Shaken Brown Sugar Oatmilk Espresso

This Shaken Brown Sugar Oatmilk Espresso is a Starbucks Copycat recipe made with brown sugar simple syrup, espresso, oat milk, and cinnamon. It’s easy, delicious, and in my opinion, even better than the original!

Homemade Brown Sugar Simple Syrup makes this iced drink flavorful and smooth – no gritty sugar here!

This Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso has been super popular since Starbucks added it to its menu a couple of weeks ago! We tried it and decided we could probably easily make a copycat version ourselves that was easier on the wallet and even better tasting, in my opinion!

I’ve been obsessed with coffee with brown sugar for years. One of our local coffee shops makes a drink called a cold jar which is basically an Iced Breve Latte with A LOT of brown sugar in it. So I knew I was going to love this drink too!

It helps that Starbucks shared the exact amount of pumps and shots in this drink on their website menu. What’s interesting is that this drink actually has 2 shots of espresso in a tall, normally 1, and 3 shots of espresso in a grande, normally there are only 2. So this drink really aims to pack a punch.

Popular Starbucks Copycat Recipe: Pink Drink | Banana Bread

Ingredient Notes

This Copycat Starbucks drink has 5 ingredients: brown sugar, espresso, oat milk, ground cinnamon, and ice.

The brown sugar is actually a simple syrup and not the granulated kind. You can make Brown Sugar Simple Syrup with my homemade recipe – it’s really easy to do! I use dark brown sugar because I think it adds a deeper flavor due to the high amount of molasses, but you can use light brown sugar if that’s all you have.

The espresso is Starbucks Blonde Espresso / Veranda Roast, however, when it comes to coffee drinks, I highly recommend you use the roast that you enjoy the most. We tend to prefer medium or bold roasts over light.

Oatmilk makes up the rest of the drink and we tested it a few different ways. Personally, I much preferred almond milk over oat milk. So use what you like, even dairy milk would still be delicious!

Cinnamon is the topping on this drink and honestly, it’s so much better without it in my opinion. The first time I got one of these drinks from Starbucks, the cinnamon was so overwhelming and between it and the milk, it just tasted like I was drinking oatmeal. So I think this is a totally optional topping.

Ice is key here. This isn’t a hot drink and it’s also shaken, so you’ll need lots of ice. Traditionally, Starbucks drinks are shaken and poured straight out of the shaker once cold. But if you want to keep things super chill, feel free to use the strainer of the cocktail shaker as I did.

How To Make A Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso

1. Add brown sugar syrup and espresso to a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously.
2. Strain or pour into a glass with ice.
3. Top with the oat milk and add a dash of cinnamon if desired.

Can I Make This Drink Without An Espresso Machine?

While the easiest way to prepared this drink is with an espresso machine (I have this one and love it), there are other options for making it.

• French Press – This would be my first recommendation as a substitute. French pressed coffee is smooth and flavorful and in my opinion REALLY good!
• Regular Coffee – At this point, you’re making more of an iced café au lait, but it still gets the job done.
• Instant Espresso – This is another option, but I find it to be the least palatable.

What If I Don’t Want To Make Simple Syrup?

If you don’t have time or aren’t interested in making a homemade Brown Sugar Simple Syrup (although I HIGHLY recommend it), you have two options.

• Granulated Brown Sugar – Simply add an additional 1/2 tablespoon of granulated sugar than what the recipe calls for and dissolve it in the espresso before adding ice and shaking.
• Buy It – Did you know you can buy Starbucks syrups? Or at least you were always able to when I worked there in college. Simply ask your barista if you can buy a bottle of it the next time you’re there. I think they usually cost around $15 – so it’s much cheaper to make it at home, but I totally get it if you don’t want to. Once opened, the bottle of syrup is good for 30 days and it’s a HUGE bottle.

Let’s Connect!

If you’ve tried this recipe, please let me know how you liked it in the comments below and leave a review. I love hearing from you!

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