When did "skinny" stop meaning "skim milk" and start meaning skim milk AND sugar-free ? I usually get drip coffee, but the grinder was broken, so I got a "skinny mocha". The damn thing was disgusting, and a bit of googling led me to the realization that saying skinny got me sugar free chocolate syrup.
To make matters worse, the starbucks website has a blank where the nutriton info is supposed to be, so I can't tell what kind of artificial sweetener I accidentally consumed. If it's aspartame, I'll be throwing up soon. ARRGGH!!!
Anybody know when this happened, and/or what kind of sweetener they use?
thanks.
Can't answer your questions but I will say that as a non-Starbucks barista I find all the code words very confusing. I'm not sure what the point of them is. "Skinny" isn't any quicker to say than "nonfat" and it is evidently more ambiguous. I have another customer who insists on saying "schizo" rather than "half-caf," even though half the time she has to explain what "schizo" means. People ask for a tall -- I don't know whether they mean our taller size cup (16 oz) or a Starbucks tall size (12 oz).
I suppose this might be my comeuppance for all the times I went into Starbucks and ordered a "medium."
you are quite right! I pledge to say non-fat from now own, but I swear I had no idea there was any possible ambiguity with "skinny". Thinking back, I believe that at first real coffee bar in our town (which didn't get a Starbucks until YEARS later) they always said skinny back to me when I would say "skim milk" , so I guess that's how I got in the habit.
I've always ordered it nonfat, but most other coffee places just say "skim mocha."
I would tweet them to ask what nasty chemical they use.
To be fair, ordering a coffee "skinny" doesn't mean sweetened (artificial or otherwise). However, ordering a drink that is normally prepared sweetened as "skinny" implies non-fat with artificial sweetener. I don't think they did anything to mislead you, you just applied your conventional ordering terminology to a different beverage.
Non fat has more sugar than whole milk. Fat and calories are what's killing america... it's sugar. These 'healthy' options are not actually healthy. Most 'health' foods adds tons of sugar to make of for the terrible taste. You're better off drinking 2% or better yet no milk at all... it is not meant for human consumption.
That is wrong. Skim milk has the same sugars as whole milk (12 grams in a cup). However because of the increased fat, whole has a lot more calories, 149 vs. 86 for skim.
Now, I'm sure you're thinking about artificial products like cookies, etc. in which case your assertion about added sugar to make up for the loss of fat might be correct. But skim milk is a perfectly natural, healthy product. And when it comes to weight control, the bottom line is calories.
FYI, the usda has a really handy nutrition database where you can check your facts before you post. I actually keep it saved on my desktop. There have been a few times I was surprised but what I found.
...I will say that as a non-Starbucks barista I find all the code words very confusing. I'm not sure what the point of them is."Skinny" isn't any quicker to say than "nonfat"
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It's marketing psychology. The word "skinny" has a positive connotation while the word "nonfat" has a negative connotation since it includes the word "fat."
At Starbucks, 'skinny' is meant as a shortcut instead of 'sugar free syrup and nonfat milk'
Ok, but it's still a marketing ploy. Skinny is a positive word to many people, especially women of a certain age and demographic. Subconciously the mind associates drinking that particular drink with being thin.
Thinking a little about it - saying "skinny" also sounds less neurotic than "a latte with skim milk and sugar free vanilla syrup". So from a marketing standpoint, I get the point of giving a code term.
"Skinny" is a nice twist on diet/low-cal items, and makes complete sense to use.
In my personal opinion, given the widespread use of aspartame, if someone's so sensitive to it that it makes them vomit almost instantly, they should probably ask what sort of alternate sweetener's being used when ordering something obviously reduced-calorie / reduced-sugar.
I absolutely DO ask about the sweetener if I think there's any possibility of confusion. That's my point. I never realized "skinny" had any connotation other than "skim milk". Of course, I do now.
It's funny, a month or so after I posted this, I had to take a different route to work and wound up at an indie coffee place for the Friday ritual. After carefully ordering non-fat, the owner/barista repeated the order back to me, substituting "skinny" for non-fat. When I said something along the lines of "but I don't want any sugar-substitute", he gave me a weird look and said not unless you order it that way. So...it's a minefield out there ;-)
Agreed. My super-figure-conscious sister in law buys "Skinny Girl" vodka, which is just watered down. She doesn't want to get accidentally drunk and eat too much or imbibe too many calories from alcohol, but she always mixes it with something horribly sweet. Go figure (so to speak).
Saying "schizo" for a split-something is wholly ignorant but common. Your friend, like many others, misunderstands schizophrenia to mean split personality. Sorry for the non sequitur. My sister has schizophrenia and it is always bothersome to hear others make this mistake.
Back to the topic, I agree with others below that the use of "skinny" to describe the nonfat option is a marketing tactic to make one think s/he is guilt-free (calorie-wise) in drinking.
Starshmucjs has created many of their own terms to make people feel better about parting with $3 for a burned cup of coffee that you could get down the street for $1.50
I have no idea why people think the terms created by Starbucks are or should be industry wide.
Starbucks did not create the word "skinny". Ever heard of Skinnygirl brand food/drinks?
A cup of coffee at Starbucks costs less than the same size (or smaller) at the mom and pop places 'down the street'.
Yes I have,
And it cost less but they routinely burn their beans too so I still say its not worth it
I just got a cup of coffee the other day from the indie coffeeshop near me. They sell Stumptown and Intelligencia coffees. It was a French Roast; the beans were 'burnt'.
What Starbucks sells is a dark full city roast. It gives their coffees a 'char' edge that a lot of people prefer to the milder coffees from other chains. They also have lighter roasts that don't have that distinctive flavor.
Reason why Starbucks coffee is more expensive and tends to taste "burned" is due to Starbucks using twice the amount of ground coffee in each of their brews (2 tablespoons of ground coffee per every 6 ounces, whereas most coffee shops use 1 tablespoon per every 6 ounces). That's why most places charge you half what SB charges.
As for their "skinny" mochas being a tactic, the info is on their site.
WHEN YOU BUY A MOCHA MADE WITH SUGARLESS INGREDIENTS, YOU AVOID THE INSULIN SPIKES THAT WOULD NORMALLY ACCOMPANY SUGAR. Having a low /minimal sugar daily intake in your diet is neccessary if you're diabetic, trying to lose bodyfat, or are into fitness or bodybuilding.
A Skinny Latte means low fat or nonfat steamed milk and espresso.
Mocha means chocolate. Did you think "skinny mocha" meant that it would be low fat but still have sugar in the flavoring? That seems to defeat the meaning of 'skinny'.
The store should have offered you an Americano for the same price as a drip until they got their grinder up and running.
You must have only taken one sip to realize the 'disgusting' flavor but were not able to walk back to the store ask and still were able to get to their website, this website and were able to tweet. Can't you get to a phone and call any Starbucks store to ask what is the sweetener?
since you're intersted, I did not take a sip until I arrived at work, by car, several miles away.
further, I didn't want to harrass the folks at the store...as you might imagine, they didn't seem to be having a great day..what with being a Starbucks with no coffee and all...
mocha means coffee and chocolate. yes, I most certainly DID think skinny meant no-fat and nothing whatsoever to do with sugar or lack there of. No, I don't think it defeats the meaning of skinny.
Honestly, i'm not usually so hysterical about food ingredients. But I have been on a tearing rant about artifical sugar for years, ever since I hurled at work, called up the lunch place to ask if their lemonade had artificial sugar in it , and got major attitude the advice that I should always ask whether a drink had nutrasweet (this was the 90s) or not, that it was not her responsibility to lable it.
I count calories because I like BEING skinny. Low-fat coffee drinks that still have sugar in the flavoring definitely don't defeat anything for me. They allow me to get a sweet treat, stay in my preferred calorie range and avoid artificial sweeteners.
The Starbucks "Sugar Free" syrups use Splenda (same with Torani and DaVinci)
When I emailed them a few years ago, they said their syrups contained Splenda and acesulfame K.
Skinny always include sugar free syrup and skim milk.
I recently ordered a "skim vanilla latte" and got sugar free syrup. It was vile. The barista was nice enough to remake it for me, but now I always specify that I do not want the sugar free syrup.
Happend to me today: ordered a non-fat decaf mocha, and I heard her mumble something like skinny when ringing it up.
Extremely yucky.
"...and I heard her mumble something like skinny when ringing it up.
Extremely yucky."
Right. Because as a cashier she has to hit the button on the computerized cash register that is marked "skinny" and as an ex cashier in many retail establishments, sometimes it helps to talk to oneself when ringing up items in a certain order. Please do not chastise the cashier for adhering to megaBucks store policy.
I remember quite well that anywhere else in the world if you explicitly say nonfat, it means nonfat milk/"skinny" can mean different to each server. It is never implied anything else. Sugars/sweeteners, you add. I'd rather do it myself, I feel, if I'm that particular. I'll do it myself. No?
OMG! They will put Splenda in your drink without telling you!!!! I react to it (my
fingertips go numb--weird!) I think it's the sucralose, because dextrose is in practically everything and I don't react to it.) I avoid artificial sweeteners, so Starbucks is the only place I've ever had this reaction.
So I was angry to finally figure out what was going on. A lot of their drinks are too sweet IMO, and seeing them put several pumps of the "base" in it, I have tried politely asking for "Only 1 pump of sugar" or "Only 1 pump of base" or "half the sugar" or "no base please" or "not too sweet please." In ALL cases, they substituted the "sugar-free" base on me WITHOUT INFORMING ME OR ASKING ME IF IT'S OK!!!
BTW, the "sugar-free" base actually tastes WAY sweeter than the plain sugar, and dextrose is not safe for diabetics--glycemic index near 100, same as straight glucose.
THIS IS HIGHLY UNETHICAL and it has happened across at least 5 different Starbucks, so it's not just some fluke.
I guarantee it's not Starbucks policy to give people diet/sugarfree syrups instead of sugar-sweetened ones without asking people. Sounds like miscommunication (i.e., they're misunderstanding you and thinking you're asking for low-sugar or no-sugar when you say 'half the sugar'). I'd say if you see them using the wrong syrup, you should make sure you get your drink redone so that they don't do that again.
This has happened to me at least 5 times at several Starbucks, so I guarantee you that they ARE putting sugar free syrup without asking. And nowhere on the menu board does it say the word "Splenda" or "sucralose."
How can I see them using the wrong syrup? It is far away and both look like clear liquid.
If you are ordering say "one pump regular (mocha) or (vanilla) etc syrup, NOT sugar free, just one pump of the regular kind"
Before taking the drink confirm with the barista "is this just one pump of the regular syrup? The sugar free syrup will make me sick".
Or better yet get a regular black coffee and add your own sugar and milk- especially since you have issues with the sweetners.
Thanks for your tip, I know that NOW, but I wasn't' aware at the time what the heck was even going on, even that they had a sugar-free substitute--never imagined anyone would decide for me without checking. It wasn't on the menu board, no mention of the word Splenda anywhere in the store, so "only 1 pump of sugar" or "only 1 pump of base" or "can you please make it taste less sweet?" shouldn't automatically get you Splenda. That's all I'm saying, that it's not obvious (or ethical.)
I ordered the green tea Frappuccino, so after reacting searched online for the ingredients: green tea, milk and sugar. So it was not even easily discoverable there. Last I checked, the nutritional info was taken down for this drink, but I just wanted other people to know how ridiculously specific you have to be when ordering if you don't want them to put fake crap in your drink.
I complained to Starbucks, so hopefully they'll improve disclosure on Splenda.
So add some sugar.
This is cracking me up!! I cannot believe everyone has the time to worry over things like this. All businesses use marketing ploys....hello??!! That is just like questioning why fast food restaurants do not put the same condiments on their double cheeseburgers even though they all call them the same thing.
If undisclosed aspartame in your food/drink made you spend the morning throwing up in your office ladies room, you wouldn't worry about that?
I did not accuse Starbucks of trying to poison people. One thing I would like to point out, perhaps to put this old thread to bed, is that Starbucks NOW has the whole "skinny" thing clearly disclosed on their menu board. That wasn't the case back in 2012 when I posted. Thus they are making a clear effort NOT to poison people!
Skinny also means no whipped cream. Just order what you want. Ask what the options are. Then just order what you want.
For "skinny" to work it should only have one interpretation when it comes to coffee not many
Really, why cus you say so!
Because everyone seems to have a different interpretation of what skinny means
Skinny can mean different things to different people, even in the world of coffee.
The word "light" (or "lite") has no standard meaning, either. Just like "skinny", it's a marketing word. Starbucks is trusting customers to not order things blindly without knowing what they're ordering. Clearly for some people that's not enough.
Skinny ? Low fat ? No fat ? Total BS
The “war on saturated fat” has been a miserable failure.
It was initially based on flawed studies, but somehow became public policy (with disastrous consequences).
The worst part is… the governments and health organizations have yet to change their position despite overwhelming evidence that they’ve been wrong all along.
Actually, saturated fat doesn’t really raise LDL that much. The effect is weak and inconsistent and appears to depend on the individual.
When saturated fat does affect LDL, it changes the particles from small, dense (very, very bad) to Large LDL, which is mostly benign.
Saturated fat also raises HDL cholesterol, which is associated with a reduced risk of heart disease.
If anything, saturated fats actually improve the lipid profile, NOT the other way around.
In the past few years, many massive studies have examined the link between saturated fat and heart disease risk.
One of these studies included 347,747 participants and looked at data from 21 studies. The conclusion: there is no evidence that saturated fat increases the risk of heart disease.
Many other studies confirm these findings. Saturated fat is harmless.
The truth is… saturated fat never has been and never will be proven to cause heart disease, because it simply isn’t true.
I wouldn't worry about it...
Ingredients
Nonfat Milk, Brewed Espresso, Skinny Mocha Sauce [Water, Cocoa (Processed With Alkali), Natural And Artificial Flavors, Arabic Gum, Sucralose, Carrageenan, Xanthan Gum, Salt].
Bittersweet skinny mocha sauce, espresso and steamed non-fat milk are lightly topped with foam. Sip on the lighter side of sweet.
They use sucralose as the sweetener.
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