In celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Frappuccino, Starbucks introduced six new Frappuccino flavors inspired by fans. Over twenty years ago, Starbucks employee Dina Campion noticed local coffee shops offering a variety of blended beverages, and Starbucks hopped on the trend. By the summer of 1995, the Frappuccino was offered nationwide.
To help promote the six new flavors, Starbucks is hosting a #fanfavorites competition. On June 19, voting opens to name the ultimate “Fan Favorite” Frappuccino, and the winning flavor will be offered at discount during fourth of July weekend.
“Over the years we have seen many creative recipes from our customers, and the six Fan Flavor Frappuccino beverages featured in the Flav-Off contest represent a few of the most popular recipes,” according to Starbucks marketing director, Renee Jones.
Photo courtesy of frappuccino.com
Of course, we had to try the new flavors.
At first, we were excited. But after taking the first sip of the cotton candy Frappuccino we were pretty dissuaded. However, we remained hopeful for the other flavors. Read on to find out what we thought of the new flavors and how we ranked them.
Photo by Alex Waxenbaum
Cotton Candy, 6th Place
Photo courtesy of Starbucks
How it’s made: “Take our standard Vanilla Bean Crème Frappuccino®, add raspberry syrup, blend it together, finish with whipped cream and boom, you have a round trip ticket to magic land…”
What we thought:
“It’s so sweet, but it actually does taste like cotton candy a little bit.”
“Ew. It’s not what you would expect from a frappuccino.”
“It definitely tastes like cotton candy, but cotton candy should not be in a frappuccino.”
“I don’t hate it.”
“It’s like bubble gum. You’re not supposed to drink that. You’re supposed to chew that.”
Cupcake, 5th Place
Photo courtesy of Starbucks
How it’s made: “Start with the Vanilla Bean Crème Frappuccino®, add hazelnut syrup, blend together and finish with whipped cream. A sip of cake flavor in every bite.”
What we thought:
“I do taste a little bit of the cakeyness.”
“There’s a little something of cake in there.”
“No.”
“Oh my god. It tastes like hand lotion from Bath & Body Works.”
“It tastes a little cakey. Kind of.”
Caramel Cocoa Cluster, 4th Place
Photo courtesy of Starbucks
How it’s made: “Toffee nut syrup, blended with coffee then topped with a dark caramel sauce, whipped cream and a mocha drizzle. More than a classic flavor combo it’s a flavor collision of chocolate, nuts and caramel.”
What we thought:
“There are no words for how awful it is.”
“It’s burnt.”
“There’s a hint of coffee in it which is weird.”
“Way too much caramel, and not enough chocolate.”
“Really not good.”
Cinnamon Roll, 3rd Place
Photo courtesy of Starbucks
How it’s made: “Cinnamon dolce syrup blended together with coffee, white chocolate mocha sauce and vanilla bean, topped with whipped cream and a cinnamon dolce sprinkle. Sweet and spicy … that’s how we roll.”
What we thought:
“It does tastes like cinnamon roll, but burnt to a crisp.”
“It’s a shock to the system. Pretty cinnamony.”
“There’s a smokyness to it. Kind of tastes like burnt coffee.”
“I don’t hate this. I would get cinnamon roll again.”
Red Velvet Cake, 2nd Place
Photo courtesy of Starbucks
How it’s made: “A confectionery-inspired blend of chocolaty chips, mocha sauce, raspberry and vanilla syrup, topped with whipped cream. Perfectly sweet and velvety smooth.”
What we thought:
“It’s so sweet.”
“It just taste like chocolate milk. But the soy kind.”
“And this is red velvet?”
“It’s grainy and kind of chalky.”
“It’s like a tart chocolate.”
Lemon Bar, 1st Place
Photo courtesy of Starbucks
How it’s made: “A sweet and sour mix that brings lemonade and vanilla together. Finished perfectly with whipped cream and a caramel sugar sprinkle. When life gives you lemons, sip this… upside-down.”
What we thought:
“Where’s the lemon? I only taste vanilla.”
“You’re right. It only tastes like vanilla”
“There’s no lemon.”
“This is just a vanilla frappuccino.”
Overall: We’re pretty sure Starbucks messed up our lemon bar order, which is why we ranked it number one; it was simply a vanilla frappuccino. If we could, we would have awarded last place to all six. We do not recommend any of the #fanfavorites. Starbucks (and their fans) need to step up their frap game.