What tea does Starbucks use?

If you’re a new Starbucks tea lover, you might have wondered what tea does Starbucks use? I have the answer for you including details of where the tea is sourced and so much more.

For their teas, Starbucks uses tea bags from their brand Teavana. This is something I recently learned through my fiancé’s mom. Now, if you know me at all, that will not surprise you. I’m a coffee die-hard but the weekly wedding planning meetings with our parents have me warming up to teas. I’m actually surprised by the flavorful tea offerings at Starbucks. I’ve therefore sought to learn more about Starbucks tea and here’s what I’ve learnt.

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Is Starbucks tea real tea?

Yes, the tea Starbucks uses is reportedly made from real tea grown by smallholder farmers and their communities in Japan. All the Starbucks brewed tea is made from individually packaged Teavana tea sachets filled with loose leaf blends of either white, black, herbal, or green tea.

Where does Starbucks get their tea?

Starbucks sources its tea ethically from third-party farms which are certified. Majority of the teas are grown on the organic RainForest Alliance-certified farms in Japan. The soil in the zones is said to have no industrial past and is lead-free.

What is Starbucks Teavana tea?

Starbucks Teavana tea is the brand of tea that the coffee company uses for its tea drinks. The coffee giant purchased Teavana Corporation in the year 2012 in a bid to tap into the growing global tea market. All the Teavana independent storefronts were closed following the buyout and the current products of the brand are sold in Starbucks stores and selected retail stores.

Starbucks stocks a small category but the most popular range of the brand which includes the Teavana Earl Grey, Emperor’s Clouds & Mist, Jade Citrus Mint, Chai, Peach Tranquility, and Royal English Breakfast.

Starbucks only uses Teavana tea bags for all the teas served either as hot or cold brews in black, herbal, green, and latte, or frappuccinos or bottled bevrages.

The hot brews at Starbucks include the Organic Chai, Earl Grey, Honey Citrus Mint tea, the Royal English Breakfast, Emperor’s Clouds & Mist, Mint Majesty, Peach Tranquility, and Jade Citrus Mint. The hot brewed tea is made with hot filtered water set to 200°F and 1-2 tea bags.

The cold-brewed teas include the Iced Black tea, Iced Black Lemonade tea, Iced Guava Black Tea, and Guava Black Iced Tea Lemonade. Both tea lemonades and iced teas combine half tea and half ice, and they don’t come with added sweeteners.

The bottled versions are either the Teavana Sparkling Nectarine Green Tea which is unsweetened or the Teavana Mango Black tea. Both are sold in the ready-to-drink refrigerated section in Starbucks stores

The hot lattes include the Matcha Green, London Fog, Chai, and Royal English Breakfast. All tea lattes are sweetened. It is also important to note that Chai Latte is made of double-strength chai concentrate and Matcha Green is made of a green tea powder. The two lattes are not made using Teavana tea bags.

There are two tea-based frappuccinos on the Starbucks menu; the Matcha Green Tea Creme and the Chai Creme. Both are made with whole milk.

What brand of tea does Starbucks use for green tea?

Starbucks uses Teavana’s Jade Citrus Mint Tea to make green tea. This tea has notes of mint, lemon verbena, and lemongrass. A stunningly refreshing tea flavor, Starbucks also uses Jade Citrus Mint for its green iced tea.

For the Matcha Green hot & cold black brews, lattes, and frappuccinos, Starbucks uses pre-sweetened powdered green tea.

How to order tea at Starbucks

With the various tea offerings on the Starbucks menu, you have to specify the temperature, flavor, size, sweetening option, and whether the barista should add milk to your tea order. For instance, you can order a Tall hot mug of Earl Grey Black Tea with vanilla syrup. You can also ask for an ice addition to your hot tea to cool it off. If you want extra caffeine in your drink, you may ask for additional tea bags at an extra $0.20. For sweeteners, you can opt for raw sugar, Stevia, liquid cane sugar, or Splenda at no additional charge. Syrups come with extra charges of about $0.40. Most hot teas taste great with some steamed lemonade so you can add some sweet citrus twist to your tea.

If you’re in a hurry, hot brewed teas are the easiest to order.

For the secret tea menu, you cannot order the drink by name. You have to list the ingredients for the barista. For instance, to order a chai latte with vanilla syrup, you say “ Can I get a Grande Chai Latte base with 2 pumps of vanilla syrup?”

An important point to note is that Starbucks baristas do not allow steeping time before serving hot teas. It is therefore advisable to take 2 to 3 minutes steep for white and green teas and 4 to 5 minutes for black and herbal teas. Steeping produces a better taste and aroma as the process allows for flavors to develop.

FAQS

What tea does Starbucks use for iced tea?

Starbucks uses Teavana tea concentrate, milk, and ice for the iced tea range. For the green versions, they substitute the tea concentrate with sweetened green tea powder.

What is the sweetest tea at Starbucks?

The Chai Latte comes highest ranked. Customers seem to thoroughly enjoy the tea in both hot and iced versions. The iced tea boasts bold flavors of sweet and spicy chai and milk blend shaken in ice and topped with sweet cream cold foam. The hot tea is best without added water.

Does Starbucks have hibiscus tea?

It depends on the location and country. For the US, no, there is no hibiscus tea on the Starbucks menu. However, you can customize the very berry hibiscus refresher by adding green tea powder. The Starbucks stores in Asia do offer hibiscus teas.