starbucks-matcha

The new limited-edition release surprised everyone when it appeared virtually unannounced around the country today.

You know you’ve got a winning product when you don’t even have to officially advertise it to draw attention. That’s exactly what Starbucks Japan has been doing lately, with last month’s custard puddings, and now again with their latest Frappuccino release, the Matcha White Chocolate, which were only advertised on hand-written notices in stores a few days before the official release.

With such a loyal fan base, Starbucks is letting their customers do the advertising for them, as people anxiously began sharing and retweeting images like this one that appeared just before the beverage went on sale today.

https://twitter.com/Pomyu_Rin/status/808066900894724097

Given that Starbucks Japan recently dedicated a lot of official advertising to promoting their delicious lineup of “holiday beverages“, this quieter, more under-the-radar release is less likely to steal the spotlight from their annual festive drink range. At the same time, however, the hush-hush nature of the Matcha White Chocolate arrival has generated a huge amount of excitement amongst customers, many of whom were surprised to see the new drinks when they suddenly graced a number of social media posts today.

https://twitter.com/yellowlove711/status/808172256010510338

The two new drinks available are: the Matcha White Chocolate Frappuccino (540 yen [US$4.67]), which has a creamy, mild bittersweet flavour…

starbucks-matcha

…and the hot Matcha White Chocolate (420-540 yen), which has a beautiful, frothy green appearance. The hot milk and white chocolate base bring a luxurious richness to the bitter green tea flavour.

starbucks-matcha

After a few hours of being on sale, Starbucks finally released their own Tweet about the new beverages, saying they were designed to be a “pre-Christmas surprise”. The tweet was immediately liked and retweeted thousands of times.

The surprise drinks won’t be around for long though, so be sure to stop by Starbucks for a taste of matcha white chocolate before they disappear from stores on 25 December. After that, we’ll have to go back to waiting for more secret news to be leaked ahead of their next Frappuccino release!

Source: Starbucks Japan
Featured image: Starbucks Japan
Insert images: Starbucks Japan (1, 2)