Has Starbucks Ever Sold Soda?

Since its creation in the 1970s, Starbucks has been known for its multitude of signature beverages. From iced coffees to energy drinks, the brand is not afraid to get creative. While at first, Starbucks focused solely on coffee, the company has expanded to sell a whole range of thirst-quenching specialties including Refreshers, lemonades, tea, frozen drinks, and more. Starbucks has even experimented with sodas — it still has some on the menu today.

Starbucks' soda selection has gone through an interesting evolution since its introduction in the 2010s. Today, Starbucks soda comes in two flavors from a third-party provider – the organic, probiotic soda known as OliPop and Brew DR. Kombucha — both of which are considered perfect for Starbucks patrons looking for something new and not too unhealthy. However, Starbucks' current soda lineup is very small compared with projections the company made in 2014 when Fizzio, Starbucks' original handcrafted soda, first launched.

In 2014, Starbucks wanted to offer more cold, non-coffee beverages during the summertime. While the brand had experimented with iced tea following its 2012 purchase of Teavana, it planned to add more to this side of the menu. Thus, Fizzio was born.

The handcrafted soda was the first of its kind at Starbucks and came in three old-school flavors: spiced root beer, golden ginger ale, and lemon ale. Instead of coming prepackaged in cans or bottles, Fizzio was made in the shop with a Fizzio machine, which allowed customers to decide how much carbonation they wanted in their drink.

Fizzio was seen as a massive venture, highlighting Starbucks as a company that wanted to break into the carbonated beverage scene. However, Fizzio failed to deliver and ultimately fell flat. For starters, the drink was only available at select locations, meaning that many people were completely unaware that the soda existed. Beyond this, a general lack of sales throughout its initial limited-time offer led to a quiet discontinuation of Fizzio in 2016, leaving Starbucks to focus on other cold drink ventures like the ever-popular Refreshers we all know and love today.