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Starbucks offers less grande option

"Light" Frappucinos will try to make the popular drink's nutritional profile in line with an average cup of joe.

TAMPA - The mercury topped 90 degrees Tuesday outside a Starbucks coffee shop on S Dale Mabry Highway as Denise Fedorenchik cooled off with a grande mocha Frappuccino, something she treats herself to about four times a week.

The 51-year-old operating room nurse is well aware of the roughly 420 calories found in the chocolate, coffee and whipped cream concoction. But then, Fedorenchik hadn't eaten a thing all day, so "this is breakfast and lunch," she said with a smile.

"If you're drinking these on top of (a meal), that's another matter," she said.

It may seem counterintuitive to say that coffee is fattening - and, indeed, a regular cup of joe at Starbucks has just 10 calories. But add a little milk, a splash of chocolate or a squirt of whipped cream and things can get considerably more caloric.

Hoping to appeal to more calorie-conscious coffee drinkers, Starbucks today will launch "light" versions of its Frappuccino drinks, made with lower-fat milk and artificial sweeteners. A 12-ounce serving of the new light drink will have 110 calories and 1 gram of fat, compared with 190 calories and 2.5 grams of fat for the regular version.

The Seattle-based chain of coffee shops also plans to stock stores with brochures detailing nutritional information about all their drinks. The same data has been available on Starbucks' Web site for about a year.

The new low-cal initiative may come as a surprise to some coffee drinkers. A 16-ounce nonfat latte weighs in at a meager 160 calories, but the same size mocha - with whole milk and whipped cream - jumps up to 400 calories.

The sweet, summery frozen drinks can be even more tempting - and sinful. The largest Java Chip Frappuccino tips the scales at 650 calories - 50 calories more than a Big Mac - and contains 25 grams of fat, compared with 33 grams for the Big Mac.

Diane Javelli, a clinical dietitian with the University of Washington in Seattle, said many people do not count the calories they slurp, whether it's coffee, juice or soda.

"I think often we have the perception if we're drinking it, it doesn't have to have calories," she said.

When compiling a diet history, Javelli often walks through her patient's coffee drink choice, breaking down everything from flavoring to milk fat.

She doesn't necessarily recommend cutting out lattes altogether - after all, there is protein, calcium and vitamin D in that milk - but she does often counsel patients to try a smaller size or limit themselves to just a few drinks a week.

For kids, however, Javelli is more cautious. The fat and calories in drinks like Frappuccinos might be enough to give a parent pause, she said, and the caffeine is just an added stimulant that youngsters probably don't need.

Despite the increased attention to obesity in America, Starbucks senior vice president Michelle Gass said the company has not seen a backlash from customers suddenly worried about how fattening their coffee is. The new light drinks and brochures, she said, "are just part of, in general, us trying to answer consumer needs."

Carl Sibilski, an analyst with Morningstar in Chicago, said he has not seen any evidence that sales of the higher-calorie Frappuccinos are down. The move to offer light drinks follows an industry trend toward more healthy foods, which could expand Starbucks' customer base, he said.

Still, he doubts the light Frappuccinos will be a blockbuster item. "I don't think that people are thinking about calories or the health of the products they buy when they go into a Starbucks," he said.

Instead, he said, people seem to see their Starbucks drinks as an affordable indulgence they deserve.

Gass said Starbucks spent two years perfecting a light Frappuccino that still tastes good. But she does not expect it to lure away those who are loyal to the originals - people like Fedorenchik.

"It may taste okay," she said, but added, "If you're a coffee drinker, you come in for a certain taste."

Javelli notes that reducing your caloric intake by 250 calories a day can lead to a weight loss of half a pound per week.

"Some of those coffee drinks might be the difference between losing half a pound a week or not, even though they're the light ones," she said.

Starbucks's shares closed Tuesday at $43.21, down 6 cents.

- Times staff writer Louis Hau contributed to this report.

A cup of black coffee has just 10 calories, Starbucks says, but an espresso drink laden with milk, flavoring and whipped cream can be almost a meal in itself.

Nonfat latte: 160 calories, 0 grams of fat.

Vanilla latte, with whole milk: 280 calories, 10 grams of fat.

Chai latte with nonfat milk: 230 calories, 0 grams of fat.

Mocha with whole milk and whipped cream: 400 calories, 22 grams of fat.

Caramel Frappuccino, with whipped cream: 430 calories, 16 grams of fat.

Light caramel Frappuccino, without whipped cream: 180 calories, 1.5 grams of fat.

Strawberries & Creme Frappuccino Blended Creme, without whipped cream: 470 calories, 5 grams of fat.

Strawberries & Creme Frappuccino Blended Creme, with whipped cream: 600 calories, 17 grams of fat.

- Source: Starbucks Corp.