Entertainment – Unicorn Frappuwho? Starbucks has a new Frappuccino and it might make you forget all about that pink-and-blue drink from last month.
The Midnight Mint Mocha Frappuccino is Starbucks’ latest addition to its line-up of indulgent blended beverages. The drink is made with extra-dark cocoa blended with coffee, milk and ice with mint sugar crystals. It features a layer of whipped cream in the middle and is topped with more whipped cream and a dusting of dark cocoa powder.
The dark beverage taps into the trend of black-colored foods that have appeared on Twitter and Instagram. Items like black macarons, charcoal ice cream, black cupcakes and black pasta.
“People are gravitating toward vibrant colors,” Ryan Coombes, beverage development manager for Starbucks, said in a statement. “Jet black is filling the void in unexpected places.”
The Unicorn Frappuccino drove significant traffic to chains during its limited run as well as brand awareness and affinity, Howard Schultz, the company’s former CEO, said last week.
He and CEO Kevin Johnson hinted that the “Instagramable” drink wasn’t the only one that Starbucks customers would be getting this year.
“We will bring at least one new entirely new drink into Happy Hour this year that is going to be as good as Unicorn or better,” Johnson said.
While some people have praised the new drink for tasting just like a Thin Mint, others have had a very different reaction.
“I had one sip and I feel like I swallowed an entire bottle of Listerine,” one Twitter user posted on the social media site.
Hopefully, this Frappuccino won’t stress out the company’s baristas quite like its predecessor did. They complained the Unicorn was a time-consuming and complicated drink to make.
The Midnight Mint Mocha is now available at Starbucks as part of the company’s limited-time Frappuccino Happy Hour, which offers half-priced fraps to customers from 3 pm to 5 pm. Rewards members will have until 6 pm to scoop up their discounted Frappuccino.
by SARAH WHITTEN, CNBC
