Hey Y’all!
This blog post was definitely my favorite to write about so far, its also gonna be my longest so just a heads up! One thing I love about my husband to-be is he can make a small excursion into a big memory! If you have read my “save the date” blog post or followed any of our Disney fun, you know that Arc is so good at planning vacations! This 4 hour road trip to Chicago left us wanting to go back again!
Ever since the Chicago Starbucks Reserve Roastery opened in 2019, we have wanted to visit! Arc is currently living in Cincinnati so we thought it would be fun to drive and visit! I will be honest, I personally thought it would be cool…but not THIS cool!!!! Coffee is our favorite thing. When I say favorite I mean that I don’t love to ruin my coffee with syrups and sugar! Arc and I love the complex aromas, single source origins, the overall process, and this tour was amazing!
I thought that a fun way to structure this blog post is to mimic how we toured the roastery! There are 4 levels of pure beauty and history! Our tour guide was absolutely wonderful and one of the original people to help open the roastery! Also, did you notice the title? You are about to learn some great things, one of them being kind of sad! I feel that America has ruined our “Starbucks Experience” by everyone needing their coffee NOW. No one wants to wait that extra 10 min for their coffee! Well I am a strong believer of quality over quantity! The major difference between a Neighborhood store and a Reserve Roastery is reflected in eachothers coffee.
Level 1: Reserve Coffee Bar
The roastery definitely didn’t hold back when it came to the ambiance of the factory! You walk in and you are just overwhelmed by the sights, sounds and smells all serving up the coffee journey in an industrial vibe! One of my favorite opening features was the Probat Roaster being very visible when you first walk in!
What is a Probat you ask? A Probat is a German made coffee roaster. This is the only machine in the entire facility! Every bean that is roasted in this machine, never actually leaves the building! It’s kinda a lot of responsibility for roasting up to 233 lbs of single origin coffee to be bagged, ground and brewed exclusively for Chicago per day! I mean… Come on! Our tour guide said its like the Willy Wonka factory, but for coffee!
Once the beans have been roasted, they must be “degassed” for up to 7 days. Which brings me to my second favorite feature in the Roastery! These gorgeous windchimes! Just kidding, they do look like windchimes and I do love them, but these are called CAST system tubes. They funnel the beans up and down all 4 levels as part of the “degassing” process! Once they have completed their course, the beans traverse to their next destination via a vacuum tube system on the ceiling into silos!
Fun facts:
- The Seattle Roastery opened in 2014
- Chicago is the first location to open after the original in Pike’s Places market in Seattle, catapulting those beans into the international fame of today
- The Chicago Roastery has the only spiraling escalator in the Midwest!
- Before it became the Chicago Roastery, the building was the location of the original Crate & Barrel store!
Now I am going to continue on with that last fun fact! Starbucks worked with the leader of Crate & Barrel to help redesign the building! They wanted to make sure they kept the charm of the building, but also give it an artistic and environmental purpose!
I absolutely loved this wall of Coffee Cards! You can find these on bags of Reserve coffee explaining the origin and flavor profile of those beans. The black cards that spell out “Chicago” are actually signed by the Partners who helped open the Chicago roastery!
The first floor is best for a quick, on-the-go coffee, pastries, or merchandise! Now lets go up to level 2!
Level 2 Princi Bakery & Cafe
This is definitely for our food lovers! You won’t find any frozen, prepackaged food here y’all. Everything is so fresh! From the orange marmalade coming straight from Milan to locally sourced ingredients around Illinois! A personal favorite was there Pizza & Oatmeal, so fresh!
Who is behind the beautiful creations of the food at the Chicago Roastery? His name is Rocco Princi! The then CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, brought in Princi to collaborate on the Chicago Roastery and I am so glad he did! The food was absolutely amazing! Lets just say my low-carb diet went out the window this past weekend and was so worth it!
Rocco Princi started making bread in Italy in 1985—artisanally, by hand. Because for him, there is no other way.
Bon appetit! Lets go experiment with coffee now!
Level 3 Experimental Coffee Bar
This was Arcs favorite floor! Did you know you can get a Cold Brew Trio flight featuring Whiskey Barrel Aged Cold Brew??? With COVID protocols still in place, we did not get the flight because you can only get it to go. But that will definitely be a must for the next time! This level is for the coffee connoisseurs….. like ourselves! We absolutely love siphons and my favorite small batch is Ethiopia! A light blend with Citrus notes! Fun fact about the siphon coffee is it is the hottest way to get your coffee! It comes out of the brewing process at 190 degrees Fahrenheit!
This level will definitely blow your mind with all the possible ways to have your coffee. Check out the pics below!
Level 4: Arriviamo Cocktail Bar
Yes ladies and gentleman, you have read that correctly!! This would have to be my favorite level! If you love coffee and liquor, this is the level for you! I think the most impressive aspect about this was the amount of tedious care and time that went into to making all the cocktails!
Our recommendations!
(Arcs Drink of choice) STARBUCKS RESERVE
BOULEVARDIER
Starbucks Reserve® Coffee, Woodinville
Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Campari,
Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth, Vanilla
Bean Syrup, Scrappy’s Lavender Bitters
(Tays drink of choice) FINAL SAY
Matcha, El Tesoro Blanco Tequila,
Liquore Strega, Verino Mastiha Antica,
Royal Combier, Lime, Coffee-Infused
Amarena Cherry
Something I learned, the Spritz beverages (like Aperol Spritz) were designed to lighten the palette and encourage people to eat more!
Who doesn’t want a piece of pizza after drinking some Whiskey Barrel Aged coffee! I was a little skeptical about my drinks…like tequila and matcha can’t go well together right? But boy was I wrong! The taste was so refreshing and smooth!
You can definitely say we visited the Disney World of coffee! All in all, yes the Roastery was visually stunning! But what actually sold us…was the quality and inventive use of the coffee! The taste was delicious and you can clearly notice the difference! Even Gatsby loved the whipped cream here!
If you are ever in the Chicago area and are a fellow coffee lover, this is a must! I promise you you wont regret it! I hope you enjoyed this blog post as much as I did!!! Go visit the largest Starbucks in the world!!!!
