By Maire Crooks, The Current Co-Editor in Chief
As you may recall, I am an avid Chick-Fil-A fan and fall flavor lover. Last year, I reviewed their seasonal Autumn Spice milkshake. However, this season, the food chain has opted to step outside the box and introduce their fall flavor as the Caramel Crumble Milkshake.
Personally, I was very excited to hear this news; I love caramel and was intrigued to try a different approach to the warm spices typically found in autumn treats. Chick-Fil-A describes their new ice cream concoction as a “creamy butterscotch caramel flavored milkshake” filled with blondie crumbles, butterscotch caramel flavors, and white confectionary pieces to add an extra crunch.
Lucienne Herberolz, a River Hill senior and Chick-Fil-A employee, gives a firsthand description of how the drink is created in-stores. “The shake itself is no different than any other shake. We have a box full of crumbles that is operated by a lever, and to make it, we just pull down on it once. It is the same as our oreo container. Then we use two pumps of the caramel syrup in it. Though it’s not exactly ‘syrup’, as it’s a lot more liquidy than typical syrup,” she describes.
In my opinion, this description was very accurate to the flavors I experienced in drinking the shake. Immediately, I was hit with a bite of crunchy mix-ins that tasted exactly like those crispy butterscotch pieces they described. I thoroughly enjoyed the fall essence of caramel apples and confections without the overwhelming sense of being hit with nutmeg and cinnamon.
However, I was slightly disappointed with the lack of flavor the shake had overall. Although notes of caramel were present, it took immense concentration for them to come through in force. I wish the caramel was drizzled throughout the shake, for example, to drive the intended palette home.
While the mix-ins were good, I also did not get the home-baked feel as the company describes: “Christy Cook, senior culinary lead at Chick-fil-A, was baking for her family when she tasted the caramelized bits of blondie at the bottom of the pan and knew the ingredient would be the perfect complement to the flavors of a seasonal shake.” The pieces felt artificially airy and dry and lacked a sense of subsistence and indulgence that I was hoping for; the shake, although sweet, felt empty.
Lucienne explains that “on the first few days our new shakes come out, we get a lot of orders for them. For the Chick-Fil-A I work at, shakes are already a popular item, but that number grows exponentially when we have seasonal drinks.”
However, many of the students I have talked to have not tried the milkshake yet. Addyson Miller, a River Hill senior, mentioned, “I’m not going to try it because I don’t want to spend my money.”
Lucienne, on the other hand, has sampled the shake and had similar feelings to me. “It smells really good, but I honestly think it is a little bit too sweet,” she says. She continues: “The caramel crumble pieces are probably my favorite part of the shake. It is expected to be on the sweeter side, being ice cream and caramel syrup, but I still prefer a vanilla shake, despite how nice it makes the shake area smell. I had higher expectations for it.”
Overall, would I recommend this shake? The answer varies depending on one’s personal taste buds. For me, I prefer the classic cookies and cream shake to the seasonal caramel crumble, but for someone who enjoys a more mild dessert, this drink may be perfect.
After much thought, I would rate this shake a 5/10; it was very average. The flavors were muted, and the creativity was not remarkable. However, it was a decent sweet treat if I had kept my expectations a little more reasonable. If it was handed to me, I would drink the milkshake again.