Your friendly neighborhood Food Explorer…
Starbucks’ new Orange Mango Banana Blend Vivanno Smoothie is released today, and I got the chance to do an advanced tasting last week.
What I like about it is that it is sweet enough without being overly so. The coffee-slingers have also opted to use fresh bananas; there’s actually a written procedure with respect to banana ripeness and peeling technique. The juices come from Naked Juice.
The drink clocks in at 250 calories, 16 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber and 2 grams of fat, and it’s fairly priced at four bucks. I think this might be a winner.
There’s also a Banana Chocolate Blend, but I’d opt for the Orange Mango.
Food Geek Trivia: Some have proposed that the paisley pattern is based on the shape of the mango. – Jay Francis
This article appears in Jul 10-16, 2008.
