Starting Jan. 2, Starbucks released several new items: Brown Sugar Oat Milk Cortado, Blackberry Sage Refresher, and the Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Crème Frappuccino. However, the most controversial and popular new item has to be Starbucks’ “new and improved Iced” Matcha Latte. 

The West Boca Bullseye, a student run paper, stated that Starbucks changed the drink in order to “enhance the actual matcha flavor for those matcha fans out there who enjoy a good matcha but are looking for a healthier alternative and are looking to cut sugar this new year.” Many customers have started replacing their normal classic syrup for Starbucks’s Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup, reducing the calories and overall contributing a healthier lifestyle.

Ruhi Rai, a parent of a Briar Woods student, describes her and her child’s positive reaction towards Starbucks’s new and improved matcha. “My daughter orders it with their vanilla syrup and it’s just amazing. Because you can add oatmilk and I’m allergic to dairy, she always gives me a taste and I really like it the way she orders it.”

At Briar Woods, there are many students in the morning carrying their Starbucks cups in an assortment of flavors, drinks, and sizes. “The Broadland Center Plaza’s Starbucks is always busy when we go, like from 8:00 to 9:00, in the morning,” said Rai.  

Enjoying a drink in the morning can be really beneficial, especially something healthier like matcha, that contains a slight bit of caffeine that helps students stay awake throughout the day.

Some may have been die-hard matcha fans who have always ordered it, whether before the new formula or not, but some had many problems with the old matcha– which may have been what resulted in the change.

Their old matcha was not blended properly and customers described, “getting clumps in [their] mouth, which has been a recurring textural issue experienced with Starbucks’ iced matcha lattes” (Redden).

Many find the new drink to be a lot more authentic in representing Japanese culture and how matcha was originally made. Matcha powder is typically whisked in a bowl before adding it into water or milk, served hot or iced. 

Saanvi Patro, a freshman at Briar Woods, said, “When I used to have the matcha, I felt like it was super watered-down, except with too much milk, like the American version of the matcha I’ve tried from H-mart.”

It is likely that the goal for the change was to bring in more business from heavy matcha drinkers who would now appreciate the strength in the matcha powder that Starbucks claims to be “imported from Japan.”

Whether you enjoy the flavor of matcha or not, everyone should definitely give it a try. Its customizability makes it the perfect morning, afternoon, or even late night drink that you can tailor according to your taste.