Since Starbucks was offering three stars if you bought both a Fizzio handcrafted soda (new beverage line) and lunch item, suggestively new items like the Turkey Pesto Panini or Old-Fashioned Grilled Cheese Sandwich, I went to the nearest Starbucks with Fizzio (not all Starbucks have Fizzio available yet) and got the Spiced Root Beer and Turkey Pesto Panini (they were out of the grilled cheese).
That’s the grande Spiced Root Beer ($2.95, SB #7979) on the left. It’s Starbucks, so I’m not gonna judge much on the cost, but it wasn’t wholly satisfying. It’s a different taste than standard root beer – closer to ginger beer if you’ve ever tried that. However, it doesn’t keep its punch (cinnamon and nutmeg) throughout the entirety of the beverage – maybe the first handful of sips. The increasingly diffused taste certainly isn’t helped by the large amount of ice either.
I’m getting a Refreshers sort of feel on this, a new product that Starbucks is playing around with to get opinions from its audience. Of course, I haven’t tried all of its flavors, which includes Golden Ginger Ale and Lemon Ale. For now, I’d say stick with your iced coffees at Starbucks. It’s healthier than an equivalent 16-oz soda from McDonald’s, but not exactly satisfying.
As for the Turkey Pesto Panini ($5.95, SB#7979), my past experience with Starbucks’ paninis that have a lot of cheese is that the cheese sort of overpowers everything else. It tastes great because, come on, it’s cheese (unless you’re like my mom, bless her, who can’t stand the strong flavor of cheese. Didn’t seem to work out growing up in a town with a dozen pizzerias and family ristorantes). And for that, it’s pretty filling as a $6 sandwich from Starbucks. I’m disappointed I didn’t get to try the grilled cheese, but for the most part I’ve had positive experiences with Starbucks sandwiches – my favorite being the Ham and Swiss Painini and its sharp Dijon mustard. Yum.