Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso {Starbucks Copycat Recipe} (2024)

The sweet flavors of apple brown sugar syrup, robust espresso, and creamy oat milk combine to make the ultimate fall drink: The Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso. With this easy Starbucks copycat recipe, you can make the festive autumn espresso drink at home!

Apple season is here and I am all for it! Especially when it comes to food and drink. And obviously all things Starbucks.

In 2021, Starbucks released their Apple Crisp Macchiato... A drink that combined espresso with milk and apple brown sugar syrup. I, along with many others, were pretty skeptical of the coffee and apple combination. But somehow it totally worked and was absolutely delicious. I was instantly in love.

In 2022, they released their Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato and I learned that espresso, apple, and oat milk is even more of a dream combination when served chilled. Heaven.

So, I'm thrilled that in 2023 Starbucks introduced another chilled espresso and apple drink! This one is the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and I think it's officially my favorite of the Starbucks apple drinks (though the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte they released along with it is also pretty fabulous!).

I'm excited to share my copycat recipe with you and if you love the apple shaken espresso as much as I do, I hope you'll make this version at home!

☕️ How is the iced shaken espresso different from the iced macchiato?

This is a great question! Both of these fall drinks involve espresso, apple brown sugar syrup, and oat milk, so how are they different?

Well, the shaken espresso has an extra shot of espresso (3 shots versus 2 in the macchiato) and the macchiato is quite a bit milkier than the shaken espresso.

The macchiato also has a spiced apple drizzle on it, though the shaken espresso has an extra pump of syrup.

Starbucks also claims the macchiato is made with blonde roast espresso and they don't specify what kind of espresso is used for the shaken espresso. But every time I've ordered it in store, they use blonde roast.

I personally prefer the shaken espresso because I love stronger coffee flavor, but sometimes when I make it, I use a little less syrup than the coffee shop uses.

❤️ Why you'll love this recipe

There are a million reasons to love this Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso, but my favorite thing about it is that it instantly puts me into the fall mood.

Though you may be skeptical like I once was, I urge to try this drink so you can learn that the sweet apple flavors really play off the dark robust espresso and create an incredible combination. The addition of oat milk adds a creamy oat flavor that's reminiscent of a comforting morning breakfast.

Possibly even better? The fact that the copycat version of the Apple Crisp Shaken Espresso is so easy to make at home! It's the kind of drink that can be ready in just a few minutes.

🗒 Ingredients

You don't need many ingredients for this apple drink

Here's everything you need (be sure to view the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):

• Brewed espresso: You can also use strongly brewed coffee if you prefer. I like to use blonde roast espresso
• Apple brown sugar syrup: You can make your own with the recipe I share in this post or you can buy a bottle of apple brown sugar syrup.
• Ice
• Oat milk: You can, of course, use the dairy or dairy alternative of your choice, but Starbucks makes the drink with oat milk (it's even in the drink's name, though for whatever reason, they spell it as one word!) and an alternative will change the flavor of the drink a bit.

And here's what you need if you want to make homemade apple brown sugar syrup:

• Water
• Brown sugar: I recommend using dark brown sugar for more caramel flavor, but you can certainly use light brown sugar if you prefer
• Apples
• Ground cinnamon

🍎 How to make apple brown sugar syrup

I have a whole blog post devoted to making apple brown sugar syrup (I call it apple simple syrup, but it's made with brown sugar), so be sure to check it out if you want lots of details.

But it's so easy to make, so I'll also run through it here!

Just put water, brown sugar, sliced apples, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan.

And bring the mixture to a boil.

Once boiling, lower heat and let simmer for about 15-20 minutes, until the mixture has thickened and the apples have softened.

Note that the mixture will thicken even more into a syrup as it cools.

Strain mixture into a bowl, being sure to press down on the apples with a wooden spoon or spatula to extract as much juice as possible.

Keep the syrup in the bowl or pour it into a mason jar and place it in fridge to cool completely before using.

I always keep my simple syrups in mason jars.

You should get about 1 ¼ cups of simple syrup with this recipe and it should keep for about a month when stored in an airtight container in your fridge.

🧋 How to make Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso

Now that your syrup is made and cooled or purchased, you're ready to whip up this super easy apple shaken espresso!

Just add espresso and apple brown sugar syrup into a mason jar or co*cktail shaker filled with ice.

The Starbucks order form claims the standard Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso has 3 shots of espresso in it, which equates to 3 ounces.

It also says the drink has 4 shots of syrup in it, which equates to about 2 ounces. This is pretty sweet and I sometimes add less. But I know for some people it may not be sweet enough, so feel free to experiment based on your tastes!

Shake vigorously for about 20 seconds until espresso is nice and frothy. I love how it froths up so easily.

Pour the entire contents of the shaker (ice included) into a glass.

Top with oat milk.

And that's it! I sometimes like to sprinkle more ground cinnamon over the top of my drink, but Starbucks doesn't do this.

I'm really sad to say goodbye to summer, but this iced espresso drink honestly makes me a lot less sad. I take one sip of it and am instantly in a happy fall mood.

Bring on the apple, apple cider donuts, and all things cinnamon sugar flavored. I'm a big hot drink lover, but I love a festive iced drink during the transition season.

I absolutely love that this is so easy to whip up. I try to always keep a jar of apple syrup in my fridge during the fall season, which means I can make an apple shaken espresso in just a few minutes when the craving hits.

🎉 Variations on recipe

I think this copycat recipe is pretty close to Starbucks' Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and I truly love it as is. But there are so many ingredients you can add to it and Starbucks' fans have shared so many great ideas for how to amp it up.

Here are some of the best:

• Add caramel drizzle (what goes better with apples than caramel??)
• Top with vanilla sweet cream cold foam, cinnamon sweet cream cold foam, or pumpkin cold foam if you want the ultimate fall drink
• Add cinnamon syrup for more cinnamon flavor
• Add vanilla syrup for more layers of flavor
  
• Sprinkle cinnamon over the top of your drink or drizzle with additional apple brown sugar syrup
• Substitute the oat milk for the dairy or non-dairy alternative of your choice

Of course, you can also add more or less apple brown sugar syrup or you can add more or fewer shots of espresso.

You can also easily adjust the sweetness level in this drink. Like I mentioned, 2 ounces of syrup in a grande drink is a little sweeter than I like it, so I often use less when I make this drink.

But you can also feel free to add more if you like extra sweetness and apple flavor!

🔥 Can I make this drink hot?

Technically you can't make a shaken espresso drink hot since the whole technique behind shaken espressos is to shake the coffee with ice.

If you like the idea of this drink, but in hot coffee form, I recommend making the Apple Crisp Macchiato and adding extra espresso and less oat milk.

⚡️ How much caffeine is in this drink?

According to Starbucks, there are about 255 mg of caffeine in a grande Iced Apple Crisp Shaken Espresso.

For reference, a standard grande iced coffee from Starbucks has about 165 mg caffeine in it.

🍂 More Starbucks fall drinks

There's something about Starbucks that just hits different in the fall. I love that they've been releasing new drinks every new autumn season. And I also love making my copycat versions at home. Here are some of my very favorites (but you can see all my Starbucks recipes here):

I hope you'll try making the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home and that you fall in love with it as much as I have!

Do you like the idea of combining apple and coffee for the fall season?

📖 Recipe