Some of my friends make fun of me for liking fancy non-coffee drinks with coffee names. Mainly, this has to do with how often I can be found with a Starbucks drink in my hand. I really have not acquired the taste for coffee, yet I love Starbucks and will use almost any excuse to go there and grab a drink in the summer.
Here are a few suggestions for summer drinks for fellow non-coffee drinkers.
Shaken iced passion tea lemonade. The PTL is a classic summer favorite. I ask for mine
sweetened with light ice. It’s delicious, refreshing and less expensive than
most things on the menu. You can ask for any combination of tea and lemonade;
sometimes I change it up and go for green tea lemonade or black tea lemonade – both
are also very good. I like to think of a Starbucks shaken iced tea lemonade as
a classy Arnold Palmer.
Blended strawberry lemonade. You actually won’t find this one on the menu, but I think it’s
one of the best Starbucks drinks I’ve ever had. The blended strawberry lemonade
is made of strawberry puree, lemonade and cream base – the consistency of a
slushy. This drink is fantastic. You have to try it.
Strawberries & crème frappuccino. I have friends who get this drink all the time. The Starbucks website describes it as “strawberries and milk blended with ice and topped with
a swirl of whipped cream.” Needless to say, it’s delicious. If you’re into that
strawberry ice cream taste, this is definitely the drink for you.
Iced chai tealLatte. I love chai, so I’m
naturally drawn to this drink. It has a little kick. I’d say it’s a little more
adventurous than my other top drinks, but it’s really good. Not to mention, oh, so sophisticated.
Valencia orange refresher. I
wasn’t a big fan of the other refreshers, but this one is awesome. Second year
Becca Pryor said, “I’m not ashamed to get a Venti because it’s so yummy. It’s a
drink I get when I’m trying to convince myself I’m not addicted to coffee, even
though it does have caffeine in it.” She also claimed that the drink “fully
lives up to its classification as a ‘refresher!’”
Those
are my suggestions with no coffee taste. If you can handle a little mocha, check this out.
Caramel frappuccino. As a caramel
lover, I can confidently say that this is my absolute all-time favorite
Starbucks drink. I get a venti for my free birthday drink every year. It’s
caramel, a little coffee, milk and ice with whipped cream and caramel syrup on
top. It’s incredible. There are a couple of other frappuccinos with only a
little bit of mocha that are really good, too, like double chocolaty chip and mocha
cookie crumble, but this is my personal favorite.
So, non-coffee drinkers, don’t sit it out when your friends invite you to Starbucks
this summer. Try something new and delicious and free from that bitter coffee
taste we both can’t stand!
