Starbucks' New Cascara Latté Has The Best Summer Twist

When the Cascara Latté hit the Starbucks menu in early 2017 as the first new drink of the year, coffee drinkers everywhere rejoiced — especially the fancy ones. And now, the updated Starbucks Iced Cascara Coconutmilk Latté is going to get people even more excited — and so ready to take on the grueling summer heat. Because honestly, can we really ever have enough iced, caffeinated drinks to get us through it? (Hint: the answer is no.)

I don't know about you, but I go to Starbucks because I like my coffee to be a little bit extra. If I wanted a plain cup of coffee, I'd go to the bodega. But I go to Starbucks because I want complex flavors, different temperature options and the ability to have a drink that wakes me up, refreshes me, and also kind of tastes like dessert for breakfast. So when they have drinks on the menu that are super versatile, like this new iced latté, it makes it totally worth it for me to walk the extra block in the wrong direction to start my day off with a drink I'm actually going to enjoy.

The OG Cascara hot latté was already a unique treat and stand out menu item: with its special extraction process it was easily the most grown up item on the menu, and the perfect addition for more serious coffee aficionados. You know how coffee people are: the more complicated the drink, the more interested they are in it. Now, the iced remix holds all the same refined notes, but appears a tad more approachable because iced coffee is certainly for all. There's nothing intimidating about a cup with a green straw, and if you put anything over ice, it feels pretty friendly, amirite? So anyone who might have been overwhelmed by the sophisticated nature of the drink before, is definitely going to feel more comfortable making it their staple summer order, now.

The new iced addition is extracted from coffee cherries into a syrup, creating a delicately sweet flavor for espresso beverages. It gives them more depth and blunts the bitter notes that people come to associate with espresso. Yes, espresso can actually be enjoyable, you don't have to pretend you don't notice the acidic bite it has. When you add coconutmilk to the mix, it lightens it up even more, makes it taste rich and creamy, perfectly balancing the strong and sweet flavors of the espresso. Then when you pour it over ice, it just takes it to the next level. It's the smoothest drink of the summer, hands down.