'I Tried Starbucks' New Oleato Olive Oil Coffee Options and This Is the One I'd Order Again'

"Olive you a latte?"

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has been in the news a lot lately, but before he sparred with senators in the hot seat, he dreamt up Starbucks’ Oleato collection—AKA olive oil-infused coffee—as his parting gift to Starbucks enthusiasts before he leaves the company this month.

Oleato (pronounced “oh-lee-ah-toe” if you want to sound legit) means “oiled” in Italian. I know what you’re thinking: oiled coffee?! But it’s actually not that weird (any Bulletproof coffee fan will tell you this is nothing new). I put the new collection to the test and tried three brews in a taste test, so you don’t have to.

Here's my honest Starbucks olive oil coffee review.

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Related: Your Favorite Starbucks Drinks Will Soon Be Available in Stores

What is the new drink collection at Starbucks?

Schultz was inspired to create the beverages from a recent trip to Sicily where he was introduced to the Mediterranean custom of taking a spoonful of olive oil each day and had the idea of incorporating the olive oil into his morning coffee, saying in a press release that his creation has “an unexpected, velvety, buttery flavor that enhanced the coffee and lingers beautifully on the palate.”

Bringing the idea back to his beverage developer in Seattle (how do we get that job?), Schultz and his team learned about the different varieties of olives to eventually settle on a blend of extra virgin olive oil created just for Starbucks.

The blend, which is sold as Partanna Extra Virgin Olive Oil, includes Nocellara del Belice olives (also called Castelvetrano) which are known for their vibrant and buttery flavor (indeed, on its own, this olive oil is strong, buttery, and fruity and reviewers online absolutely rave about it) and pair with the notes of the coffee beans really well.

Three of the seven new drinks (plus an espresso martini made with olive oil) are only available at Starbucks Reserve Roasteries in Chicago, Seattle and New York: a caffè latte, an iced cortado and a cold brew. A slightly different version of the caffè latte and cold brew, plus a shaken espresso are available in certain Seattle and Los Angeles area stores, as Starbucks tests them out in select markets across the country.

Barista Sean Husak at the Chicago Reserve Roastery says Starbucks is tentatively planning to expand some of the drinks to other markets this fall. Also coming soon to select markets, customers will be able to add a pump of the Partanna extra virgin olive oil as a customization option to select beverages. The company is also planning to add the Golden Foam as a customization option for hot and cold beverages as well.

ff Fans Complain About Strange Physical Effects After Drinking Starbucks' New Olive Oil Coffee

What is in the Starbucks Oleato drinks?

The lattes are made with oat milk infused with olive oil and espresso. The only difference between the two is the kind of beans they use (Reserve espresso at the Reserve Roastery locations and a light blonde roast at the stores). The shaken espresso, available at the stores, is an infusion of toffee nut, espresso and oat milk infused with olive oil.

The cortado (perhaps the most interesting flavor profile here) is available at the Reserve Roasteries and is made with espresso, orange piloncillo syrup, orange bitters and oat milk infused with extra virgin olive oil over ice.

The cold brews have vanilla syrup and an olive oil-infused sweet cream cold foam (the Reserve Roasteries use different beans here, similar to the lattes).

The deconstructed espresso, available only in the Milan Roastery right now, is “an ode to the Italian tradition of combining olive oil with a squeeze of lemon” says the company, and includes a rich topping of passionfruit cold foam infused with olive oil.

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Related: Starbucks Fans Share First Sip Reactions to New Olive Oil Drinks

What do the Starbucks Oleato drinks taste like?

I headed to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Chicago with an Italian friend of mine (who told me that Italians do not put olive oil in their coffee) to try three of the newest caffeine creations that were available at the Roastery’s third-floor Experiential Coffee Bar. I was skeptical, but I’ll try anything once and I do love both coffee and olive oil. I will say after reading some of the comments on Twitter and Reddit, I was a bit nervous. Some reviewers have said the new coffees have made their stomachs a tad…upset shall we say? My friend and I didn’t experience this, but not drinking these coffees on an empty stomach (and not being super sensitive to higher-fat foods or drinks) may have helped us out.

Husak says he’s a big fan of the new drinks since it’s something different as opposed to just a new syrup appearing on the menu and says coffee lovers shouldn’t fret about the addition of olive oil to their morning brew, since they only add one pump per drink (or two for the larger sizes).

“The ratio of olive oil to [coffee] is low—it’s one-eighth of the drink,” Husak says. “And it always mixes with the milk.” He notes that since coffee is water-based and oil and water don’t mix, baristas infuse the olive oil into the milk so it won’t separate out.

Caffè Latte: This is the one to try if you want to tiptoe into this trend. But you have to be OK with an unsweetened, cocoa-y bitterness to your brew since this one has a bit of an astringent taste, almost akin to a glass of red wine (perhaps due to the tannins?). Towards the end of the 8-ounce mug, I could really taste the olive oil and noted that as the mug reached room temperature, the olive oil flavor was even more prevalent. Though not super unpleasant, the Partanna mingled with the cocoa flavor of the beans in a rich, dark, mysterious kind of way.

Iced Cortado: A pretty, tiny, delicate glass garnished with an orange peel, this one was more reminiscent of a fancy nightcap than an afternoon pick-me-up. The combination of the orange syrup, bitters and coffee paired with the fruitiness of the olive oil was like drinking a glass of cold iced coffee in the middle of a sunny orange grove. It wasn’t bitter at all, but there was a noticeable sheen on top that grew more and more separated (and hard to look at) as the drink sat. The olive oil dancing on top of the ice cubes made for an unexpected lip balm about halfway through drinking it. Overall, it was nicely balanced, not too sweet, and would be a good choice for someone who likes something a little different.

Golden Foam Cold Brew: The clear winner of the bunch, this one was the only one made with actual dairy cold foam instead of oat milk. It had a seriously strong olive oil scent—so much so that I was catching pleasant whiffs of it as we were sitting at our high-top table. Like many of Starbucks’ beverages with cold foam, it becomes the star of the show and was made even better by the addition of olive oil (you wouldn’t think so, but it was delicious). The vanilla bean flavor was almost nonexistent and this one was sweeter than the other two. The thickness of the foam forces you to slow down and savor each sip as it melts and runs together, rather than gulping it down like you’re in some kind of caffeine competition.

The verdict: Although I did like the cortado and the cold brew, it’s just not something I would order every day. They’re the kind of drinks that you order just to tell your friends you ordered them, not because you really love them (especially at $8 a pop). When Starbucks does decide to roll out this collection nationwide, it won't be a “run, don’t walk” type of situation but rather a “saunter in and order if you’re feeling it” type of situation.

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