Starbucks Lake Tahoe mug: Discovery Series
The Lake Tahoe mug from Starbucks' Discovery Series sets the name in pale blue over a dark green circle, with a tall black bear, crossed skis, casino chips, a slot sign, a tent and an A-frame cabin.
- Series
- Discovery Series
- Place
- Lake Tahoe, USA
- Type
- Mug
- Released
- Not confirmed
- Capacity
- 14 fl ozstandard mug size
- SKU
- Not confirmed
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Mark Twain at Tahoe: the fairest picture on earth, and the fire he set
In September 1861, a young Mark Twain walked from Carson City to Lake Tahoe with his friend Johnny Kinney to stake a timber claim and, as he put it, become wealthy [1]. The lake was still called Lake Bigler [2]. He wrote that it was “the fairest picture the whole earth affords,” and that barely a dozen people were around it [1]. Then he lit a cooking fire on the shore, went back to the boat for the frying pan, and the fire got away from him. They sat in the boat and watched it burn for four hours [1]. In Roughing It he says he stayed two or three weeks; a letter to his mother written at the time says four days [2]. The Mark Twain Project confirms that the fire was real and that Twain admitted causing it [2]. Exactly where it burned is still argued [3]. The lake, spelled LAKE TAHOE in pale blue on the mug (1), survived him.
The mug does not label its drawings, so connecting this one to the story is our reading.
What's on the mug
- 1Lettering
LAKE TAHOE in pale blue capitals on two lines over a dark green circle.
- 2Black bear
A tall dark bear with blue patterns stands on its hind legs at the right of the lettering.
- 3Skis and poles
A pair of skis and two poles lean across the top of the circle.
- 4Casino chips
A stack of poker chips and a loose chip sit at the foot of the bear.
- 5Slot sign
A sign with spinning-reel numbers and a ring of lights stands behind the bear.
- 6Tent
A small dome tent sits among pines at the lower left.
- 7A-frame cabin
An A-frame cabin stands at the far left, with a snowy moon above it.
- 8Lake serpent
A serpent-like creature rises from the blue lake at the lower left.
The photo shows one side of the mug. The back and the area behind the handle are out of view.
Collector notes
- The lettering is on two lines, LAKE over TAHOE, in pale blue on the dark green circle.
- The bear stands on its hind legs beside the handle with a slot sign at its shoulder, so those two are easy to miss in a photo from the left.
Before you buy
LAKE and TAHOE sit on two lines in pale blue. The bear stands beside the handle with the slot sign at its shoulder, so a photo from the left misses both. Been There, Icon and You Are Here Tahoe mugs exist and look different.
