This Starbucks Mango Dragonfruit Refresher Dupe Has No Added Sugar or Caffeine

It seems as though coffee chains release new drinks on a regular basis, and Starbucks is no exception. Their extremely popular Refreshers have new flavors popping up every season, joining their regular lineup of flavors, so there are at least a dozen options available at any given time.

Now I have no problem admitting that most of the time, I’ll choose coffee over tea as my beverage of choice. But I do like the occasional glass of iced tea, particularly if it’s raspberry-flavored like the one that my dad and I used to order at our local diner. So when I had the opportunity to try Teapigs' Cold Brew Tea, I was intrigued by the wide variety of fruity flavors. I was also impressed by their commitment to sustainability—they’re a plastic-free company and B Corp-certified, which means they meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.

I brewed up three flavors at home—peach and mango, blackcurrant and raspberry, and lychee and rose. To make the tea, I added one of the tea temples (what the company calls its pyramid-shaped tea bags) to a glass of cold water and let it steep for seven minutes. (For a stronger flavor, you can let it steep longer, but Teapigs recommends consuming it within eight hours.)  

The blackcurrant-raspberry flavor reminded me of that glass of raspberry iced tea my dad and I loved so much. Since these three flavors are caffeine-free, I could enjoy a glass with dinner without messing up my sleep schedule. I’m not the biggest fan of floral rose-flavored drinks. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find it didn’t overpower the fruitiness of the lychee tea. I liked it enough to get a little creative and brew it in cold sparkling water for a delicious, bubbly beverage. 

But the peach and mango tea was by far my favorite. It was reminiscent of the Starbucks Mango Dragonfruit Refresher—minus the bright pink color and added sugar. A 16-ounce Mango Dragonfruit Refresher contains 19 grams of sugar, or about 38% of the recommended Daily Value (which is 50 grams) in a single drink. I didn’t find myself missing the sugar, though, since the combo of white hibiscus, apple, sweet blackberry leaves, beetroot, peach and mango give the brew a natural sweetness. I liked it so much I’ve already incorporated this into my weekly beverage rotation, popping a tea temple in a Mason jar in the morning and keeping it in the fridge until lunch.

The Bottom Line

I really enjoyed all three of the cold brew teas, and as someone who values sustainable companies, I’m excited to eventually try out more of Teapigs’ products. If you’re a fan of Starbucks refreshers or are just looking for a new fun drink, I highly recommend giving these teas a try. Not only will you save some money and cut down on sugar, but you’ll be supporting a sustainable company.