Starbucks pulls alcohol from US stores

Starbucks is ending its experimental Starbucks Evenings programme – which had offered a menu of beer and wine – at over 400 US outlets, ahead of the expansion of its high end Reserve Roastery store concept, which will serve booze.

The “Starbucks Evenings” programme was first tested in 2010 and rolled out in the US in 2014 as part of a plan to double its market value to $100 billion.

The ‘after 4pm’ menu included food such as truffle macaroni and cheese and chicken skewers alongside a list of nine wines including a Prosecco, Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Brachetto, Pinot Noir, Malbec, Chianti, and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Two years into the experiment, Starbucks has confirmed that 439 Starbucks-owned locations will cease serving alcohol from today, but that some licensed Starbucks stores in the US and some international outlets may continue offering the programme.

The concept was unveiled in the UK in February 2015, starting with Starbucks at London Stanstead Airport, which for now is expected to continue.

Going forward, a range of beer, wine and now spirits will instead be sold at Starbucks’s Reserve Roastery stores – the company’s new high-end concept offering signature coffee beans.

The first Roastery opened in the chain’s hometown of Seattle in 2014, with a second scheduled to open in New York City next year in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan.

By the end of 2019, Starbucks hopes to have opened at least 20 Roastery locations, as well as 1,000 smaller Reserve stores, which would serve only small-lot premium coffee.