Sweet Temptations, Irresistable Temptations

It was Christmas time at Starbucks and they had displays of everything from their Christmas Blend coffee to fancy (and expensive) coffee makers to cups and saucers, a few varieties of mugs, and insulated containers to keep your brew piping hot. All, of course, packaged prettily for use as gifts.

The store always smells of the aroma of fresh ground coffee and fresh brewed coffee, but it misses out on one delectable odor that I remember from my youth. When I was a kid growing up in New Bedford there was a shop on Purchase St. about a block north of Union St. (was that William St.?), right on the corner. Lorraine's was the name, I think, and they roasted the coffee right there, with the delightful smell drifting out, and wafting up and down the street. Get within half a block of the place and it made my mouth water, and my brain reeled with the anticipation of having a fresh cup of the brew.

If Starbucks could figure out a way to get that roasting odor at least out to the drive-through...hell if they could get it out to the highway running by the place...but alas, the fresh roasted odor doesn't even exist in the store.

Things are back to normal now. The Christmas specific merchandise is either sold or closed out or packed away for next year. It's back to drinking the regular brew and complaining that the new manager never orders any cinnamon stick donuts.