Pastel pink Iced Cherry Chai, purple Iced Ube Coconut Latte and a Lavender Matcha Malt are coloring Starbucks’ spring beverage menu, launching Tuesday.
The Seattle-based coffee giant also released Sunsera Blend, a blonde roast coffee with a light, smooth, balanced flavor brewed from Arabica beans sourced from Brazil and Columbia.
Cherry cream cold foam and cherry crunchies top the Iced Cherry Chai.
The Iced Cherry Chai is a spring takeoff on the popular Pumpkin Cream Chai, said a spokesperson at a media preview held at the Starbucks Reserve location in New York City’s Empire State Building. The drink combines subtly spiced cold chai with a topping of cherry cream cold foam and red and pink sugar crystal crunchies.
“When you take a sip of Iced Cherry Chai, you immediately get a creamy texture, warm spices and notes of cherry—and it all comes together in an approachable way,” said Billy Altieri, lead beverage developer for Starbucks, in a statement.
The Iced Ube Coconut Latte is a Starbucks Reserve offering.
The purple Iced Ube Coconut Latte, available at Starbucks Reserve stores, features espresso blended with coconut milk and ube over ice, topped with ube coconut cold foam and coconut flakes. It’s the first ube drink Starbucks has offered, jumping into the trending flavor that’s grown 0.5% year over year, most often paired with coconut, according to Technomic Ignite menu data.
The lavender beverages are returning to the menu after a successful run last year. The collection includes the Iced Lavender Cream Oatmilk Matcha with a lavender cream cold foam topping; the Iced Lavender Latte made with blonde espresso and oatmilk; and the Lavender Crème Frappuccino Blended Beverage with notes of lavender and vanilla topped with whipped cream.
The Lavender Matcha Malt is topped with lavender whipped cream.
Reserve locations are serving a Lavender Matcha Malt, a decadent milkshake with vanilla gelato, chocolate and lavender bitters and a crown of lavender whipped cream sprinkled with sugar and garnished with a sprig of lavender.
Starbucks last week reported that it was cutting 13 drinks from its menu in an effort to simplify execution for in-store baristas. When asked at the media preview if adding these new drinks is counterproductive, a spokesperson replied that the additions are designed to align the menu with what customers are looking for and what they are ordering. The eliminated beverages are the ones ordered the least often, he said.
The new Sunsera Blend appeals to light roast fans.
The Sunsera Blend, for example, caters to guests’ general preference for Starbucks’ lighter roasts, and expands the dark-to-light spectrum, said the spokesperson. Sunsera will be the brewed light roast of the day this spring, but others rotate in throughout the year.
On the food side, a warm Jalapeño Chicken Pocket joins the permanent menu. It features toasted chili lavash flatbread enclosing a filling of diced chicken, charred poblanos, green jalapeños, three-chili-pepper cheese and jalapeño cream cheese. At the media tasting, a company spokesperson noted that the item would make a great afternoon snack.
The Jalapeño Chicken Pocket joins the spring food menu.
Food offerings at Reserve and Roastery locations are leaning into a floral theme. For example, there’s a Rose Pistachio Twice-Baked Cornetto, a flaky pastry filled with pistachio cream. Like ube, pistachio is generating menu buzz this year. Starbucks Reserve cocktails also boast floral flavors, with the Sakura Blossom Negroni and Butterfly Tea Spritz making their spring debut.
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