
From the runway straight to our coffee cups, Starbucks latest drink drop is inspired by the beloved and iconic Devil Wears Prada characters. Naturally, the expectations were high—sleek, sophisticated and perhaps even a little scandalous.
What did we get? Let’s just say it’s giving… florals for spring. Don’t get us wrong, we love Starbucks—but this collection might need a bit of a makeover. Here’s what we thought.
An iced chai latte with almond beverage and caramel sounds promising. Emily Charlton would never settle for plain, but the reality here just falls flat. The chai flavour is surprisingly muted, tasting more like a sweet water rather than the bold, spicy drink you’d expect. Also, we find it hard to believe that Emily would drink anything other than black coffee—the calories for goodness sake!
Ambitious. Chic. Pragmatic. That’s classic Andrea! This drink: not so much. Her namesake beverage—an oat cappuccino with caramel and cinnamon—still seems overly complicated for a no-nonsense character. Amongst our team, reactions were mixed. A few appreciated the cinnamon flavour, while others found the caramel-cinnamon combination a bit odd, with the flavours in feud, rather than complementing each other. The oat base was too overpowering, described as powdery with a lingering and artificial aftertaste.
Runway high priestess Miranda Priestly’s order is exactly what you’d expect: a no-foam, extra-hot latte with an extra shot and non-fat milk. It’s blunt and slightly intimidating. But the taste? Surprisingly underwhelming, which is highly unlike Priestly’s character. Team Chatelaine found it thin and water-downed; and as one tester put it: Miranda is stern, but not as bitter as this latte tastes.
Nigel Kipling knows good taste—from Jimmy Choos to Manolo Blahnik and now—coffee? This is the only drink that really delivers in our books. The doppio (double shot) with mocha and con panna (a.k.a. whipped cream) blends rich espresso with chocolate; several testers compared it to a “not-too-sweet hot chocolate.” It’s more of a treat rather than an everyday order but still a clear standout from the bunch.
While the character tie-ins are fun in theory, most of the drinks unfortunately miss the mark. Dare to try? We say Nigel’s is your safest bet.
The others? That’s all.
Sarah Bauly is the editorial intern at Chatelaine. She’s driven by a passion for empowering women and creating meaningful change through storytelling. Her work has appeared in New Wave Zine, CanCulture and other Toronto-based publications. Outside of writing, she can often be found getting lost in her favourite ’80s hits, lingering in bookshops or exploring the city in search of her next go-to coffee spot.