Venti
Trademark: Venti
First Used: September 1997
First Registered: July 1998
Current Owner: STARBUCKS CORPORATION [1]
Trademark Type: traditional trademark; word mark
Primarily Associated With: coffee, tea and espresso [2]
Generic Phrase: beverage size, as in Venti® Brand beverage size
Also A Trademark For: milk, flavored milk, milk-based food beverages; milkshakes; and coffee, tea and espresso-based beverages [3]
Brief (and likely incomplete) History [4]:
Continuing our PSL® (brand coffee) and fall weather fueled posts on Starbucks’ trademarks, today our final post highlights Starbucks’ Venti® trademark (post 5/5!).
You step up to a Starbucks counter or drive up to a drive-through window, order your coffee and select a size: Tall, Grande, and Venti®. Why the unique size names instead of the common small, medium, and large?
Legend has it that Starbucks founder Howard Schultz took a trip to Italy in 1983, where he was so captivated by Italian culture that he decided to make emulate Italian coffee bars in the US with his own planned coffee shop, which he later named Il Giornale (“the newspaper”). Il Giornale locations provided three size options: Short, Tall, and Grande. The size naming convention stuck around when the three initial Il Giornale locations were renamed to Starbucks in 1987. In the 1990s, the Short size was eliminated and the Venti® beverage size was officially added to Tall and Grande sizes.
“Venti” of course is Italian for 20. Not to be too confusing, but Starbucks’ Venti® beverage size actually comes in two different sizes depending on whether your drink is hot or cold. A Venti® beverage size for a hot drink is 20 ounces, true to its Italian name. But a Venti® beverage size for a cold drink is 24 ounces. Why the extra 4 ounces of room? So that you get the same amount of beverage plus some added room for ice.
Interested in more PSL-fueled Starbucks posts? Check out our posts on PSL, DOUBLESHOT, Starbucks Cup Trade Dress, and Frappuccino.
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[1] STARBUCKS, available at https://www.starbucks.com/.
[2] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 2,175,431, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=75109690&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch.
[3] Id.
[4] The Real Reason Why Starbucks Uses Tall, Grande, and Venti, TRAVEL+LEISURE, posted January 4, 2023, and available at https://www.travelandleisure.com/food-drink/starbucks-cup-sizes; What to Know About Starbucks Cup Sizes, READER’S DIGEST, last updated September 1, 2023, and available at https://www.rd.com/article/starbucks-coffee-sizes-explained/.