Successes and Shortcomings of Dunkin’s New Ice Cream-Inspired Coffees and Sabrina Carpenter Collaboration

The season of beach vacations, sunbathing, and the humble fast food summer menu is finally upon us. Nothing beats the citrus or berry treats and frozen sweets that chain restaurants bestow on us this time of year, and few of these seasonal offerings are as highly anticipated as Dunkin’s. The country’s favorite coffee-and-donut superstar is well known for its unique seasonal drink line-up — last year it unveiled some bold new summer additions that Starbucks wouldn’t dream of offering, and earlier this year it blessed us with a new Refresher flavor (one that Starbucks took from us far too soon). It’s easy to see why Dunkin’ lives up to its famous slogan; its creative summer menus play a big role in its nationwide appeal.

I visited my local Dunkin’ and got my hands on four new Dunkin’ drinks that are primed and ready for summer. These drinks offer a sweet reprieve from the summer’s heat in four flavors that are unique enough to pique the interest of unconventional iced coffee fans, but classic enough to please even the pickiest of Dunkin’ patrons. But, are all these drinks good enough to become seasonal fan favorites like the Iced Pumpkin Spice Latte or the holiday-themed Cookie Butter Cold Brew? With my sweet tooth primed and a caffeine craving, I dove into the long-awaited Dunkin’ creations.

The first three summer drinks that I sipped on at my local Dunkin’ are all frozen coffees inspired by iconic ice cream flavors. All three flavors are crafted as icy, slushie-style coffees topped with whipped cream and chunks of waffle cone, to really drive home the ice cream vibes. The mint chocolate chip flavor is crafted with mint syrup and dark chocolate, while the Cookie Dough Frozen Coffee is a resurgence of a fan favorite in one of the most indulgent ice cream flavors of all time. And finally, a butter pecan styling is made to resemble the classic, nostalgic dessert, combined with Dunkin’s iconic flavor swirl.

The fourth summer-ready beverage is the outlier of the group and a highly-anticipated collab. You might remember Dunkin’s Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso, repped by none other than two-time Grammy winner and pop superstar Sabrina Carpenter. Well, she and Dunkin’ are back at it again, this time with a fruit-focused drink. Called Sabrina’s Strawberry Daydream Refresher, Carpenter and Dunkin’ have previously shown off the new drink in a retro-style ad showcasing the creaminess of Dunkin’ first ever milky refresher. The drink is made with strawberry syrup and oat milk, topped with a luscious dollop of Dunkin’s famously-smooth and velvety cold foam.

Dunkin’ customers can snag Sabrina’s Strawberry Daydream Refresher in a medium size for a mere $3 — as long as they’re members of Dunkin’s rewards program. Foolishly, I am not a Dunkin’ rewards member (it really is a great way to save money at Dunkin’) so I got my small-sized Sabrina’s Strawberry Daydream Refresher for $4.39. A medium would have cost me $4.79 while a large clocks in at $5.19.

There’s no difference in price between the three ice cream-inspired frozen coffees. At my local Dunkin’ location, a small costs $4.09, a medium costs $4.79, and a large goes for $5.49, no matter which flavor you choose. These four drinks are available at Dunkin’ starting on June 25th, 2025 and will be available for a limited time only, as part of the brand’s ephemeral summer menu. Please note that these prices may differ by region, and that the prices listed reflect those at my local Dunkin’ in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Who can resist sweet, chocolatey cookie dough on a hot summer day? It’s a flavor that’s loved by kids and adults alike, and it’s a tried-and-true summer flavor at Dunkin’ that’s showing off a frozen form in 2025. This sweet treat contains 112 grams of sugar, 121 grams of carbs, 95 milligrams of cholesterol, 290 milligrams of sodium, 31 grams of fat (18 of which are saturated fat), and 780 calories. It might not be the most nutritious summer indulgence, but everyone deserves a chilled treat now and again.

The thing that makes generic cookie dough such a crowd-pleaser for summer is the texture of soft, doughy balls full of crunchy chocolate chips nestled among rich, smooth ice cream. Obviously, Dunkin’s frozen coffee is devoid of any actual cookie dough … but maybe that’s not for the best. It leaves just the flavor of cookie dough to carry the drink. Ultimately, this frozen concoction tasted most strongly of chocolate, and I almost forgot the drink contained any coffee at all. That wouldn’t be such a terrible thing, if not for Dunkin’s less-than-delicious chocolate flavor syrup. The syrup has a synthetic taste, like runny sugar infused with the flavor that someone might come up with if they had only ever tasted chocolate in a dream. 

Butter pecan is a quintessential luxurious ice cream flavor. It has an adults-only vibe that makes it seem tantalizing and ostentatious, so it should come as no surprise that Dunkin’ included this ice cream icon in its dessert-style frozen coffee line up. A medium-size Butter Pecan Frozen Coffee clocks in at 123 grams of sugar, 133 grams of carbs, 95 milligrams of cholesterol, 370 milligrams of sodium, 31 grams of fat (18 of which are saturated fat), and 840 calories.

The Butter Pecan Frozen Coffee has a slight saltiness and toasty, nutty notes that impart more complexity of flavor than the other two frozen coffees. It isn’t bogged down by the overwhelming chocolate syrup flavor that plagues the Cookie Dough and Mint Chocolate Chip drinks, which allowed the true ice cream-like flavor to shine. The thick flavor swirl — as opposed to a thin, watery flavor shot — made the drink rich and dessert worthy, even once it started to melt in the sweltering summer heat.

Once I mixed in the whipped cream, this drink reached its full potential, although it is absolutely more of a dessert than a coffee drink. The whipped cream and caramel flavor from the swirl on top enhanced the drink’s subtle nuttiness once the whip was mixed in. I recommended scooping off the waffle cone bits and eating them first, because they get unpleasantly mushy very quickly.

Mint chocolate chip is somewhat of a contentious, love-it-or-hate-it ice cream flavor, but it just so happens to be my personal favorite. Fresh mint and rich, dark chocolate are a match made in dessert heaven — they’re a prime example of opposites attracting. If you choose a medium-sized Mint Chocolate Chip Frozen Coffee at Dunkin’, you can expect 122 grams of sugar, 132 grams of carbs, 95 milligrams of cholesterol, 250 milligrams of sodium, 31 grams of fat (18 of which are saturated fat), and 830 calories.

I was most excited for this frozen coffee creation, and ended up being the most disappointed by it. It is impossible to distinguish it from the Cookie Dough Frozen Coffee by looks alone, and it turned out to be nearly identical in flavor, too. On the initial sip, I got smacked with that subpar chocolate syrup taste, accented by a faint whiff of espresso. The mint flavor showed up as a subtle aftertaste, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have to search for it.

I was really hoping for a more prominent punch of fresh, zesty mint complemented by rich dark chocolate, but the chocolate taste in this drink didn’t come close to the slightly bitter and salty sweetness that genuine dark chocolate is known for. Mixing the whipped cream into the drink gave it an illusion of decadence that paired well with its frosty texture.

And finally, we come to the (literal) cream of the Dunkin’ crop: Sabrina’s Strawberry Daydream Refresher, which wound up being my favorite of the four drinks. A medium-sized Strawberry Daydream Refresher contains 41 grams of sugar, 55 grams of carbs, 10 milligrams of cholesterol, 115 milligrams of sodium, 5 grams of fat (2 of which are saturated fat), and 280 calories — so, if you’re watching your sugar intake this summer but still want to try one of Dunkin’s new drinks, this may be the pick for you.

My first sip of the Strawberry Daydream Refresher instantly reminded me of the frozen strawberry shortcake pops from childhood. It gave me an instant rush of ice cream-induced nostalgia, which is ironic, considering that of the four new drinks, this is the only one that isn’t meant to mimic ice cream. The oat milk and the cold foam (which dissipated quickly) gave the drink a mouth-coating creaminess that I don’t think could have been replicated with dairy milk — there’s something uniquely velvety and creamy about oat milk that works well in fruity drinks.

Despite being rich and creamy, the Strawberry Daydream Refresher still managed to be incredibly refreshing in the heat, although Dunkin’s famously-intense, faux-strawberry flavor was a little overbearing at first. This might be blasphemous to some Dunkin’ purists, but I found that letting the drink melt a bit in the sun watered it down just enough that it was still creamy and full of strawberry flavor, but it was more refreshing and less shockingly sweet on my taste buds.

Ultimately, I was impressed — albeit not blown away — by Dunkin’s new summertime drinks. Sabrina’s Strawberry Daydream Refresher was by far my favorite of the group, with the Butter Pecan Frozen Coffee following close behind. Both of these drinks could likely fare well on the permanent menu, or go down in fast food history as some of Dunkin’s best short-term menu items, alongside the seasonal Dunkalatte and Cookie Butter Cold Brew. 

Despite being absolutely loaded with sugar, the sweetness of the frozen coffee drinks works, especially considering that they’re meant to invoke an ice cream-esque indulgence. Sabrina’s berry beverage, on the other hand, is undoubtedly more refreshing thanks to a thinner texture, less sugar, and an invigorating fruity flavor.

My biggest qualm with the two drinks that missed the mark come down purely to lackluster chocolate syrup. It masked the other ingredients in the drink with a flavor that fares better in hot bevvies. I would have preferred a more potent bakery worth and tingling mint quality in the Cookie Dough and Mint Chocolate Chip Frozen Coffees, respectively. Highlighting these accents would have made the treats more unique and complex, like the Butter Pecan. I noticed that all of the frozen coffees melt quickly, and lose their flavor as soon as they start melting, which is another reason why I preferred the Strawberry Refresher — it seemed to get better and even more refreshing as the ice started melting.