Starbucks announced their new line of spicy refreshers on April 16. The line included a Spicy Dragon Fruit, Spicy Pineapple, and Spicy Strawberry. The ingredients remained the same as the previous refreshers but a kick was added with a spicy chili powder blend. As news spread of the new drinks, the public’s attention was gained. With many hints before the drop, advertisements, and reviews, I grew interested in the new spring drink.

Later in April, I had the chance to try two of the new flavors, the Spicy Strawberry and Pineapple. Upon first sip, I was hit with the same flavor the refreshers include. As I grew curious of the flavor, a spicy, bitter aftertaste remained. I had never tried any sort of chili powder before, so the effects of the blend were very surprising. I enjoyed the strawberry drink more because I like strawberry flavoring more than pineapple flavoring, but that did not seem to make a big difference in my opinion on the two. Due to my expectations and fear, I bought the smallest size, a tall, in hopes of not wasting the drinks. I ended up finishing them both and was left still wanting more. Although I didn’t expect to enjoy
something that was created to be sweet then mixed with a spice, I found myself sipping on them throughout the next hour.

I enjoyed the drinks, their flavor, and the fun idea Starbucks created, but I grew to dislike the amount of chili powder blend. As I watched the barista make my drinks, I found they poured a scoop full of the blend into the cup and piled the rest of the ingredients on top. There was no mixing of the powder before I received my drinks. This is a fixable problem, as I can mix my drink with a straw or even a spoon, yet I found it to be obnoxious when I would run across a chunk of powder. I especially feel as though it should be pre-mixed because of those who order online and don’t expect the powder to be all sitting at the bottom.

There were few faults with the drinks, making my opinion on the fun, innovative idea very positive. I loved the marketing route Starbucks took, with many posts, reviews, fun headlines on their app and posters around their locations. I was easily persuaded to try the new line of drinks due to this. As they are good drinks, I do not see them as being a big seller for a long time, making it understandable why Starbucks chose to make them available for a limited time. It was a fun, one time trial that I would most likely not try again. The advertising was more entertaining than the drinks themselves. I would love to see Starbucks create more new, fun drinks, like their upcoming boba drinks.

3/5 Stars.