Starbucks’ New Pumpkin Chai Tea Has More Calories Than This Popular Thanksgiving Dessert???
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Starbucks just released two new fall 2023 drinks.
The new Starbucks fall menu drinks are both iced: the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte.
Nutritionists have a lot to say around the nutrition facts for these sweet treats.
Starbucks has made a point to roll out new drinks each season, and fall 2023 is no exception. The coffee giant just released two new fall drinks—and they’re both cold beverages: the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte.
The drinks are now available at Starbucks locations across the country, and reviews are already pouring in on social media. But what’s in these drinks and what is the nutrition like? Here’s a breakdown.
What’s in the Starbucks Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso?
The Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso features espresso, with “notes of apple, cinnamon, and brown sugar,” shaken together and topped with oat milk, according to Starbucks.
The drink contains a slew of ingredients, including ice, oat milk, canola oil, espresso, and apple brown sugar syrup coffee. (See the full list here.)
What’s in the Starbucks Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte?
The Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte features “spiced chai notes” with pumpkin cream cold foam and a “dusting” of pumpkin spice, per Starbucks.
It also has a long ingredients list that includes milk, ice, pumpkin spice cream, chai tea concentrate, and pumpkin spice topping. (The full ingredients list can be seen here.)
Starbucks Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso nutrition
Here’s a nutrition breakdown of what you can expect when you have an Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso:
Calories: 180
Fat: 4.5 g
Carbohydrates: 34 g
Protein: 2 g
Sugars: 21 g
Sodium: 190 mg
Fiber: 1 g
Starbucks Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte nutrition
Prefer more of a pumpkin drink? This is what you can expect in the nutrition department when you have a grande Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte:
Calories: 460
Fat: 17 g (11 g sat fat)
Carbohydrates: 68 g
Protein: 10 g
Sugars: 66 g
Sodium: 160 mg
Fiber: 0 g
Are these drinks healthy?
It’s important to note that Starbucks never claimed its drinks are healthy. But, if you’ve been curious about how these stack up in the nutrition department, dietitians have some thoughts.
While the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso isn’t a health drink, “it’s better than many other Starbucks drinks,” says Jessica Cording, R.D., a dietitian and health coach, and author of The Little Book of Game-Changers. Keri Gans, R.D., author of The Small Change Diet, agrees. “From a nutrition perspective, this is one of Starbucks’ better fall drinks with a lot fewer calories than other choices,” she says. “However, with 21 grams of sugar, I wouldn’t suggest it be one’s daily cup of Joe.”
The Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte, however, is getting the side eye. “This is ridiculous,” says Vanessa Rissetto, R.D., the CEO and co-founder of Culina Health. “It’s basically a meal and I’m not into drinking my calories. Especially when there is nothing beneficial here. You’re just going to drink it and be starving very shortly after.”
Gans notes that a slice of pumpkin pie actually has less calories than the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte “Nutritionally speaking, this latte is a nightmare with excessive calories and grams of fat,” she adds. Cording also has concerns about the 66 grams of sugar. “That’s a lot of sugar,” she says.
Gina Keatley, C.D.N., co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy, calls the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte “quite the calorie bomb.” She adds, “the sugar content alone is nearly three times the American Heart Association’s recommended daily limit for women and twice the limit for men.”
If you want to try the drinks but want to make them a little more nutritionally sound, Cording suggests opting for a smaller size and asking for less pumps of syrup. But if you want to have one of the drinks as-is, she also says that’s just fine.
“If you want to try it once, cool,” Cording says. “I would just view it as a treat rather than a cup of coffee.”
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