Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Update: Well I won't lie, one of them DID end up working. I'd say actually 1.5/8 worked. One had cascading foam, so it IS possible with these cans. One had a decent head of foam but no bubbles. The rest were all duds, opening with a charged hiss but delivering 100% flat coffee. With less than a 19% success rate on opening these cans, I'm left baffled at what the issue is, or how it's even possible to open a can incorrectly (especially WITH CAN OPENING INSTRUCTIONS). Leaving it sitting on a flat surface, undisturbed, for at least 5 minutes seems to be a necessary prerequisite. After that the success of opening seems to largely be left to luck. A 'gentle' tilt isn't enough, a single tilt doesn't produce any different results, a quick tilt or multiple tilts means you've got to set the can down for 5 minutes and wait to try again. This is one of the finickiest and most precise, yet inaccurate products I've ever used. It's really confusing what they've tried to achieve with these cans. Every beer can I've ever used with a nitro charge widget has worked every time. I've never had trouble opening any other can or bottle... I'm finishing my Masters in Industrial/organizational psychology and I can't figure out what the hell they were thinking, but I can tell you that a food product with a 19% success rate is... ludicrous. I would certainly recommend avoiding these to anyone. Disappointing. It's the same as at the Bucks, but without the nitrogen infusion. They use the same nitrogen infusion method as nitro beers use. There is a nitrogen infused plastic component called a widget, which releases nitrogen into the can when the pressure changes on opening. This works well in Guinness, who uses a free-floating ball widget. Starbucks has fixed their widget to the bottom of the can, preventing the gentle rattle of having a plastic ball in the can but intruducing a charging problem. I got absolutely zero nitro foam/bubbles on my first can. I tiled it just once, and very carefully as the instructions explained. The second can also yielded no foam, which I more aggressively tilted twice, tapped, and cracked. If any of the 8 cans do provide foam I'll update. The taste is... fine. So not fine given the price and expectation of the brand. The first word that comes to mind is bland. A very average, subtly flavored, watery black coffee. Without the nitro 'crema' it isn't the same. Nitrogen is used over CO2 to prevent the creation of carbonic acid in the coffee, which makes it taste more acidic (as it is). This doesn't taste acidic, but Nitrogen also (should) produce superfine bubbles, which have a much softer mouthfeel than CO2 and a more 'velvety' texture. The increased action on your taste buds by the inert gas bubbles moving the coffee around should create a different perception in taste. I found that not to be the case here. Given the lack of bubbles, both cans I've tried have tasted like refrigerated black coffee. They are packaged very well. The box loudly advertises in black and white what's inside if that's an issue for privacy/theft for you. There is an abundance of padding and protection which is good to see that they've considered the customer in what a mess a leaking box of coffee would be. This product is a miss by Starbucks. Their unsweetened black cold brew is really the only 'canned' coffee product of theirs I've enjoyed,but others match their in-store beverages much more closely than this. This is certainly not worth $1 a can, and isn't even a consideration at $3-something, even if it is cheaper than at a Starbucks (it's not the same). I still like Starbucks' nitro coffee, but I'll be skipping these cans from here on out.