How Much Caffeine Is In The New Chile Mocha

Get ready for a major mic drop from Starbucks: scootch over Pumpkin Spice, and make some room for Chile Mocha, too. Yes, yes, I know, your tastebuds are exploding with anticipated excitement, and your yearning for fall is in full force, and you want the answers to *important* questions like: is there caffeine in the Chile Mocha at Starbucks? And what exactly is in it? And how spicy is it really? And how's it going to make you feel? And how much heat does it pack?

I'm happy to say that I have the answers for you. First of all, the drink will be available in the United States and Canada beginning September 6, with early access on September 3 if you are a Starbucks Rewards member. (Non-members, get on it! You can get FREE DRINKS just for buying drinks!) Despite the fact that this decadent drink sounds like it's entirely geared towards flavor-boosting rather than energy-boosting, a 12-ounce cup (Tall) will contain 80 milligrams of caffeine. While that's less than half of a regular coffee that contains 260 milligrams of caffeine, it's not nothing. It will definitely give you a little boost. And the spices, oh, the spices! They will certainly make up for any lack of caffeine with their mega *POW* flavor. And if you prefer to stay away from caffeine, you can order this drink in decaf, too.

The creative recipe team at Starbucks spent a lot of time getting this drink down just right. They tested out tons of seasonal spices and heat-forward spices to see which ones work best together when combined with coffee. What they found was that the traditional fall spices paired really well with bold heat spices like cayenne and ancho chili pepper. Lots of foodies like to play around with chocolate and spices — while they might not seem like an obvious match, they embrace each other when mixed together. This is why the drink process begins when the spices are mixed with the cocoa and steamed together with two percent milk.

The spice doesn't stop there, though; the drink is garnished with a refreshing dollop of whipped cream, and then dusted with a spice topping of ancho chili pepper, sea salt, cinnamon, paprika, cayenne chili pepper and sugar. This gourmet addition to the fall drink line-up at Starbucks will certainly satisfy the foodies who love brave taste combinations like spices and sweets. And it adds a much needed flavor to the Pumpkin Spice-dominated fall drink line up. Now you can stand out with a different flavor that's just as thematically fall and just as warming and cozy. It's the same idea, but a different flavor profile. Oh, and if it's still to warm out for you to sip on a hot drink, you can order it as an ice-blended drink or Frappuccino and enjoy it now! Everybody wins!

Images: Courtesy of Starbucks