How Much The Fruitcake Frappuccino Costs

On Thursday, Starbucks unveiled its latest holiday drink: The Fruitcake Frappuccino. Coffee drinkers and Frapp fans are awash with questions: What’s in a Fruitcake Frappuccino? How much does the Fruitcake Frappuccino cost? What does it taste like? Also, er, WHY?

For a brief time, Starbucks holiday faves like the Gingerbread Latte and Peppermint Mocha will be joined by the Fruitcake Frapp, a drink that joins together everyone’s favorite cold blended beverage with the most polarizing item on the Christmas menu: Fruitcake. The holiday classic — a dense cake filled with candied or dried fruit and nuts, and often soaked in booze — has been the butt of jokes for decades. In 1985, for example, Johnny Carson said on The Tonight Show, “The worst Christmas gift is fruitcake. There is only one fruitcake in the entire world, and people keep sending it to each other.” As much flak as fruitcake gets, however, there are lots of people who absolutely love it and see it as an essential part of their holiday celebrations.

In it’s tribute to the Fruitcake, Starbucks is starting with a Hazelnut Crème Frappuccino base, and then adding dried fruit, cinnamon, and whipped cream, topped with caramel dots and a dusting of matcha. It’s caffeine-free and costs between $4.25 and $4.95 for a Tall (12 oz.), depending on the market.

Fruitcake is known for its long shelf life — the U.S. Department of Agriculture says that it can last in the fridge for up to three months, but others suggest that it can last a lot longer than that. The Christian Science Monitor claims, for example, that a fruitcake can last for up to 25 years in the right conditions. But although fruitcake may be practically immortal, the Fruitcake Frappuccino is certainly not — in fact it will have a decidedly short lifespan of only a single weekend. That’s right — if you want to experience the Fruitcake Frappuccino for yourself, you’ll have to hop on the fruitcake train soon, because the Fruitcake Frapp will only be available from today through this weekend. Enjoy!

Images courtesy of Starbucks.