Meet fall’s new flavour: Starbucks Pecan Crunch Oat Latte 

Starbucks cozy new Pecan Crunch Oat Latte tastes like fall, bringing together pecan flavours, baking spices and rich brown buttery notes with the soft, beautifully balanced flavours of Starbucks Blonde Espresso. You can practically hear the crunching leaves. 

But it didn’t start this way. Patrick Penny, lead beverage developer for Starbucks, said the idea was born when the team was brainstorming ideas for a new holiday beverage.  

While the team was interviewing with more than 40 baristas and store managers, the inspiration came to him.   

“We were really focused on what people are thinking, feeling, and doing during the holidays,” Penny said. “We asked questions like, where are you going? What inspires joy? And, how could Starbucks play a role in uplifting your day during the season?” 

While they were ideating with store partners (employees) Penny turned to his own memories of his grandmother’s homemade pecan pie, and pecan as a flavour to complement coffee sparked with him. After dozens of tests, he and the team settled on a fully nondairy recipe- the Pecan Crunch Oat Latte - made with a nutty taste and aroma, along with savoury brown buttery notes. It’s topped with a creamy cap of oat beverage foam in the hot version, and a nondairy vanilla cold foam on the iced beverage. Both are finished with a few shakes of sweet and savoury pecan crunch topping.  

“The flavours in this latte evoke memories of the smell of freshly baked pecan pie, but also the warmth and connection of moments at home with family and friends ,” he said. 

During the testing phase, consumers loved the new drink but felt it was more connected to fall than the holiday season. While gathering feedback, Penny remembers they kept saying, “Oh, I could see this on a walk in the park on a crisp day with autumn leaves.” 

Starbucks decided to introduce the beverage in September, the month the season of fall officially starts, joining seasonal favourites such as the iconic  Pumpkin Spice Latte and Apple Crisp Oat Macchiato. 

“It’s fitting to these cooler days and feels like the perfect transition from classic fall beverages into holiday beverages,” Penny said. “We’ve got pumpkin, we’ve got apple, and now we’ve got pecan. It’s the ‘pie-fecta!’” 

Here is the lineup of Pecan Crunch beverages at stores in Canada starting tomorrow, September 19, for a limited time while supplies last: 

Pecan Crunch Oat Latte

Made with Starbucks® Blonde Espresso and oat beverage, this fall beverage has layers of flavour including notes of nutty pecan, rich brown butter and holiday baking spices, and is finished off with a pecan crunch topping. 

Iced Pecan Crunch Oat Latte 

Nutty flavours of pecan, rich brown buttery notes and holiday baking spices come together with Starbucks® Blonde Espresso, ice and oat beverage for a smooth, flavourful treat, topped with nondairy vanilla cold foam and pecan crunch topping. 

Salted Pecan Cream Cold Foam 

Salted Pecan Cream Cold Foam offers customers another way to customize their favourite beverage with a sweet and salty fall twist! This cold foam is made with pecan syrup and salt. Also available as nondairy.