Marion Olive Oil Company Sets Record Straight on New Starbucks Trend

Starbucks announced a new line of drinks coming to their menu that has coffee lovers curious.

Three new beverages containing a spoonful of olive oil are available for sale at Starbucks in Italy starting this week, with plans of coming to the United States this spring.

Is there any real benefit to adding a spoonful of olive oil to coffee? A couple of olive oil connoisseurs in Marion say yes.

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Starbucks Launches “Oleato”

Oleato is the line of coffee beverages that will bring together Starbucks arabica coffee and a spoonful of Partanna cold pressed, extra virgin olive oil.

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“The result is velvety smooth, delicately sweet, and lush coffee that uplifts each cup with an extraordinary new flavor and texture,” said Starbucks.

A trip to Italy inspired Starbucks interim chief executive officer Howard Shultz to incorporate olive oil into the menu, where he discovered a tradition that has existed in regions of Italy for generations.

“Oleato has opened our eyes to fresh new possibilities and a transformational way to enjoy our daily coffee,” he said.

What’s the Point?

Kelly and John Zucco have been the proud owners of Ripe From the Vine Oil & Vinegar Company since 2020. I asked Kelly straight out. Is there any benefit to olive oil in coffee?

“Olive oil is one of the healthiest things you can add to your diet,” she said. “Coffee is somewhat of a craze, and if that’s the one way you can get it in, do it.”

Zucco explained that Polephynol found in olive oil helps eliminate free radicals in the body and provides all kinds of health benefits, from your skin to your cholesterol levels.

“It’s not weird to drink olive oil,” added Zucco, “We have clients that come in to buy it and take shots of it. But what may be weird is adding it to a hot beverage. Heat will break down some of the health benefits of the oil.”

Zucco recommends consuming olive oil in its rawest form but adding it in any way to your diet has a lot of positive attributes.

Ripe From The Vine’s motto is “try before you buy,” so if you are curious, check out their tasting room first before hopping in line at Starbucks.

From the sounds of it, though, this odd trend may be worth a shot.