Jenn and I went for coffee tonight, and given that it was at Starbucks (and the fact we were talking about drinks we'd recommend to people), I thought we should start of the "best of" series w/ our favourite Starbucks beverages. Sooooo... here is Jenn & Holz's top five Starbucks drinks - four of which are "secret" not on the menu drinks, which we highly recommend you to try the next time you're grabbing a java.... *drum roll please*
1) (Soy) Mild (or Bold) Misto w/ a Half Pump of Hazelnut
Jenn: Since I really hate having soy in my coffee, the drink tastes just as good w/o the soy, and the "half" pump of hazelnut makes it not as sweet so that the syrup doesn't overpower the coffee, but just to give the drink a little more flavor
Holly: I actually like soy w/ my coffee - I normally drink my coffee black, but only at Starbucks do I add anything to my coffee... i.e. soy. But to make it a nice, comfy drink that 1/2 pump does the touch in making it a nice special drink.
2) London Fog - Earl Grey tea misto w/ 1 pump vanilla
Jenn: this kinda tastes like the Japanese canned "Royal Milk Tea 紅茶花伝" but for for those who might find it to be too sweet, then I'd recommend the non-fat/skim milk version
Holly: Alternatively, you can go for the half pump to make it less sweet, but it is the coffee-alternative drink to the above coffee misto.
3) Java Chip Frappucino
Holly: Both Jenn and I love this drink - it's fun w/ bits of chocolate chips, blended with the Starbucks frappucino and ice, topped with whip & chocolate drizzle if desired. Comes in decaf & regular caffeine. Definitely a drink that will fully substitute the dessert after a meal; a must try for the sweeth tooth.
4) "White Gummy Bear" Shaken Iced Passion Tea - 2 pumps of melon, 2 pumps of rasperry, 1 pump vanilla
Holly: To my absolute surprise, the one who introduced us to this drink was our friend Mo, who was somewhat anti-Starbucks. :) However, it is definitely a drink just like the candy!!! A must try for the anti-coffee people out there. A bit of the passion tea flavour is still retained despite the numerous pumps of syrup, which goes to show the tazo tea line at Starbucks is fairly decent and gets my nod for approval, given that I'm pretty anal about my teas. (I normally dislike using tea bags... but the Tazo series is one of the few exceptions)
5) Shaken Iced White Tea Lemonade
Holly: This drink is only available at certain stores at the time of this post - the lemonade blends well with the White Berry tea, and complements the berry taste without an obvious hint of the sour lemonade-like taste (but still retains the same texture). A nice "secret" alternative to the shaken black/green tea lemonades.
Other honorable mentions include: soy green tea latte w/o syrup, caramel macchiato, hot chocolate, african red bush tea. However, feel free to suggest any of your favourite Starbucks beverage... :)
