Starbucks didn't plan on creating a viral hit. In fact, Starbucks didn't 'create' these drinks at all—but they're selling them all over the country. Earlier this summer, Instagram feeds started filling up with images of a bubblegum-colored "pink drink"—an off-the-menu creation Starbucks fans had requested from baristas, using the Strawberry Acai Refreshers as its base. Soon, people started blending coconut milk and soy milk into other tea-based drinks, creating a whole new way to taste the rainbow—and thousands of pics for Insta.
If you're considering ordering a drink—or all of them, all at once, because you hate making decisions and love rainbows—here's what you should know before heading to your nearest siren-logoed store.
1. Know the Right Way to Order.
These drinks aren't officially on the Starbucks menu, which means some baristas might not have a clue what you mean when you ask for a pink drink. Or a purple drank (especially if you call it a 'drank'). We've created a complete guide for you, so you know exactly what to request for every drink. Here's what that looks like for our three faves:
- Pink Drink — Ask for a Strawberry Acai Refresher with coconut milk instead of water
- Purple Drink — Teavana Iced Passion Tango Tea with soy milk instead of water, vanilla syrup and blackberries
- Blue Drink — Teavana Iced Passion Tango Tea with soy milk instead of water and vanilla syrup
2. Make It Your Own.
Starbucks is all about letting you customize your drink (hence the endless off-the-menu options), so don't be afraid to create your own break-the-internet purple drink—or whatever you're craving. If you don't like the flavor of the mainstream rainbow drinks, Starbucks has a few alternatives:
- If you want a pink drink, but acai isn't your thing: Ask for a Youthberry White Tea Granita, Strawberry Crème Frappuccino or a canned Strawberry Lemonade Refresher.
- If you love purple, but hate Passion Tango Tea: Order a Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher made with soy milk instead of water.
- If you'll all about orange, but not the vanilla bean powder: Try a Mango Carrot Smoothie or Teavana Mango Black Tea Lemonade.
- If you want to go green without having to remember a complicated order: Grab an Iced Green Tea Latte, Green Tea Frappuccino, or the bottled Evolution Fresh drink
Unfortunately, reps didn't have any recommendations for substitutions to the blue drink,
3. There's a Purple Frapp.
If you're more of a Frappuccino person, you could recreate the rainbow effect with Starbucks' blended drinks. Pink and green are already on the menu (Strawberries & Creme and Green Tea), but you could also add 1 to 2 pumps of sangria syrup and blackberries to a vanilla bean Frappuccino to create a purple Frappuccino, like Starbucks Melody did.
4. Calorie Counts Are Tricky.
Since these aren't official Starbucks drinks, the company doesn't have nutritional information. However, you can get a very rough idea from looking at the base online—a Strawberry Acai Refresher has 90 calories in a grande size, for example, and an Iced Passion Tango is 80 calories. A 12-ounce cup of the coconut milk Starbucks uses is about 130 calories, and it's doubtful they're using that much in a tall or grande pink drink. So it's, uh, 200ish calories? On second thought, you're better off just enjoying the drink than trying to quantify every cal.
5. There's One Rainbow Drink to Rule Them All.
The pink drink started it all, and it's also the most popular, in terms of Instagram hashtags (136,000+ and counting) and Google searches. Flavor-wise, it's also the one Delish editors have liked best, as well as some redditors. If you're going to try one rainbow drink first, make it this one. And by this one, we mean the OG pink drink, using a Strawberry Acai Refresher as the base.
6. Coconut Milk Makes A Huge Difference.
"Summer is a great time to highlight coconut milk. It's lighter in body than regular milk, and can be a little more refreshing," Christal Canzler, Starbucks' senior product developer, said in a press release about the new Coconut Milk Mocha Macchiato, and it applies here too.
7. Take It to the Next Level.
What's better than a brightly colored drink? A brightly colored ombreé drink, obvs. Just check it out:
Unofficially, that Tequila Sunrise-looking drink is called the "Red Mango Explosion," though if you ask for that, the barista will probably just stare at you and blink. Here's exactly what to request to get that mix of mango, lemonade and raspberry.
You could also just order the Youthberry White Tea Granita, which has a similar look.
8. The Latest 'It' Drink Is Free.
If all the rainbow drink madness is driving you crazy, you could always tease your Starbucks-obsessed friends about the super-secret—and totally free—"clear" drink. The recipe is super complicated: Ask for a tall, unsweetened, extra ice, no whip, unblended water.
It's also off the menu, but we're tentatively calling it "Tears of Our Haters."
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