We’ve all grown to expect seriously enticing beverage offerings from Starbucks by now, haven’t we? Some of them even had customers forming long lines and selling out by noon, like the fresh banana Frappuccinos that they sold for a limited time earlier this year.
Well, according to buzz on the Japanese Internet, it seems Starbucks has done it again with another sweet-sounding Frappuccino, this one combining two already very popular ingredients: granola and honey. But this time, the tempting drink is only available in one area of Tokyo, the Roppongi Hills complex, which meant only one thing — we had to head off to Roppongi and try their new creation ourselves!
The new Soy Honey Granola Frappuccino was just released on October 1 at the four Starbucks located within Roppongi Hills. We paid a visit to the Roppongi Hills West Walk Starbucks location, to get our hands on the cold drink. Sure enough, a sign was placed at the front of the shop to advertise the Frappuccinno.
▼The sign was beautifully drawn and made note of the fact that the drink was available only at Roppongi Hills.
▼They also had a small sign at the cashier too. The Frappuccinno came in just one size, priced at 600 yen (US$5.46).
▼We received the special card they give out to customers ordering soy milk-based drinks in order to avoid any accidents with milk allergies.
▼The other side of the card tells us that the soy milk they use has been specially developed to go well with espresso.
▼At last, we have our Soy Honey Granola Frappuccino. We couldn’t wait to try it and see how the honey and granola combination tastes.
▼Again, the logo on the cup makes it clear that the drink uses soy milk.
▼And here we have some close-up looks at the drink. Ohh … the whipped cream and granola crumbs look beautiful!
▼Oh … the whipped cream is starting to melt. We should try it quickly before is gets any runnier.
And how was the Frappuccino that we had anticipated so highly? The granola added a delightful crunchiness and wholesome flavor; we only wish there were more of it! They maybe could have also added a little more honey too for it to stand out against the rich whipped cream. Nonetheless, the cold drink was certainly a refreshing treat and not too sweet overall. Since it’s a half-frozen beverage, it would probably have been even better in hot weather. A version with different fruits added would also be great, in our opinion! And being made with soy milk and ingredients like granola and honey, hopefully it’s a relatively healthy drink, at least compared to the other Frappucinnos (or is that wishful thinking on our part?).
Apparently, the drink has been quite well-received so far, with net users posting comments online such as “This Frappucinno is excellent!!” and “Would love for them to make it a regular item on their menu!” Well, we have to agree, it would certainly be nice to be able to have a beverage like this at any Starbucks in the future. If you’re going to be in the Roppongi area and want to give the Soy Honey Granola Frappuccino a try, the special drink is available at the Roppongi Hills Metro Hat/Hollywood plaza shop, Roppongi Hills West Walk Lounge shop and Tsutaya Tokyo Roppongi shop, in addition to the West Walk shop we visited. We hope you enjoy the “relatively healthy” drinkable dessert!
Reference: Narinari.com (Japanese)
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