Have you seen these colorful marvels at your local Starbucks yet? To date, I’ve heard mostly ill reviews of this buzzy treat. Mostly just “it has 59 grams of sugar” comments. I suppose I shouldn’t have let that affect my opinion pre-tasting, but I braced myself none the less and boy, was that unnecessary. The Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino is a delicious, colorful rainbow treat. Just beware of the sprinkles.
Now, I’m not here to tell you it’s healthy, but I will tell you it’s delicious.
Quick Unicorn Frappuccino Facts
- Yes, there are 59 grams of sugar in a grande
- The sour flavor people are talking about is only in the sprinkle topping on the whipped cream
- The main body of the Frappuccino is very fruity and sweet, not sour at all
- It’s 410 calories for the standard grande (which is not as bad as I thought) and can easily be cut down to fewer calories and sugar (as I’m about to show you)
It’s kind of like drinking a sour patch kid, in reverse. It starts off sweet, delicious and amazing but the topping on the whipped cream? SOUR. VERY SOUR.
All was merry until I hit the whip, but thankfully I was warned by a coworker right before I finished my delicious treat that this would be the case, so I enjoyed the drink and the topping separately (read: I enjoyed the drink and disposed of the topping).
Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino Nutrition
The advertised drink is a grande Unicorn Frappuccino with no special alterations.
This nutrition information might look a little rough, it definitely did to me. But, as I would suggest to anyone short of someone with a known health risk, don’t let a little sugar hold you back from living your life. I’m not suggesting one of these daily, but try one if you’re curious.
Make the Unicorn Frappuccino Healthier
Don’t want to size down? Ordering the Unicorn Frappuccino without whip alone eliminates 120 calories. Eliminate an extra 10 calories if you opt for soy instead of 2% milk. These two adjustments bring your colorful treat down to 280 calories and 55 grams of sugar (it’s a start).
Want to take it s step further? A tall Unicorn Frappuccino cuts the damage down by a significant amount more. Honestly, the beverage is pretty sweet as is, so something tells me you’ll still get your sugar fix with 4oz less.
This option brings you down almost a whopping 220 calories and 22 grams less sugar. That’s 38% less sugar than the original 59 gram count in the grande as-is version.
My Overall Impression
A real win, honestly! I’d give it a 9/10, with negative points for the terribly high sugar and strange sour topping, but those are both semi-simple fixes. For starters, don’t swirl the entire drink together, despite what some of the official Starbucks advertising says… *ahem*
The only thing swirling this drink will do is mix “sour birthday cake” (a good description provided by my coworker) with a delicious, fruity treat. Skip the whip and enjoy a well-deserved treat before it’s gone! Available April 19 through April 23.
Regardless of the sugar or calories, at least we can rest easy knowing that only the finest rainbows were used in our fruity concoctions, all thanks to the Starbucks in my office building!
More Starbucks Drinks and Reviews
- My Skinny Iced Peppermint White Mocha Holiday Drink
- 12 Low Caffeine Starbucks Drinks
- MOST READ: My Matcha Green Tea Latte Order
- Midnight Mint Mocha Frappuccino
This post contains referral/affiliate links. A small commission may be earned if products are purchased through my links. Thank you for supporting the brands that support this blog.
