Comment #51563, swag!
Thanks for the chuckle! Boy/Girl, you are so right on!

Comment #51563, Aaitje!
Thanks for pointing out the real story!

Me ... I brew my own, save a lot of gas and money, and never get a bad cup!

I think both are totally disgusting, especially Starbucks.  The Dunkin’ Donuts closed here (!?!?!?!) so now I settle with a nice, locally-owned coffee house that doesn’t burn their coffee and cleans their capuccino machine daily.  And their large capuccino is only $3.50.

YEAH BUT, 

Does Starbucks serve its coffee at a temperature so hot that it will sluff your skin off (if you have the misfortune of spilling on yourself), for the express purpose of discouraging free refills in order to save money?

BTW, McDonald’s coffee tastes like dirt.  Dunkin Doughnuts coffee, NOW THAT’S GOOD COFFEE.

I don’t think Starbucks is really about the taste, anyway (except for the bizzare concoctions they’ve created that you won’t find at McDonald’s).  It’s all about the “scene” they’ve crafted that people want to be part of.

One stop at Starbuck’s cured my curosity.  I did not like the burned flavor of their coffee.  At McConald’s I order coffee with a little ice and WOW that is good coffee.  I wish they wouldn’t keep it so hot because when I stop for coffee “I want it then” and it is too hot to take a good swallow without the little ice.  Cost does not enter into the decision but it helps!

Guess it depends on whether you prefer better taste, but way too hot, or cooler, but not so tasty. Here’s a thought: How about a M&A by one or the other of the super-corps of the other. They could rename the new mega-super-corporation, “McBucks.”

RE: “Choosing a brand of coffee is a personal decision, as taste is subjective.” Not unlike ones taste in music, which any connoisseur there of, would be wise to cultivate beyond the confines of any coffee venders “branded” collections, just as one would be wise to do, vis-à-vis, ones taste in virtually anything edible, beyond the glow of the Golden Arches.

Holy crap! Courtney Love defeats Joan Rivers in a beauty contest.

I am going to need to sit down and think a moment about the immense implications here.

I agree that McDonald’s makes a better cup of coffee, that is cheaper and tastier. Starbucks also has good java but it is inconsistent in quality and often DOES taste burned. I agree with Knowitall and think that Starbucks should look at this as a form of feedback and move on, hopefully using it to improve its product. I think that Consumers Report did all right in this one and two tasters were able to report my experiences almost exactly

Well, I think any coffe made by a chain is flawed. Most are using stale or over rosted beans. I take my coffee very seriously! For the best coffee find an independent coffee house that uses fresh properly rosted beans and trust me everything else will taste like dirt. When in a jam however Starbucks will suffice.

Support your local independent coffee house.

Reply Comment #51563 by Aaitje

You make an excellent point, which gives me reasons to reconsider my choice. Somethings are more important to me than taste or price.

Starbucks sells a couple dozen varieties of coffee, covering a wide range from burnt, bitter beans for espresso, to toasty, mild blends for straight coffee. McDonalds offers one type of coffee.

Most of the dark roasted Starbucks coffee they brew ends up in lattes, where the milk smooths off the harsh edges. McDonalds offers coffee.

Consumer Reports is comparing a Granny Smith apple to a Bosc pear and declaring “pears taste better than apples.”

the difference is the roast of the beans-starbucks regular uses french roast which isroasted longer giving it a stronger more bitter and burned (to me) taste. their morning blend is a milder roast with a smoother taste. all coffee changes while sitting in the pot after brewing and its worse in a glass pot on a warmer then in a thermo carafe such as as a starbucks. any old coffee no matter who’s is going to taste worse then fresh-brewed. my favorite take-out coffee is tim hortins

I’ve found in the past drinking Mcdonalds (or almost any fast food places coffee) is like drinking p*ss water - maybe it’s gotten better , but I like a kick to my coffee.

Just as in politics we have a sad state of affairs when debate boils down to considering just two alternatives.

McDonald’s, Starbuck’s?
Coke, Pepsi?
Democrats, Republicans?

Everytime we choose between the lesser of two evils we are voting for an ever more bland (or bitter) society that eventually leaves us with no choice save to accept what we are given.

The only way to break this cycle is to choose what we really want.

If only 5% of us did that we might see a revolution across the board—and a chance to reclaim our country.

Why you would you have a face-off with the two turds of the coffee industry? Who cares which one is better.

Far be it from me to side with an “evil empire” like Starbuck.  However, even with my lifetime subscription to CONSUMER REPORTS, I have found any story they have run about nutrition to be potentially (if not actually) flawed;  and, in general, any story that involves a “taste test” is no better.  These guys are much better at testing vacuum cleaners and detergents!

Doesn’t McDonald’s use Seattle’s Best coffee? And wasn’t Seattle’s Best bought by Starbucks a few years back? So I’m guessing nobody at SB is losing sleep over this. Never mind the ridiculously flawed “test” done by Consumer Reports which utilized a whopping TWO taste testers….

I’ve drank both; often. I hate McDonalds coffee. I adore Starbucks coffee.

Of all the absurd things. I didn’t expect to come across that jackass appellation - smackdown - here at truthdig. Is McDonald’s a Starbuck’s ‘killer?’ in an ‘iconic’ struggle between our country’s ‘icons?’ Have I stumbled upon USA Today?

McDonalds Corp wholly supports the GOP (the ridiculously LOW wages, and hard work put upon their employees, not to mention the BAD quality food they sell to people should be enough to disqualify this pro-GOP, billion-dollar *GREEDY* corporation from having ANY credibility with ANY *sane* human-being!).

Starbucks supports Progressives, and good-paying, benefits-rich jobs to employees. Their coffee is DE-LI-CIOSO. I ONLY drink Starbucks; I ONLY buy Starbucks coffee beans for use in our home as well.

I guess I enjoy supporting a company that knows how to treat their customers to the finest products they can find, as well as treat their employees with truly UN-American-like employer-toward-employee respect.

Vindication! I have had friends tease me over buying Mc Donald’s coffee at work.
Expecting me to go to one of the major donut or coffee house outlets.
I think Mc Donald’s makes a great cup of coffee,and at a reasonable price, only proviso is that when first brewed it’s extremely hot. (handle with caution)

Consumer Reports thank you, and I’ll site your educated taste buds in the very near future.

Alas, awaken, my Starbuckians, awake and smell the coffee, for it’s not a bitter aroma. But a strong smooth cup of coffee.

And no size confusion included. A large is a large and a small, just a small (novel idea huh?)

Ronald McDonald “the clown”, makes the best coffee in town.

Hands down.

Everyone’s so defensive and insecure.  If I were CEO of Starbucks, I’d say, in response, Starbucks intends to remain America’s best and favorite coffee and we take seriously every small criticism.  We congratulate our competitors for their success. Then, I’d go have a talk with my roasters.

Dunkin’ Donuts rules them all, although I guess if you only have two testers you can’t have too much variety.