Starbucks offers coffee drinks infused with olive oil

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Coffee and olive oil will be fused in a new beverage line that Starbucks says will launch in Italy soon.

For Starbucks drinkers in Italy, the new line of coffee drinks, Oleato, will be available on Wednesday, the coffeehouse company said. The olive oil-infused lineup includes Oleato Caffe Latte, Oleato Iced Shake Espresso, and Oleato Golden Foam Cold Brew.

The mermaid logo on a sign outside a Starbucks coffee shop on March 14, 2022 in Londonderry, NH (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File/AP Newsroom)

The Oleato beverages feature Starbucks coffee that is “deliciously infused with a scoop of extra virgin olive oil from Partanna,” the company said in a press release on Tuesday. The olive oil blend that Partanna produced for the company contains the “finest Mediterranean olives, including the high-quality Nocellara del Belice (also called Castelvetrano) olives from Partanna, Sicily.”

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Starbucks said it plans to expand the launch to a few other markets around the world this year.

In the additional introduction, the Oleato line will arrive in the Southern California region sometime in the spring. Starbucks fans in the Japan, Middle East and UK markets will also receive it in 2023, according to the company.

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Coffee lovers in certain markets have the option to customize their drinks by adding a “squeeze” of the olive oil or golden foam, Starbucks said. The company said the olive oil “squeeze” can be poured into select beverages, while the foam will be available as a topping for hot or cold beverages.

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The inspiration for the Oleato line comes from a tradition among some Italians “to enjoy a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil each day as an uplifting ritual,” Starbucks said.

Interim CEO Howard Schultz, who will be replaced by Laxman Narasimhan in April, had visited Italy over the summer and was “intrigued by a transformational idea” of combining coffee and olive oil, he said in a message published on the company’s website.

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz speaks during the company’s annual stockholders meeting in Seattle March 19, 2014. (Portal/David Ryder/Portal photos)

The “Sirens” logo hangs outside a Starbucks coffee shop in Boston on July 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa/AP Newsroom)

“As I prepare to pass the leadership role to Laxman and the rest of the Executive Leadership Team, it is my deepest desire to share this moment of inspiration and love with you,” Schultz wrote. “This innovation celebrates the unifying power of coffee and connections, and the entrepreneurial spirit that drives us to new possibilities.”

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The Starbucks Reserve Roastery Milan is also releasing some special oleato drinks for the unveiling. Among the five are a frozen cortado and an espresso martini, according to the press release.