That may be a big deal to tea-drinkers (I'm not one, so I don't know). In a press release issued Tuesday (12/30) Starbucks touts its Tea Lattes, available in three new varieties:
* Black Tea Latte, described as a bold, invigorating combination of black tea and freshly steamed milk;
* Vanilla Rooibos Latte, "a naturally caffeine-free infusion of botanicals that unites South African rooibos (ROY’-bus), Tahitian vanilla, sweet spices and freshly steamed milk";
* London Fog Latte, an intriguing blend of black tea, citrusy bergamot, French lavender, vanilla and freshly steamed milk.  || Read "Starbucks introduces new handcrafted tea beverages"

Anyone interested in working for Ladybug Organic Coffee Company has to fill out a five-page application that includes 10 essay questions. More than 2,000 people have downloaded the application from the Ladybug website (I can't find it but here are the questions), more than 150 people have completed it, but only about 25 applicants have been offered jobs, including former Starbucks barista Tyler Cox, whose essay answers included his account of how he used finger spelling to learn the signs for a deaf patron’s favorite drink -- an extra-hot, nonfat, 16-ounce chai latte with five pumps of chai concentrate. || Read "An Application for Baristas That's More Than Milk and Beans"

Nat writes: "A number of years ago Starbucks had a recipe for a spiced Christmas cake available at their stores printed on a recipe card. The recipe required an amount of brewed Christmas blend coffee and other spices and was to be made in a bundt pan if I recall correctly. I have been unable to locate this recipe and was hoping you could help." Discuss this anything else Starbucks-related (including this SBUX vs. union story and the 401K story going public days after it was posted here.

Here they are, according to a post on the latest open thread:
* London Fog Tea Latte (Hot)
* Black Tea Latte (Hot or Iced)
* Vanilla Rooibus Tea Latte (Hot)
* Apple Chai Infusion (Hot or Iced)
* Berry Chai Infusion (Hot or Iced)
* New Green Tea Latte Recipe (Melon is being discontinued. The drink will now be made with Classic Syrup. Water is also being eliminated from the recipe, as we will now be steaming the matcha directly into the milk).

One Starbucks Gossip reader writes: "On the company portal, a bulletin released 12/16 noted a change to the Company's 401k match.  For calendar year 2008, Starbucks will make a company match based on current policy; for CY2009, Starbucks will follow a discretionary match policy for the 401k. I think this would be an interesting thread for discussion." Please explain to non-Starbucks employees  who visit here what this all  means, and then discuss it ... or anything else Starbucks-related.

Jamba Juice now offers oatmeal with slow cooked organic steel cut oats at Chicago locations and will begin serving it nationwide at all its 749 locations next month. Jamba Juice's CEO says: "As part of our [promotional] campaign, we're reaching out to influencers like the food bloggers to compare Jamba Juice oatmeal to Starbucks’ product. We’re confident we’d win on taste and quality." Read "Jamba Juice to Give Starbucks Its Lumps"

Starbucks snobs are otherwise known as people who wouldn't buy their coffee anywhere else. Because of that fierce brand loyalty, analyst Pete Najarian has developed a taste for the stock. “The number of visits per month went up in November," he says. "I think by mid-2009 they could have things figured out." || Read "Coming From Behind in 2009: Starbucks"

Gothamist.com senior editor John Del Signore writes: "I have a question for the Starbucks Gossip community! Someone tells us he bought a 'Hanukkah Blend' at an Upper West Side (NYC) Starbucks and the barista said Starbucks was selling it during the holidays in certain Jewish neighborhoods in NYC. I'm skeptical, but he did send us a photo of the cup (at left). UPDATE: Starbucks says in a statement... "For our customers celebrating Hanukkah, we offer a selection of Hanukkah themed merchandise including mugs and tumblers. We do not offer Hanukkah blend coffee, nor do we carry blue to-go cups in our stores." || Read "Starbucks Hanukkah Blend, The Sasquatch of Coffees"

By the way, you might notice that I removed a thread about the loss of opening/closing task hours; apparently information was that posted was incorrect. Carry on....

Somebody posted in the open thread: "Email/Action item mandates no more than 15 minutes of partners being on the clock before or after doors are locked/unlocked." TRUE OR NO? You requested a thread on this -- and here it is! -- but please explain the significance of this to Starbucks Gossip readers who aren't employees and don't know how the 15 minutes compares to the previous time allotment.

And how about your customers? A little less grouchy before their first coffee of the morning? Discuss grinches and holiday grins or anything else Starbucks-related in the WEEKEND OPEN THREAD.

McDonald's has a billboard in sight of Starbucks headquarters declaring, "four bucks is dumb." The burger chain has other billboards that target the coffee giant. When is Starbucks going to fire back? "We're not going to get into that conversation," says the company's chief marketing officer. "We're not going to get sucked into the, 'My coffee is better than your coffee,' price point type of coffee conversation. We're going to play at a much higher level." || Read "Starbucks won't slug it out in ad wars"

A Starbucks barista writes: "Starbucks is in trouble, and its not just the economy. I think they are making the wrong decisions, they are burning out their best people while letting them know that they are expendable. This is my letter to customers as a Starbucks barista of over 3 years." [Note: I've trimmed it a bit -- Starbucks Gossip webmaster]

Starbucks has been my home now for a number of years. It has been a fantastic place to work for, one I wouldn't hesitate to enthusiastically recommend to anyone. I can't do that anymore. ... Here's the thing, we are as busy as ever. Yet the powers that be have told us we have to cut labor, be more efficient, sales are down. Less experienced baristas are having their hours cut to near or below the level of even making them worth having around. That puts more weight on the experienced baristas. But they are cutting the margins on the experienced baristas and shift supervisors as well. And the weight on the managers is intense by this point. Basically without saying it, they are telling us to work off the clock.

...The only reason I don't leave is because who can pay me what Starbucks does and give me time to go to school, with this economy? For others the question is who else can provide me with the same great insurance that Starbucks provides? This may sound like whining to those who don't have a job at all, but you have to put it in context. If we are only staying because we can't get by the same somewhere else, then how are we supposed to be enthusiastic about our service to Starbucks? These are the baristas who know your kid has his big soccer game today, know that you like an extra shot of espresso Monday morning, and can have your order finished without you have to call it out. I understand that they are hoping we take up the slack so that they won't have to lay anyone off. But the reason sales are down is not the lack of coffee selling, it's the products in the store that aren't selling. All those glorious coffee machines and French presses and chocolates and books and ornaments.

If they want to cut labor why not close an hour earlier on a store by store basis. If you have only three customers in the last hour with two baristas closing, the cost of the store being open and the two baristas working outweigh a few mochas. ... I know everyone is forced to do more with less right now, and I know a good, quick short term fix is to cut labor. But cutting labor will hurt Starbucks bottom line in the long run, it will just be harder to calculate.

This isn't a letter asking for pity from the customers. This is a letter to explain to the customers why the waits are longer, the baristas look shell-shocked, and the faces are changing at your local store. The Experience isn't the same anymore.

It's a four-minute, 52-second segment from Monday's "CBS Evening News." If you're not up to watching it, there's an excerpted transcript. || Read/watch "Talking with the King of Coffee || TV analyst: Why did Couric even do this interview?

After many times of paying $3.90 plus tax for a Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte, Giselle Matsui finally figured out that she could order the same drink off the make-your-own latte list, specifying non-fat milk and a shot of cinnamon syrup. It would save her 40 cents a drink. She's persuaded the baristas at her hometown Starbucks to charge her the make-your-own price, but everywhere else, there’s a fight at the counter. What's your ruling on this? Read "Starbucks thwarts woman's effort to pay 40 cents less per cup"

On Monday's newscast, Katie Couric asks Howard Schultz what went wrong with his company. "When I look in the mirror and think about the growth and development of the company, I think what's honest is that perhaps that growth did cover some mistakes." Couric wonders if Starbucks grew too big, too fast. Schultz replies, "Well, I think in hindsight, if we knew what was going to happen with the economy, one can conclude, yes." Discuss this or anything else Starbucks-related in the OPEN THREAD. || Read "Starbucks CEO tells Couric that growth hid errors"

The first conference call thread has over 100 comments. Please continue the discussion here. || Read "Starbucks details plan to navigate current economic conditions"

More from the conference call with analysts:

* "When, not if, this environment does get better that Starbucks is going to be a stronger company for having gone through it," said Howard Schultz.
*  Starbucks shouldn't drastically change its identity or its brand, said the CEO. "This is not the time, after 30-plus years, after building one of the most recognized brands in the world, to throw the baby out with the bath water."
* Starbucks plans to personalize its Gold Card more so that baristas worldwide can identify customers by name, where they live and their favorite drinks. || Read "Starbucks may miss 1Q profit estimate"

"There are still opportunities to be profitable here, which is great news," says Dan Lewis, Starbucks’ group marketing manager in the Northeast Atlantic region. He wouldn't say where Starbucks is looking to expand, or how many new New York City stores it's planning to open, but a retail broker says that, following a couple of quiet months, Starbucks is once again busy touring potential locations. || Read "Starbucks to add city locations; tall order includes Manhattan spots"