I mean, if you want the "real" answer, shots don't die in general💀

My manager in 2014 literally told me you’re trained that shots “die” to make you make drinks faster. Cause otherwise how would you explain a plain espresso we make for a customer? 🤷🏽‍♀️

(Non Starbucks answer here) but at my coffee shop I was taught as long as it’s mixed with anything, milk or sugar. Just have to get it in something so it doesn’t “age” as the manager called it.

so what … americanos are also “dead” shots?…
That’s asinine.

Espresso changes with time and exposure to air … they do not die.
SB espresso is trash low quality mass produced garbage so they are barely drinkable fresh out of the mastrena

And yes it was a Corp policy to inflict this “dying” story on baristas to make everyone move faster …. For no raise or benefit to the baristas

the real debate is whether or not shots die at all. But if we’re going on that i think the starbucks answer is they don’t die if they’re in milk but it doesn’t specify for syrup

Espresso shots don’t die, they develop. Starbucks espresso shots “die” because they’re trash and don’t develop well.

In Europe, at least when I was in Spain for 6 months, all they drank was espresso. Your options were cafe solo or cafe con leche. And cafe solo was pretty good, never tasted bitter or "dead". Cafe con leche is like an espresso machiato. But their machines are probably fancier than ours. I have a friend who was a barista 5-10 years ago that is insulted by our espresso machines, calling them kuregs

I would bet my life that there is not one Starbucks customer who can tell the difference between an alive and “dead” shot in their caramel macchiato. It’s just a way for Starbucks to make us work faster.

shots do not die, it matures. starbucks just has awful quality espresso… 🌟the more you know🌈

I have been wondering this too.

I think it has more to do with our mastrenas and the fact that because our beans are extra roasted and the way they pull from the mastrenas, they can easily become bitter when oxidized. I also think it’s just gross to have slightly cold espresso in a drink, but maybe that’s just what they want me to think.

The flavor profile changes when the espresso oxidizes/the shot blends together. The answer depends on how much syrup you add to it and how thick the syrup is. I can’t imagine one shot will change a lot in four pumps of white mocha since the white mocha will separate it from itself and protect it but that single shot probably will continue to oxidize in a single pump of vanilla.

I tried to tell my coworkers that’s false and none of them believed me. I even explained that judges in coffee competitions wait minutes before they will touch an espresso shot. But two of them insisted it tastes worse. Personally I think it tastes worse bc it’s just not burning your tongue going down and you actually can taste all the bitterness and poor quality that SB uses.

According to my “artisan coffee” shop manager it can be whatever syrup, milk, even water.

i was trained that as long as its mixed in with something and not just sitting, its not dead!

If you are fortunate enough to try local expresso (depending on your area, I live in the city), the small shops who do microbatches of beans can be really tasty. Never had a "dead shot" when I went there despite any wait times. Quality espresso really can come out in the drink, regardless if you add milk or not, but syrups and stuff do mask a lot of the natural flavor.

Shots don’t die in general.

Shots don’t actually die! Their flavor profile develops as they sit. If you leave a shot sitting for like an hour or something though, it would end up being pretty gross.

Dead shots are literally a starbucks only thing. If you go to other coffee competitions and things like that, many times you try “aged” shots. The longer the shot sits, the more the body and crema separates. This creates a more in depth flavor, while when the shot first pulls it has a different flavor, some might say more mellow. People say Starbucks created the idea of the shot “dying” in order to boost drink times. However I say to call it was it actually is… Starbucks isn’t able to produce an actual great tasting espresso and pushes their employees for faster and faster times. So technically the shot never dies. However if you ice, put sugar/syrup, or milk (really doesn’t matter) the shot flavor that is considering “undesirable” is masked.

I'm pretty sure it's a myth. Perhaps it's true that espresso tastes better super fresh, but I'm sure the difference is minimal

Okay I googled it! Shots begin to oxidize (chemically react with oxygen in the air) once the layer of crema falls back into the shot. If mixed into something else (milk/syrup) before that happens, you will avoid more bitter flavors from developing.

Shots don’t “die” they do however oxidize unless bonded with sugar of some kind that can be found in milk or syrup. The taste will dramatically change but only if you’re just drinking espresso a latter goer or americano with cream and sugar will not know the difference no matter what claims thry make

The dead shot is a myth. Espresso flavor doesn't degrade until about 10 minutes. The reason people are saying it tastes burnt after a minute or so is because Signature is a burnt shitty roast. The temperature goes down which lets you notice the actual flavor of the espresso. If you did the same thing with a well extracted shot of good espresso, you wouldn't notice a pungent burnt flavor simply because it's not present in the coffee. It's a fault of the roast itself, not because it "died".

Total myth

I was told to look at the star that pops up for your shots, and when that goes away, your shots are no longer good

After you mix it with something (I wouldn't necessarily consider sugar unless it's raw sugar or a ton) however dead shots is uniquely starbucks and even then it's not really dead per se

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This syrups like pumpkin spice, mocha, & white mocha are thick enough that help the shots not die. Ice also helps keep the shots alive. Besides that, the only other thing that keeps them alive is the milks. Hope this helps😁