Sip of Christmas
It might seem hard to get the taste of Christmas out of a fruity drink, but the new cran-merry refreshers at Starbucks defy these beliefs.
The cran-merry refresher with lemonade hits hard with a tart, sour flavor. Coconut milk which is added into its counterpart mellows out the sourness but still leaves subtle hints. Adding to the ambiance of the drink, dried cranberry fruits float on the top of both and along the rim adding to the tart flavoring in each drink.
With the fusion of the two flavors in both drinks, they blend together perfectly. In both the tart lemonade and sweet coconut milk versions, neither the cranberry nor the orange overpowers the other.
However, one of the drinks tastes a little more like Christmas. Starbucks’ Cran-Merry refresher with lemonade leaves a spicy aftertaste, which adds the illusion a cinnamon stick was swirled in the drink like a spoon.
The addition of coconut milk instead of the lemonade brings out a sweetness which doesn’t really embody the feeling of Christmas. Again, the cranberry fruits floating at the top still bring out that tart flavor, even in the sweeter version of the beverage which paired better than in the lemonade. With a sweetness mixed with a light tartness of the fruit they balance each other out.
Whether the consumer prefers sweet or sour, as long as they enjoy a cranberry-orange fusion of flavors, this is the holiday drink for them.
Blissful bites
With each bite taken out of the returning holiday treat, Starbucks’ cranberry bliss bar truly exudes a feeling of bliss into one’s day.
The body of the bar is a dense cakey texture with a cream cheese frosting on top. Cranberries are embedded into the frosting and unlike the drinks, they bring a sweet tastefulness to the treat.
The frosting maintains a thicker consistency sitting atop the dense cake. That said, cream cheese frosting on dessert foods such as the bliss bar creates a heavier feeling after eating. While it smooths out the sweetness, cream cheese frosting is normally a hit or miss for some. However, for those who enjoy this type of frosting, the bliss bar is right up their alley.
The bar makes the perfect snack or even dessert to fill a customer up. With bold flavors coming from both the cream cheese and cranberries they work together to create one of Starbucks’ best holiday treats.
