It is time. (Insert Rafiki from “The Lion King” GIF here.)

The holiday beverages are out at Starbucks, and surprisingly, there’s a new Refresher on the menu. Typically any new Refresher varieties come out during the warmer months, so this was super intriguing to see. The new drink is the Cran-Merry Orange Refresher, which has orange, cranberry, and spice flavors mixed with water and cranberry inclusions, which just means cranberry pieces.

I enjoy the other Starbucks Refreshers, so I was certainly eager to give this one a go. My colleague loved it (read more about that later), so the bar was set high. It’s a beautiful cranberry-red color, so this drink certainly looks festive. As for the taste, I found it good. Not amazing, not bad… just good.

There’s definitely a fun mix of flavors here. First, I tasted the cranberry, then the orange, and then the spices at the end. The spices cut the berry’s tartness – this is definitely NOT a cranberry juice. I like the fact that it’s not overwhelmingly tart or sweet yet still tastes like something you’d drink during the holidays. The cranberry inclusions are a fun addition, but I don’t think they enhance the flavor.

But again, this is just good. It didn’t knock my socks off, but I liked it. It’s a different flavor combination compared to the other Refreshers in the lineup, but I’d pick others that I like better.

Like any of the other Starbucks Refreshers, you can order this with either lemonade or coconutmilk added to it. While I haven’t tried either of those modifications, my colleague got the lemonade version and RAVED about it. I’m thinking I’ll like it better than the standard version, so it’s on my list to try soon.

Purchased Price: $5.25
Size: Grande
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 100 calories, 0 grams of total fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 10 milligrams of sodium, 23 grams of total carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 20 grams of total sugars, 0 grams of protein, and 55 milligrams of caffeine.

Starbucks’ Glinda’s Pink Potion is a pretty potation. However, when I peer at the peppy pink portion, I can’t help but picture Pepto-Bismol. If only Pepto-Bismol pleased the palate as much as this product does.

The Wicked-inspired creation features a Mango Dragonfruit Starbucks Refreshers Beverage hand-shaken with creamy coconut milk, ice, and a scoop of real, freeze-dried dragonfruit. Then, it’s topped with nondairy strawberry cold foam and colorful candy sprinkles.

Here on this rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, there’s a local rainbow cake recipe with guava, passion fruit, and lime flavors. Even though Glinda’s Pink Potion has none of those, its taste brings to mind that delicious rainbow cake. Both cake and potion are fruity, tangy, tropical, perfectly sweet, and delightful to the tongue and eyes.

Surprisingly, one of the ingredients that gives this drink its Barbie-pink color when combined with the Starbucks Refresher base and one that I thought would add to the beverage’s tropical kick, the coconut milk, isn’t noticeable to my taste buds.

With previous Starbucks drinks I’ve had with dragon fruit pieces, I thought the freeze-dried fruit were more there for appearances than flavor. However, with this one, whenever one of those bits happens to escape through the hole in the sipping lid, there’s a burst of fruitiness. But, while there were many dragon fruit pieces, most were trapped in the cup after drinking the potion. As for the candy sprinkles, they definitely were there more for looks than adding sweetness.

Glinda’s Pink Potion has a bit of caffeine in it, but with its tasty tropical flavor, I found it to be more of a relaxing drink instead of a pick-me-up. Much like Pepto-Bismol, this drink made my tummy happy.

Purchased Price: $7.15
Size: Venti/24 fl oz
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 320 calories, 12 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 105 milligrams of sodium, 49 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 44 grams of sugar, 3 grams of protein, and 60 milligrams of caffeine.

As part of the fall launch lineup, Starbucks added two additional non-pumpkin flavored beverages to the mix. These are app exclusives: the Iced Caramel Apple Cream Latte and the Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White.

Let me start by saying that I am all about fall, y’all. I celebrate the PSL season like it’s an official holiday. This year’s celebration included driving about 500 miles round trip on launch day to experience the Ultimate Pumpkin Spice Experience at a Starbucks Roastery.

That aside, I don’t discriminate when it comes to fall delights. While I revel in pumpkin spice, I equally love apple cider, apple cider slushies, apple cider donuts, and apple picking. But I’m adding Starbucks’ new Iced Honey Apple Almondmilk Flat White to my fall delights list.

Coffee snobbery aside about the merits of Starbucks making a “real flat white” or that flat whites can’t be iced, it’s a perfect fall beverage to sip on.

Per the coffee chain, it features “almondmilk and Starbucks Blonde Espresso Roast, poured over ice with a hint of honey – topped with silky, nondairy cold foam infused with apple brown sugar-flavored syrup.”

This drink works beautifully to create a perfect fall experience. The apple brown sugar syrup is a thing of beauty. Though it’s only in the nondairy cold foam, apple dominates the flavor, followed by the floral notes of sweet honey. The cold foam adds an incredibly creamy texture. I was amazed by the silky texture of the nondairy cold foam. I couldn’t believe it wasn’t dairy! Incredible.

Blonde espresso is the perfect choice, offering a mildness – compared to the regular dark roast – that lets all the flavors shine and ties everything together with that distinct espresso finish.

If you’re torn between this and the new Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai, they’re both really tasty beverages and actually tastes fairly similar except for the end note (apple pie from the chai vs. espresso), so it really is up to whether you feel like drinking coffee or tea!

Purchased Price: $5.95
Size: Tall
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 180 calories, 7 grams of total fat, 0.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 105 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of total carbohydrates, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 24 grams of total sugars, 3 grams of protein and 150 milligrams of caffeine.