Drinks

From the Blue Mountains of Jamaica to Seattle

Coffee in barrels? You may have thought barrels are for wine and coffee always comes in burlap bags. But no – it turns out that world-famous Jamaica Blue Mountain® coffee also travels in wooden barrels, and we’re delighted to see some land in our cupping room.

Right from the moment we opened those barrels, we knew this coffee is something special. The beans are a beautiful, slightly blue-green color. In the cup, this coffee is balanced with soft sweet citrus notes and a classic creamy milk chocolate finish. To carry the Jamaica Blue Mountain® name, the coffee must be grown in one of the island’s Blue Mountain parishes at altitudes of up to 5,000 feet. It is processed under strict quality control guidelines set forth by the Jamaica Coffee Board.

A Cup of Low-Cal Goodness

You may already know that coffee and tea are naturally low in calories. In fact, a Grande brewed coffee (16 fl oz) has only about 5 calories and a Grande brewed tea has 0 calories, so both are good choices for those seeking a delicious, low-cal pick-me-up.

If you like a little added sweetness, here are some of my favorite customizations. (All nutritional info per Grande 16 fl oz size.)

• Iced Coffee with 1 packet of sugar – 25 calories, 0g fat, 6g sugar, 0g protein.
• Iced Coffee with Milk made “skinny” with one serving of sugar-free sweetener* and a splash (say 2 fl oz) of nonfat milk – 25 calories, 0g fat, 3g sugar, 2g protein.
• Tazo® Shaken Iced Passion Tea made “skinny” with one serving of sugar-free sweetener* – 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g sugar, 0g protein.
• Tazo® Awake™ Tea Latte made “skinny” with one serving of sugar-free sweetener* – 80 calories, 0g fat, 11g sugar (from milk), 8g protein.

*This could be a packet of Sweet’N Low®, Splenda®, Equal® or a few pumps of one of our sugar-free syrups.

Knowing all this, treating yourself to a delicious cup of coffee or tea has never felt so good!

How to Skinny Your Beverage

You’ve probably heard of our sinfully delicious, guilt-free Skinny Lattes – available in Caramel, Vanilla, Hazelnut and Cinnamon Dolce. These treats each come in around 90 calories, 0g fat and 9g protein for a Tall (12 fl oz) serving. Plus they have about 30% of your U.S. daily value in calcium.

But with a few simple substitutions, you can make just about any drink Skinny. One of my favorites is a Skinny Caramel Macchiato. It’s not on the menu – it’s simply a Caramel Macchiato made with nonfat milk and sugar-free vanilla syrup. You can still keep the caramel drizzle topping for a little added indulgence and have only about 110 calories.

Here is how to make your favorite drink Skinny:

• Opt for nonfat milk. That saves up to 120 calories and 15g fat.
• Switch to sugar-free syrup. That trims off about 20 calories and 5g sugar per pump of syrup!
• Hold the whip. Whipped cream adds about 50 to 110 calories and 5 to 11g of fat to your drink.

Here are some additional ways to shave calories in your favorite drink: