Review: Starbucks' Matcha Lemonade And Blended Energy Refreshers Are Perfect Summer Sippers — Except For One Key Flaw

Nothing can transform a hot summer day from sweaty and lethargic to dreamy and idealistic quite as quickly as a frozen blended drink. Growing up with 7-Eleven's amazing Slurpees is probably why, for many of us, a slushie drink is now so nostalgia-triggering. But as adults we find ourselves looking for a little something extra in a beverage than just sugar and water. Sometimes, that might mean a classic frozen cocktail, but Starbucks has interpreted that slushie craving into an any-time-of-day drink with its new Blended Energy Refresher flavors.

On July 14, 2026, the coffee chain released a new series of blended drinks, including a selection of fruity Refreshers blended with either lemonade or coconut milk as well as a much-anticipated Blended Matcha Lemonade. I had to try them for myself, and the results are in. There are nearly 17,000 Starbucks locations in the United States (not to mention abroad) so no matter where you are this summer season you can start your day with a cool, caffeinated drink. Read on to discover which was my favorite of the new lineup.

Before we jump into the good stuff, lets touch base on how I went about reviewing these drinks. First of all, I was not incentivized by Starbucks in any way to say nice things. Nothing but honest, first-person opinions here.

The drinks in this review were announced by Starbucks in a press release and are mixed in with other menu items rather than being advertised on a special Starbucks summer menu. I tried all of them as Energy refreshers (which means caffeine-added rather than light-caffeine) to see how this might affect flavor. I reviewed these drinks fairly, forgoing personal preference to focus on objective factors like balance, quality, and taste.

Matcha, a drink with ancient Buddhist roots, has taken the United States by storm in the past few years, with many people preferring it over coffee as a caffeine source with less negative side effects. It comes in many different forms — traditional, milkless preparations, lattes with dairy-free milk alternatives, fruit additions like mango or strawberry, or the less common but no less delicious matcha lemonade.

Perhaps the real kicker with this drink is the fact that it's blended with ice. The preparation transforms it from average into something you'll be frothing at the mouth for when the summer heat is running you down. The consistency is more smooth than icy — you won't be chewing on ice chunks, and it stays surprisingly homogenous even as it melts.

The flavor is perfectly balanced between acidic, sweet, and grassy-green matcha (even though the matcha Starbucks uses is a far cry from the real thing). If you've found the strong matcha flavor to be a bit overwhelming in the past, know that this drink is fairly mild on the matcha and more sweet than bitter. It's designed to be a crowd-pleaser, and it hit the nail on the head.

The first thing I noticed with the new lemonade-based Blended Refreshers (which includes mango-strawberry, guava-passionfruit, and mango-dragonfruit flavors) was how incredibly smooth the consistency is despite the fact that they don't have any milk. It's more like a smoothie than a slushie, and even as they melt the water and solids don't separate.

As a chronic ice-chewer, this was slightly disappointing to me, yet I began to appreciate the drinks for what they were. I wouldn't recommend skipping a meal, but the fruitiness of the drinks made me feel like I was getting my caffeine and breakfast all in one.

The flavors are bright, fruity, sweet, and cold. The mango strawberry has tiny pieces of strawberry swirled in that add a nice texture. You can also add pineapple-coconut popping bubbles to the guava passionfruit for extra tropical flavor, and I think they're well worth the upcharge. The dragonfruit-mango was my personal favorite; it has a unique taste and is less in-your-face sweet than the other choices. Next time, I would also add dragonfruit chunks for an extra chew.

The coconut milk blended Energy Refreshers include the Island Colada — a coconut milk, rather than lemonade, version of the guava-passionfruit drink — and the notorious Pink Drink, blended with ice and extra caffeine to create a Pink Energy Refresher.

Both of these beverages are creamy, sweet, and provide a nice boost of caffeine. The Island Colada tastes almost identical to its coconut milk-removed counterpart, and while I love the tropical flavor, it isn't quite the same without those popping bubbles.

The Pink Energy Refresher is sweet and strawberry-forward. If you love the Pink Drink but want a creamier, smoothie-like version, you'll love this. It has all the flavor of a soft, ripe strawberry and the coconut milk adds a touch of tropical.

All in all, these new blended drinks are great fuel for summer. They have fruity, craveable flavors, fun customization options, and are accessible around the country. I did find myself a bit surprised with the consistency. Starbucks uses a blending powder made with xanthan gum and gum arabic (among other things) to keep the drinks smooth and homogeneous, and while this prevents the drink from needing to be stirred a lot, it also creates a thick mouthfeel that does not scratch the same itch as an icy slushie. This wouldn't prevent me from buying one in the future, but don't expect the same texture as those 7-Eleven Slurpees that you know and love.

My favorite of the flavors by far was the Blended Matcha Lemonade. It was fresh, light, and nicely balanced — the perfect way to consume matcha in the summertime. Of the Energy Refreshers, I enjoyed the mango-dragonfruit and the mango-strawberry flavors the most. They are bold, sweet, and memorable. If coffee just isn't what you're feeling this summer season, you can still get that energy boost with a colorful cup of Energy Refresher.

Starbucks hasn't said exactly how long it'll be keeping these drinks on the menu, and it will probably vary by location, but we know they're only for a limited time. A summer special, you should enjoy these drinks in the hot months but expect them to start to disappear as we get closer to fall.

The individual nutrition information for these drinks is available on the Starbucks website, with each grande Energy Refresher containing 105mg of caffeine and around 100 calories. They are all quite sweet, with around 19g of sugar. Meanwhile, a grande Blended Matcha Lemonade contains 150 calories, 28 grams of sugar, and 65 milligrams of caffeine.