Starbucks is famous for its refresher selection, coffees and other varieties of drinks. In an effort to meet their customer’s demand for a refreshing drink during the winter months, they have recently released a new selection of beverages inspired by fresh herbs and berries. The Blackberry Sage Refresher and Blackberry Sage Lemonade Refresher contains flavors of sweet blackberries with notes of sage with ice, green coffee extract and dried blackberries dusted with sage. These drinks range in price from $5.25 to $6.45, depending on the size.
“During the winter months, we found that customers want something refreshing, yet balanced,” said Billy Altieri, lead beverage developer for Starbucks.
Starbucks’ refreshers are caffeinated fruity drinks that allow those who want a caffeine boost but don’t like the taste of coffee or want something more refreshing. The Strawberry Açaí Refresher has become viral on social media and is a very popular Starbucks drink. Junior Vanessa Walchi is an avid lover of the drink and gets it on a weekly basis. After seeing the new blackberry sage refresher Starbucks released, she hurried to try it out but it failed to meet her expectations.
“It was good but the drink wasn’t very sweet at all and the berries tasted a bit weird. I felt like the taste was too bland,” Walchi said.
On the other hand, junior Samantha Lesser said she liked how it wasn’t too sweet and how she felt she “could get this drink every day without getting tired of it” as its flavor isn’t overpowering.
The drink does offer what it advertises; however, it may not be as sweet as some are used to when they picture a Starbucks refresher which has led to some disappointment in the beverage.
The darker shade of the new refresher purposely aims to bring out certain thoughts and emotions to the customers. “Visually, darker hues can cue thoughts of a colder season – and Blackberry Sage’s deep violet color with hints of red suggests a winter sunset or a cozy cabin. The flavors are also calm and comforting,” writer for Starbucks’ website Heidi Peiper said.
