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Bianchi’s new coffee-powered gravel bike

Steel gravel bike gets special edition treatment to mark the opening of the first Starbucks in Italy

Steel gravel bike gets special edition treatment to mark the opening of the first Starbucks in Italy

Bianchi has partnered with US coffee giant Starbucks to produce an exclusive gravel bike to mark the opening of the first Starbucks Reserve Roastery shop in Milan.

bianchi starbucks2

The iconic Italian company has used is latest Orso, a gravel bike with a steel frame and fork and disc brakes, which launched just last year and replaced the previous Volpe Disc in the company’s range, as the basis for this limited edition bike.

The new Orso has increased tyre clearance up to 42mm and there are eyelets for fitting extra water bottles and racks for touring. The geometry sits somewhere between a road and a cyclocross bike, with a long and low stance that is intended to deliver good stability on rough surfaces.

Other details include 12mm thru-axles and flat mount brakes, an external threaded bottom bracket, a tapered head tube, and tubeless-ready wheels and tyres.

bianchi starbucks1

This special edition bike has been given a slick new paint job with custom logos and matching brown saddle and bar tape. It’s only available to buy from the Milan store of the new Starbucks. It’ll cost €2,250 specced with a Shimano Tiagra groupset with 40mm wide Kenda Flintridge tyres.

“The bike’s special graphics, prepared by Bianchi’s designers, is minimal and classy, featuring the distinguishing colors of the Starbucks Reserve ™ Roastery,” says Bianchi.

More at www.bianchi.com

David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes

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13 comments

Avatar
andyp | 5 years ago
4 likes

Apparently next week B&Q are redoing the Sistine in magnolia. There will be a burger van outside to keep the Pope happy.

Avatar
CygnusX1 | 5 years ago
3 likes

Starbucks in Italy?  Its not a country exactly devoid of excellent coffee shops (and even if it was a good coffee desert, Starbucks wouldn't do anything to end the drought)

The phrase "selling coals to Newcastle" comes to mind.

I guess the clientelle will be mainly american tourists, don't think the Milanese will be flocking to it. 

 

Avatar
vonhelmet replied to CygnusX1 | 5 years ago
0 likes

CygnusX1 wrote:

Starbucks in Italy?  Its not a country exactly devoid of excellent coffee shops (and even if it was a good coffee desert, Starbucks wouldn't do anything to end the drought)

The phrase "selling coals to Newcastle" comes to mind.

I guess the clientelle will be mainly american tourists, don't think the Milanese will be flocking to it. 

 

Starbucks opened their first store in Italy just last week, in Milan. The Guardian headline was something about selling coffee and pizza to Italians...

Avatar
Chris Hayes | 5 years ago
0 likes

Perhaps Starbucks could bring some sponsorship money into cycling... they could use the lowly-taxed revenues from a LuxCo farming licencing revenues: indeed, they could set CyclingCo up in Lux too and strip rents from the merch to be taxed there at 5%.... 

Avatar
RobD replied to Chris Hayes | 5 years ago
2 likes

Chris Hayes wrote:

Perhaps Starbucks could bring some sponsorship money into cycling... they could use the lowly-taxed revenues from a LuxCo farming licencing revenues: indeed, they could set CyclingCo up in Lux too and strip rents from the merch to be taxed there at 5%.... 

I'm surprised there isn't more coffee sponsorship in cycling, considering how closely the two are linked, it's not like Segafredo are that well known globally that someone else couldn't compete.

In fact I do wonder why there aren't more competing brands sponsoring sports generally, are they too afraid that their rival's team will do better than theirs? It seems like they deliberately keep away from each other, If they could encourage a few bigger rival brands in there might be a monetary arms race, I'm sure it wouldn't hurt the team budgets.

Avatar
Canyon48 | 5 years ago
2 likes

Is this a bad joke or something?

 

Avatar
jerome | 5 years ago
2 likes

That's hard to swallow.

Avatar
ianguignet | 5 years ago
3 likes

robbery for the money. bianchi need a word with themselves.

Avatar
antigee | 5 years ago
0 likes

nothing but a hill of beans

Avatar
Dnnnnnn | 5 years ago
4 likes

€2,250 for a Tiagra bike with Starbucks branding...?

Anyone falling for that deserves a roasting.

Avatar
iandusud | 5 years ago
1 like

I hope Starbucks adapt their coffee for Italian tastes because the stuff they sell in the UK is awful!

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to iandusud | 5 years ago
3 likes

iandusud wrote:

I hope Starbucks adapt their coffee for Italian tastes because the stuff they sell in the UK is awful!

They over-roast it to keep the flavour consistent. Hence the name "Charbucks".

Avatar
PRSboy | 5 years ago
6 likes

I'm surprised an Italian company would dare associate with US 'coffee' shop Starbucks!

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