Commencing the season with their Halloween tradition, which first began in 2014 with the Franken Frappuccino, Starbucks has continued their festive spirit this year as they introduced their first Witch’s Brew Frappuccino, of which the reviews are very mixed. This year’s Witch’s Brew Frappuccino has elements of the Frappula Frappuccino from 2015 and 2016 and the infamously colorful Zombie Frappuccino last year.
Courtesy: Starbuckssecretmenu.com
“A pinch of toad’s breath. A dash of bat warts. A sprinkle of lizard scale.” These are the “ingredients” of the new Witch’s Brew Frappuccino, and it’s here only for a limited time starting from Oct. 25. The purple puree tastes like orange crème, the green seeds that are supposed to represent “bat warts” are dyed chia seeds, and the lizard’s scales can be seen sprinkled on top of the whipped cream.
“We wanted to create a flavor that you might enjoy at a Halloween party,” said Jennica Robinson from Starbucks beverage development team. “It gets a little bit of juicy-ness from the orange flavor.”
However, after only a day of this drink being out in the market, it has received a lot of backlash from news sources. In an article called “The scariest part of the new Witch’s Brew Starbucks Frappuccino? The way it tastes,” Washington Post writer Maura Judkis comically criticizes the drink stating, “It’s been more than an hour since I had this drink, and there is still a lingering aftertaste. I fear it will follow me for the rest of my life and will be transmitted through my lineage, and my children’s children’s children will taste this hexed liquid.”
In Elle’s review of the drink, writer R. Eric Thomas gives only one reason to why people should go and buy this drink, which is mainly just because the drink has an Instagramable aesthetic to it. He continues to explain that the barista “actually looked on me with pity when I ordered the Witch’s Brew.” In his article, he describes his overall experience in such detail so as to make readers never want to order a Halloween inspired drink from Starbucks ever again. “The impression that hits your mouth upon taking that first sip is the unmistakable taste of a sherbet-flavored La Croix that has been sitting on your kitchen counter for about a day.”
Yahoo reviews it from a nutritious standpoint and explains that even though the drink has a superfood in it, chia seeds, the frappuccino is far from being considered a health drink. One dietitian told Yahoo Lifestyle News, “I would be scared to drink it, due to the fact that it has as much sugar as one and a half cans of soda, and more calories and fat than a Dunkin’ Donuts Halloween pumpkin flavor donut.”