Iโve been on a serious Iced Coffee kick lately, and often stop at Starbucks to grab one. Unlike McDonaldโs, where you can only get half & half for cream, Starbucks will put Heavy Whipping Cream in your coffee โ which is a carb free coffee creamer.
On my last trip through Nashville airport, where I stopped for an ice cold coffee with sugar free vanilla syrup, I decided to grab a bag of their Iced Coffee Blend coffee beans so I could try it out at home.
As much as I love coffee, July in Tennessee is just too HOT to enjoy it โ even early in the morning. Which is why I got hooked on Iced Coffee this summer. ๐
At home I usually brew Dunkin Donuts coffee. Hazelnut flavor to be exact. I learned that the key to Iced Coffee is to brew it twice as strong (half the water), then pour it over ice.
I tried that with my DD coffee, and it was okay. Then I ground the Starbucks Iced Coffee Blend beans I brought home, brewed those and made an Iced Coffee. WOW. Serious difference! My usual coffee was good over ice, but the Starbucks blend was definitely better.
I even brewed it hot this morning, since weโre having an unseasonably cool morning here in TN (less than 80 degrees with a light breeze -nice!). Definitely makes a nice cup of hot coffee too.
Beware the Starbucks Instant Iced Coffee Packets!
While standing at the Starbucks counter, waiting on my order and considering buying the Iced Coffee Blend, I noticed they also had packets for instant iced coffee (right).
Iโm not sure how good that would be โ maybe great, who knows. But what really surprised me was that it is already pre-sweetened. Had I not looked at the nutrition facts I would have totally missed that โ and screwed up my carb count for the day. ๐
Yes, it says โlightly sweetenedโ right there on the front of the package as you can see in the image. But that did NOT stand out to me when I had the actual package in my hand. And it wouldnโt have occurred to me either.
The guy beside me was buying for a diabetic and was glad I pointed it out, as he was eyeballing them too.
Hereโs a (not so great) snapshot of the nutrition facts on that package:
Anyway, the Starbucks Iced Coffee Blend โ FABULOUS.
Highly recommended if you like to brew your favorite coffees at home!
๐To keep it super low carb (zero) I use Heavy Whipping Cream and Torani Sugar Free Vanilla Coffee Syrup in both my hot and iced coffees.
Havenโt tried this particular blend yet, but Iโm curious now. For the record, Iโve used all of Starbucks VIA blends as Iced coffees, and except for last yearโs Christmas Blend VIA, theyโve all worked. Now Iโm sure based on what youโve posted regarding the sugar content on the iced coffee VIA, that you yourself will have to eliminate the flavored VIAs, like Mocha or Vanilla. But Iโve done this with their regular VIA Medium Colombian, Bold Italian Roasts, and Decaf with no trouble; just have to be more conscious about removing any grinds. You may want to consider that as well.
Hi Mike,
Iโve been experimenting with different blends too, now that Iโve used up this first bag. We donโt have a Starbucks local, and they donโt sell the Iced Coffee Blend in any local stores. They are all good, when brewed twice as strong and poured over ice. Especially nice during the heat of Tennessee summers! ๐
FYI: Heavy cream is NOT zero carb. It has 6.6 carbs per cup. Just under half a carb per tablespoon. Not a big concern in most cases but in blended low-carb drinks it can add up.
Thanks for pointing that out, Doug. I noticed that the serving size is 1 tablespoon and wondered about larger servings. Still, much better than milk or creamer in my coffee!