamy?”
Well, besides the obvious answer, a Starbucks barista (a.k.a. a professional drink maker) usually uses a blender to create all of the yummy caffeinated concoctions.
Being a such huge fan of coffee, I thought it would be interesting to find out exactly what blender Starbucks uses.
Turn back now and there will be no spoilers. I will just let out the big Starbucks secret: they use a Vitamix blender.
In addition to being great at making smoothies and shakes, Vitamix blenders could make hot soup in two minutes.
Moreover er, a lot of people also use their Vitamix blender for making baby food and and even try to blend smoothies for dogs.
Vitamix is claimed to be one of the best blenders in the world. The company that makes it, according to the Financial Times is worth over $6 billion.
Bloomberg named it “the most valuable tech company in the U.S.” and Fortune Magazine says, “Vitamix has become part of our everyday lives.
They say that it is that kitchen appliance that makes almost everything easier, better, and faster.”
What Size Blender Does Starbucks Use?
It can be hard to tell what size blender Starbucks uses, particularly when you’re standing inside a Starbucks and in a hurry to get your caffeine fix. But, fear not.
I discovered that the Vitamix machines used by Starbucks are about 12 inches tall with about 15-16 cup capacity — not that anyone measures their coffee or anything.
There could also be different type of similar Vitamix blenders available at differnet palces but they might miss out on tampers.
What Was The Old Starbucks Blender?
Until August 2007, the blender used by Starbucks was called the “Barista” blender. It was produced by Whitehaus Inc, a Chicago-based appliance manufacturer.
Starbucks purchased Whitehaus in 2007 and operated it as a subsidiary until they discontinued it in August 2010.
The company also bought them very expensive coffee and an internship program with Columbia College Chicago that they renamed “the Coffee Internship Program”.
The Barista blender was a single-serve machine that came with two tins — one for frozen drinks and one for regular cups of hot and frothed milk.
The Barista blender was replaced in August of 2008 by the “Vitamix 5200” (there’s a difference between 5200 and 5300 that I didn’t dig into because it is not very important).
It’s almost the same machine but has a few different features to help professionals create better-looking drinks.
For example, it comes with a spoon rest and there are easier-to-read markings on the glass jar.
It also has a tamper for placing ingredients in 1/4 cup increments — making it easier to fill up your cup without spilling.
Why Does Starbucks Use The Vitamix The Quiet One?
The biggest reason, I think, is because they’re able to make a drink that will be 100% perfect each time you order it. A lot of that has to do with the tamper.
Without it, a barista would have to stop the machine every so often (which is not practical) to use their free hands to place ingredients into the blade smoothly.
What’s more, a tamper seals your drink up tighter and prevents ingredients like ice or coffee grounds from escaping — which means no mess and no spills.
The tamper also makes sure you get exactly how much coffee you want in your cup when you order a coffee drink.
That’s quite important because you’re getting a lot of caffeine (and it can be dangerous if too much is consumed).
It’s not just smooth espresso that is accomplished by the tamper either. A barista has to make sure that your latte has the perfect amount of foam and tamping needed for it to be incredibly creamy.
Also, some of the ingredients used to create a drink need to mix very evenly for flavors to be evenly distributed throughout your beverage.
Essentially, the tamper is an important part of creating a drink at Starbucks.
Besides using it to make lattes and smoothies (and maybe some baby food), a barista can use the blender to create different types of drinks.
A barista has to know what they are doing, I am not going to get into specific drink recipes here, but I will tell you what each one is used for.
Baristas sometimes use their blender for blending coffee beans, ice cream, and fruits (for creating drinks like smoothies).
It’s also sometimes used for making soups and other hot beverages as I already talked about it earlier which gives it a multipurpose blender perk.
What Is Double Blended At Starbucks?
Well, it depends on who you ask and what they mean by “double-blended.”
For example, if someone says, “at Starbucks,” they are probably referring to the espresso beverage you all know and love.
But, if someone says the drink is “double-blended” that means it has both espresso and foam in it giving it the perfect taste.
So, if you ask for a double-blended coffee drink at Starbucks, your barista will have some extra work to do.
And, when they make it for you, they’ll be pouring the espresso first and then stirring in the foam (so it’s a little more difficult than just placing the espresso first and then topping it with foam).
The reason why this is done is so that customers get the best of both worlds — the texture that they like with that extra creaminess and frothiness.
However, your barista will still use their free hands to place the espresso into a separately wrapped cup.
By the way, a lot of people like this part of their drink. That’s because it allows them to easily pick out either the foam or the espresso if they don’t want both in their cup.
This helps make sure that you get exactly how much of each of these components you want in your drink. Starbucks calls this drink a “double shot” but I am not sure why.
In fact, not only that I think it doesn’t make sense, but I also don’t know how they come up with that name since no two shots are being made by the same machine at one time.
But anyway, it’s just another example of how Starbucks tries to make things easier for their customers and themselves.
Conclusion
The Starbucks blender machine could create an incredibly creamy, frothed drink easily but certain points are to be considered.
But, it is also really important that without the tamper and other features, a barista would have to stop the blender all the time to place ingredients.
It has to do so by putting them into the blade or simply not making your drink at all because they wouldn’t be able to count out 1/4 cup of espresso just like that.
Thus, if you wish to buy the blender starbucks uses for its coffee, this article could help in giving you some essential insights.