Starbucks Chantico

[plax]

Anyone else tried the new Starbucks Chantico? I was at a drive through last night waiting for my standard raspberry mocha and saw the ad. The barista told me it was a "thick, rich hot chocolate" and he was pretty correct. It was both thick and had a dark chocolate flavor, served in a fairly tiny cup-- smaller than a tall coffee. I liked it, and will probably experiment with adding a flavored shot.

Neil

[mamster]

I tried it today, and I was impressed. My benchmark over-the-top hot chocolate is the one I make at home from Pierre Herme's recipe. Chantico was, I'd say, 90% as good. It's missing a bit of the throatiness of really good cocoa powder, and I'd cut the sugar back just a tiny bit, but nothing about it tasted fake or prefab. I also think a 4oz serving would be more appropriate than 6oz, but I guess they couldn't really sell a 4oz drink for $3.

edit: also, the name is hard to say and hard to remember. Couldn't they call it 'sweet chocolate lovin' or something similarly inappropriate?

Edited January 8, 2005 by mamster (log)

[Ari]

I'm drinking one right now, and I approve. This is the kind of hot chocolate that, until now, I'd only been able to find in Europe or at places like La Maison du Chocolat.

Though given that the online nutritional profile pegs the drink with 21 grams of fat, I'm thinking this may only be a "sometimes" indulgence.

(I also question how much of this they're going to be able to sell down here in Miami, where it's currently January and 81 degrees.)

[bbqer]

After reading these comments, I had to go across the street from my office and get one. Agree with all the observations I've read. It is very intense, chocolatety, and lots of nice mouthfill. I'd cut the sweetness though...it's a bit over the top for my taste. But for chocoholics, it is a fine sipping beverage that satisfies substantially. Nestles Quik it ain't.

[LEdlund]

Though given that the online nutritional profile pegs the drink with 21 grams of fat, I'm thinking this may only be a "sometimes" indulgence. 

←

I'm drinking one right now and I almost did a spit take when I saw that. Wow! 21 grams of fat!

That said, I do like it - but I really like my afternoon coffee. I wonder if I can get a shot of espresso in it...that would take up some of the room that the fat takes.

[wordplay]

I decided to try Chantico with a co-worker after lunch the other day; as an incurable chocoholic, I admit that all the hype had me curious. Also, I wanted to see how it measured up to City Bakery's hot chocolate.

Chantico has the same velvety texture, and with the first sip I thought, Wow! By the fourth or fifth, I started to feel a little ill and had to stop drinking it. I was sugar-buzzed the rest of the afternoon and kept chugging water to feel better. I agree: It's a bit over the top. I probably won't have another one for a few months. I'd rather make my usual Ibarra hot chocolate at home.

[NulloModo]

Though given that the online nutritional profile pegs the drink with 21 grams of fat, I'm thinking this may only be a "sometimes" indulgence. 

←

I'm drinking one right now and I almost did a spit take when I saw that. Wow! 21 grams of fat!

That said, I do like it - but I really like my afternoon coffee. I wonder if I can get a shot of espresso in it...that would take up some of the room that the fat takes.

←

Eh, the really scarey part of it is the 40 grams of sugar... Twice as much sugar as a coke in half as much liquid, yowza.

[Chef Shogun]

It sounds nice as a concept, but for the most part, Chantico scares me! 21 grammes of fat? 40 grammes of sugar?? That's insane, and I'm not one usually given to freaking out over stuff like that! Somebody posted an article on this to totalfark.com, and somebody replied that they will also sell you Chantico in normal sized cups, with 20oz going for $5.60. Who knows if this is true, but wow! Still, have to try it ('standard' size, please) once, though.

[jgm]

I think a little perspective would be good here. I can't even begin to perceive this as a beverage. I perceive it to be in the dessert category. Starbucks would probably love it if I'd have one every day, but I'm not going to let them make that decision for me. We've all (ok well many, but not all, of us) gotten into the habit of allowing food purveyors' marketing departments make our eating decisions for us, and that's why so many of us in America are overweight. Me included.

Something this intensely flavored, fatted, and sugared is something to enjoy maybe once a week at the most; for many it would be nowhere near that often. I don't obsess about the calories and fat in a good piece of chocolate cake; I don't consume mediocre chocolate cake. If it ain't worth the calories, I don't eat it. Ditto with this stuff. As far I'm concerned, this is a dessert, not a beverage, and that's the status it will have in my life. And that's why I don't care how many grams of anything are in it. It's a once-in-awhile thing.

[phaelon56]

I guess it's really a big liquid candy bar served hot... correct? I'll be curious to try it but will most likely split it with my GF - in her words I'll be "saving the calories for something more worthwhile" (that's how she stays so skinny! )

My first task is to check out what are reputed to be the best hot chocolates in Paris when I vacation there next week. Then I'll try a Chantico and try to make a comparative assessment.

[Gastro888]

Based on what y'all said, I guess the one I had in the MD suburbs wasn't prepared right. They gave me a sample and it was oily and lacked any substance. There wasn't any mouthfeel at all (except the oil slick) and there wasn't a deep, rich, chocolately taste.

I'll stick with Lake Champlain hot chocolate instead...

[Ari]

I think a little perspective would be good here.  I can't even begin to perceive this as a beverage.  I perceive it to be in the dessert category. 

←

I have to agree. In fact, the company website calls chantico "a drinkable dessert." Even though I won't drink it often, I think it's a good thing to be able to find a small, dark, intense cup of chocolate on any streetcorner in America. (Starbucks is on every streetcorner in America by now, isn't it?)

[mamster]

phaelon, Chantico is very much in line with the hot chocolates of Paris. It's the same type of beverage, and (based on little experience) it's better than the worst of Paris and worse than the best.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to 7-11 for a 44 oz Chantico Super Big Gulp.

[CharityCase]

phaelon, Chantico is very much in line with the hot chocolates of Paris. It's the same type of beverage, and (based on little experience) it's better than the worst of Paris and worse than the best.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to 7-11 for a 44 oz Chantico Super Big Gulp.

←

A drinkable dessert with more fat than a McChicken sandwich from McDonald's?

Creepy. And again I must say Starbucks = creepy.

[Misa]

I had one of them the other night. They're really good! I wish they'd serve it in a smaller cup - I'm a big "sweets" person and a HUGE chocolate fan, but I couldn't finish more than about half. However, I realize most people wouldn't pay for a smaller cup.

I've considered trying another one with flavoring, but... it is so good the way it is that I don't know if that wouldn't ruin it.

[baranoouji]

c_ruark told me about this Chantico stuff. He also mentioned something about 540 kCal per serving? :boggle: I think this stuff must be basically be liquid truffles!

[joiei]

the nutrition breakdown of a cup of chantico is here

I don't think I will be trying one soon.

[EdS]

I had a free sample today. I expected it to be awful but was pleasantly surprised. Good chocolate flavor. I only wish it weren't so sweet. I think it has too much sugar and borders on sickly sweet to my taste. I think America's favorite flavor is sweet so I think they're just pandering to that.

[SBonner]

This stuff is horrid! Too sweet, almost chalky in texture, and not what I expected. Starbuck's need to go to Barcelona and see how real chocolate is made.

Stephen

Vancouver Canada

[kellycolorado]

I believe 40 grams is the same as a 12 ounce Coke, but still... wow!

The paper had a full page ad talking about free Chantico day last week and I missed it. Maybe I'm not too late for a sample though. I don't think I could drink a whole 6 oz. I like my chocolate semisweet.

Eh, the really scarey part of it is the 40 grams of sugar... Twice as much sugar as a coke in half as much liquid, yowza.

←

Edited January 27, 2005 by kellycolorado (log)

[Toliver]

I believe 40 grams is the same as a 12 ounce Coke, but still... wow! 

←

I believe 4 grams of sugar is equal to a teaspoon. So that's 10 teaspoons of sugar in one serving.

[sHAGGY] ZOINKS! [/sHAGGY]

[ComeUndone]

Just came back from Starbucks and had my first Chantico. Nutritional concern aside, I would rank this drink as a very decent European-style hot chocolate. I agree with the comment that it is better than the worst and inferior to the best chocolat chaud I had in Paris.

The best part, of course, is the fact that it is so widely available!

[phaelon56]

Just came back from Starbucks and had my first Chantico. Nutritional concern aside, I would rank this drink as a very decent European-style hot chocolate. I agree with the comment that it is better than the worst and inferior to the best chocolat chaud I had in Paris.

The best part, of course, is the fact that it is so widely available!

←

I finally tried it yesterday and more or less agree with ComeUndone. But there was a sort of aftertaste that I noticed after finishing the entire cup. Can't quite place it but I'm guessing it's an artifact from whatever stabilizers they use to keep the texture and consistency stable.

I did find it to be excessively sweet - if they would ratchet down the sweetness by about 50% I'd be inclined to get it more often. For now I think it will be an occasional dessert option when I'm stuck in an airport and Starbucks is available.

[bbqer]

I did find it to be excessively sweet - if they would ratchet down the sweetness by about 50% I'd be inclined to get it more often. For now I think it will be an occasional dessert option when I'm stuck in an airport and Starbucks is available.

←

Amen on the sweetness. I probably won't have it again because it's way too sweet for my taste. But oh, that chocolate intensity!

[emmalish]

I decided to try Chantico with a co-worker after lunch the other day; as an incurable chocoholic, I admit that all the hype had me curious. Also, I wanted to see how it measured up to City Bakery's hot chocolate.

Chantico has the same velvety texture, and with the first sip I thought, Wow! By the fourth or fifth, I started to feel a little ill and had to stop drinking it. I was sugar-buzzed the rest of the afternoon and kept chugging water to feel better. I agree: It's a bit over the top. I probably won't have another one for a few months. I'd rather make my usual Ibarra hot chocolate at home.

←

I had pretty much the same experience. A co-worker was raving about them one day and went out and bought one for each of us in the department. I'm a complete chocoholic as well, and while the chocolatey-ness was great, I started to feel ill after a couple sips. It was just too much for me. It was like drinking chocolate syrup. Delicious chocolate syrup, but too sweet for a drink. I couldn't drink more than about 1/4 of it.