Starbucks Japan’s Halloween Frappuccino plays tricks on the taste buds

New limited-time beverage has cosplay skills that’ll pop your tongue off.

In Japan, autumn is the month for eating freshly harvested sweet potatoes, unless you find yourself at Starbucks, where you’ll be able to drink them. Our Japanese-language reporter K. Masami recently got her fill of the sweet root vegetable when the chain released a Roasted Sweet Potato Frappuccino back in September, but that was just the start of the celebrations, as the earthy ingredient is back for Halloween, disguised as the new Treat with Trick Frappuccino.

▼ The Halloween Frappuccino is being sold in a tall size for 690 yen (US$6.03).

Starbucks loves to create a good backstory for their limited-edition releases, to ignite our imaginations and add an extra layer of fun and excitement while we sip on them. That’s what’s happening with this new beverage, which Starbucks wants us to envision as a mischievous trickster, made up of the same ingredients as the Roasted Sweet Potato Frappuccino, but dressed up in dark chocolate powder and purple sweet potato-flavoured sauce for Halloween. 

▼ Unlike the Roasted Sweet Potato Frappuccino, however, there’s no crunchy topping here – just purple sauce.

The enticing combination of chocolate and purple hues helps to conjure up a sense of dark mystery that’s perfect for Halloween.

Masami dipped her spoon into the beverage and got a bit of a fright when she pulled out a big juicy mound of chocolatey cream. Fearing this element might overpower the delicate sweet potatoes, she placed the spoonful on her tongue and thankfully, the chocolate wasn’t as strong as it looked.

▼ The roasted sweet potato pieces inside the drink fought back against the chocolate to create a gentle harmony.

The chocolatey purple potato blend wasn’t the only trick up this Frappuccino’s sleeve, however, as it can also be combined with a special Popping Topping for an additional 110 yen.

This chocolate-coated candy topping cloaks the drink in yet another costume, adding even more fun and colour to the Frappuccino.

Starbucks is generous with the serving size here, and Masami only used about a third of the pack to avoid it tumbling out over the sides of the cup.

The colourful topping really gave the drink a different character, swapping dark mystery for party-time fun, and the party continued in Masami’s mouth, with the tiny balls popping like sparkles on the tongue.

The playful pops are livening up more than the Frappuccino this Halloween, as there’s a special “Halloween Popping Doughnut” on the menu for a limited time as well.

▼ Priced at 286 yen each, the doughnuts look absolutely gorgeous with their unusual purple potato glaze.

▼ And on the inside, a sweet purple potato sauce oozes from the dark chocolate dough.

The doughnut was fantastic on its own, but when Masami added sips of the chocolatey purple potato Frappuccino to the mix, it took on a whole new level of deliciousness.

The Treat with Trick Frappuccino is definitely a Halloween gem — it shrouds itself in mysterious layers while revealing itself with tasty tricks, and Masami would definitely explore its depths again. You’ll want to get in quick if you want to try it, though, as it’s only on the menu until 31 October, or until stocks last, and if you’re lucky, you might be able to pick up a limited-edition glow-in-the-dark Halloween mug while you’re there.

Photos © SoraNews24
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