Jeff Houck

The Tampa Tribune’s food writer since 2005, Jeff Houck covers the way people live through their food. He also hosts the Table Conversations food podcast and believes that everything crunchy is good.

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Starbucks Introduces Two Smoothies [Shhhhhh, It’s A Big Secret]

Posted Jul 14, 2008 by Jeff Houck

Updated Jul 14, 2008 at 12:33 PM

Tomorrow is the big rollout day for Starbucks’ new 16-ounce frozen blended Vivanno drinks, orange mango banana and banana chocolate blend. (Though together they live in harmony, you are not allowed to nickname them Ebony and Ivory.)

They tipped their hand months ago in various interviews and have slowly leaked the info out in the six weeks or so since the rollout of the Pike Place coffee. They offered me a chance to learn all about the product in advance if I would sign a confidentiality promise. I decided not to play along.

Instead, the company did a tasting for me and Tribune business reporter Jerry Stockfisch this morning at the South Howard store, heavily pushing the health benefits. Even Palm Harbor-based nutritionist Sheila Dean was called in to vouch today for the drink’s healthfulness. Vouch she did; Dean suggested it could substitute as an on-the-go breakfast drink or an afternoon snack drink without the sugar crash associated with other beverages in the category.

The details: At 250 calories, the orange containes 16 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber and 2 grams fat. The banana chocolate weighs in at 270 calories with 21 grmas of protein, 6 grams of fiber and 5 grams of fat. Neither have artificial sweeteners. Both use whole bananas in the blend.

The drinks are clearly aimed at taking back some of the smoothie market that exploded in the decades since Starbucks first debuted.

They’re also targeting customers who are exercise buffs. Every Tuesday from July 29 to Aug. 12, any customer who shows a gym membership card (or any Starbucks cardholder) will recieve a free 16-ounce Vivanno. Or, you know, just show up in your gym outfit and look sweaty.

If the product takes off, look for more flavors to roll out in coming months. (The banana was included in both of the first two flavors because of the nutritional value and because it tested as the most popular blended beverage component . Yes. they test for those things.)