

It was the sort of mistake that made nerds and hordes splutter.

There it was, what looked like a Starbucks coffee cup in the middle of a Game of Thrones scene featuring, oh, a few mundane British actors enjoying a very dull conversation before one stabs another in the eyeball.

With a wooden spoon.

Or at least that's how I imagine it ended.

In response to those who saw a craft services coffee cup in Sunday night's episode of GAME OF THRONES, HBO states: The latte that appeared in the episode was a mistake. Daenerys has ordered a herbal tea.

You might note that HBO didn't mention Starbucks at all.

Because it really, really wasn't a Starbucks cup. 

Yet those whose first home is Twitter had already disseminated the notion that it was.

Starbucks could have instantly leaped into the tweeted fray, smothered the conversation and peddled its wares.

This would have been the equivalent of stabbing the moment in the eyeball with a wooden spoon.

Instead, the coffee chain waited till Monday morning and offered a fine moment of relaxed pithiness

TBH we're surprised she didn't order a Dragon Drink.

If you're fortunate enough to get this sort of publicity, it's often best to let it take its own course for at least a little while.

Especially as some estimate this was worth $2.3 billion of free publicity. (It wasn't. Millions at best. But it sounds good, doesn't it?)

This was clearly a source of joy for so many. Or, at least, so many who adore gore and like to talk about it on Twitter. 

So Starbucks sat back and, for the most part, just watched.

Yes, the challenged chain ultimately decided to make a small product sell out of the whole thing.

When a Twitterer asked Starbucks what a Dragon Drink was, she was told: 

It's the Mango Dragonfruit Refreshers beverage with Coconutmilk!

Of course it is.

And I'm sure it's at least slightly more edifying that having your head chopped off in front of a few hundred coarse diners. (Yes, I try and avoid this tragically overblown show, but I've seen the odd obscene scene.)

Please take a look at this Dragonfruit Refresher.

Doesn't it like a curdled blood-and-milk concoction to you?

Still, I'm charmed that Starbucks doesn't appear to have leaped on this Publicity Dragon and attempted to (coconut)milk it for all it's worth within minutes.

Its PR people have stayed silent. And, I suspect, smiled.

They might just be muttering to themselves: "How heartening to know that, to so many Americans, Starbucks is shorthand for coffee." 

Sometimes, fate really does shine its kindly light on you for the silliest of reasons.

Bathe in it.

Published on: May 7, 2019