While I’m usually intrigued with those unique and at-times strange frappes at Starbucks, the Watermelon and Lychee Aloe frappe was completely a mystery to me as I’d yet to experience tasting a completely fruit-flavored frappe from Starbucks.

The last time I had a frappe-like fruit drink was a crushed ice fruit smoothie from the Oasis Juice Bar at Queen St Mall in Brisbane. Being fresh and purely fruity (watermelon included), it was absolutely refreshing in the Sunshine State down under. Akin to that climate-fruit balance, the Watermelon and Lychee Aloe frappe sounds like exactly what you’ll need in Singapore’s tropically humid weather.

Watermelon and lychee – I love these fruits individually, but I’ve yet to see and taste them together as a combo. Lychee is native to Asia, this fruit is a common addition to desserts with its sweet and fruity flavor. To me it’s tricky to liken lychee to other fruits, but the closest one that I can think of is grapes, minus the skin but with a floral touch in its flavor. Watermelon is perfect for cooling down on those humid and hot days. It’s a staple for me to beat the heat.

When I collected my frappe from the barista, I instantly realized that it resembled something I had not too long ago – frozen slushies! That definitely fueled my curiosity and excitement further. The frappe comprises of 3 layers – the green lychee aloe jelly concoction base, a swirl of lychee-flavored whipped cream in the middle and a whole lot of icy watermelon-flavored frappe on top.

I thought it was going to be a full load of sweetness from all those fruity elements. Looks (and flavor elements) can be deceiving – it isn’t very sweet at all! In fact, the watermelon layer has a tartness to it. It almost tastes like candy, but I can’t put my finger on that exact watermelon candy. The blended chia seeds (yes, it’s a watermelon and chia seed blend – that’s a first for me!) make the texture similar to a smoothie, or in this frappe, a slushy smoothie.

The lychee whipped cream has a pleasant whipped cream-lychee flavor balance to it. As for the green layer, the cubed lychee aloe jelly reminded me of those mini colored jellies in plastic cups. It surprisingly brought me back to my childhood momentarily – to birthdays and year-end parties at school where assortments of fruit-flavored jellies were almost always around during these special occasions.

To avoid a potential brain freeze episode, I decided to let my frappe melt. After several minutes, what was once a slushy-like frappe metamorphosed into a smoothie-like consistency. The ‘smoothie’ was a whole lot easier to drink than the slushy in my opinion, and mixing the three layers together was a smoother experience too (pun intended! ;)).

Tasting the fruit frappe was a refreshing experience for me. I’m glad I tried it!