Review: Dunkin's Spooky New Drink Menu Is Full Of Treats And Some Nightmares

The Halloween decor has been out for a while since stores always seem to be ready for the spooky holiday well in advance. Dunkin', however, waited until Wednesday, September 30 to launch its new Spooky Season menu and it's filled with tricks and treats. The marshmallow cold foam is back but this time it's a pretty shade of purple, which makes for some spectacular visuals. I popped into my local Dunkin' and grabbed eight new drinks from the Halloween menu and am ready to spill the deets on each and every one without holding back.

The Spooky Season beverages I sampled include: Sour Apple Energy, Dark Spell Daydream Refresher, Werewolf Punch Refresher, Midnight Potion Refresher, Nutty Nightmare Iced Coffee, Creepy Crawler Coffee Chiller, Franki Matcha, and the Terror-misu Cloud Latte. One of the stars of the new menu is the Green Apple Dunkin' Zero, the chain's zero sugar energy drink. It's in the Sour Apple Energy drink I tasted but is also included in other iterations of that drink. Overall, there are certainly some spooky sips I would go back for, but there are also others that I will chalk up as ghosts of my Dunkin' beverage past.

I purchased eight new drinks my local Dunkin' in Boca Raton, Florida had on hand. I ordered all of them in small sizes and did not add additional sweetener to any of them. I tasted all of the drinks before I even left Dunkin' because I could already see the purple cold foam breaking on the Sour Apple Energy drink, and wanted to make sure I had as positive an experience as possible. My review is based on flavor profile, inclusions, sweetness, and other relevant factors.

The Midnight Potion Refresher is made with a berry clementine concoction, including additional notes of blueberry. Dunkin' adds green tea to this new Halloween treat as well, but if I am being honest, I cannot clearly decipher any of it. If you blindfolded me and my life depended on guessing the ingredients of the Midnight Potion Refresher, I would not fare well. 

While it claims to be a berry-forward drink on the new Halloween menu, I don't taste it. To me, it drinks like a random fruity drink. Is it refreshing? Sure. It's also not painstakingly sweet, which is nice. The color is a stunning shade of magenta and it's certainly pretty to look at, but unfortunately does not have the personality to match. I wouldn't run to get the Midnight Potion Refresher from Dunkin' unless you are looking for a nondescript fruity drink.

The second refresher on the Dunkin' Halloween lineup is the Werewolf Punch Refresher. It has the same berry clementine mixture as the Midnight Potion Refresher. What differentiates it is the addition of lemonade and mango pineapple. That's like five flavors in one drink and that's not a good thing. 

The only thing that sticks out is the mango pineapple flavor, which I think is always notoriously dominant in any drink that contains it. That's the only distinct flavor I can even call out in the Werewolf Punch Refresher. There is a faint essence of lemonade that adds a low level of tartness. Everything is completely at the mercy of the mango pineapple in this one. It's much sweeter than the Midnight Potion and I think my kids will love it, but it's not for me.

This is the last of the new Halloween themed refreshers at Dunkin', and probably the best. The bar is not that high after the first two but at least the Dark Spell Daydream Refresher tastes like what it's supposed to. It's milkier than the other two refreshers and also boasts the delicious marshmallow cold foam, which is delightful. 

It comes with the berry clementine flavors, along with 2 shots of blueberry flavoring and oatmilk. All of that makes it one of the thicker refreshers I have experienced from Dunkin. It's not egregiously sweet and you can absolutely taste strong blueberry notes. The purple color is so pretty and the lighter purple cold foam gives it a cute little ombre vibe.

Next up on the Dunkin' spooky drink list is the Terror-Misu Cloud Latte. Having tried the tiramisu-themed drinks when Dunkin' first launched the flavor, I was very much anticipating high marks for this one. It was a fantastic break from the fruity drinks and much more coffee heavy. With espresso, milk, tiramisu flavor, purple cold foam, and a sprinkle of hot chocolate flavor on top, there's a lot going on. 

However, unlike the refreshers where all of the flavors are much too muddled, the Terror-misu Cloud Latte delivers a strong jolt of coffee with the creamy and gorgeous cold foam on top. If you are looking to switch up your caffeine fix during the Halloween season, this might just be your new beverage of choice. You must love coffee flavors though because the espresso leads the flavor train and it's intense, as espresso is meant to be.

As many coffee chillers do, the Creepy Crawler Coffee Chiller on Dunkin's Halloween roster looks more like a milkshake. I can confirm it tastes like one too and that's not a good thing in my opinion. The frozen coffee beverage is made with coffee syrup, tiramisu flavor, cream, purple cold foam, whipped cream, and a chocolate drizzle. It's a lot. 

I understand the allure of a frozen coffee chiller type drink for some people, but I am just not one of them. It's flavorful, but too sweet, exactly as it comes. I love a sweet treat, but if I'm going to go on a calorie spree, I prefer a rich and decadent dessert on a plate instead of drinking those calories. This feels like it will be a big hit with teenagers.

Visually, the Sour Apple Energy drink is a mess. Because the drink itself contains no dairy, the minute the purple cold foam touches the drink it breaks into clumps and looks off-putting. They do say not to judge a book by its cover, so I maintained an open mind when I went in for the first sip. I think this might be the worst Halloween themed drink of Dunkin's new menu. 

The standard 4 pumps of green apple syrup feels like too much for a small size. If you squint when you take a sip, that's not a great sign. Oh, did I squint. I enjoy sour apple things, but the Sour Apple Energy drink from Dunkin' is over the top and the tart lemonade does not do it any favors. It's a sour disaster and if I were a green apple Jolly Rancher, I would not be happy by the representation.

Finally a Dunkin' Halloween drink I am happy to cosign. As a matcha fan, I'm always down for a new one to hit the scene. First of all, a moment for the color palette. The green matcha topped with purple cold foam is a beauty. Everything about it is aesthetically pleasing. This drink contains matcha powder, Dunkin's popular oat milk, 2 shots of vanilla (small size), and the purple cold foam. 

It's the total package. With the sweetened vanilla flavor, you do not need to add a single grain of sweetener to the Franki Matcha. I would say if you add sweetener, either ditch the vanilla shots or decrease it to one. Or, maybe even ask for sugar-free vanilla instead and then add your sweetener of choice. It's creamy, satisfying, and definitely a shining star of the spooky new menu.

If you want in on Dunkin's Halloween spirit but consider yourself more of a simple coffee person, the Nutty Nightmare Iced Coffee will be your drink of the season. It's Dunkin's signature iced coffee with 2 shots of tiramisu, 2 shots of toasted almond, and cream. The Nutty Nightmare is as dialed back as it can be for a Halloween themed beverage. 

The only thing more chill would be a straight up iced coffee with zero spooky frills. Because there are not a bajillion flavored syrups and inclusions in this one, you can actually distinguish the notes of both the tiramisu and toasted almond flavors. It tastes strong and rich and very heavy on the classic coffee flavors. If it were a Halloween costume, it would be the cat ears we throw on when we are not in the mood to go all out but also want to deliver a dose of Halloween spirit.

I think there are some strong showings and some weak links on the new Dunkin' Halloween themed menu. The coffee based drinks make for solid candidates to usher in some spirit. The refreshers feel like they are trying too hard. The matcha is solid and the coffee chiller and sour apple disaster are both a hard pass for me. 

The recently launched menu offers a wide range of flavors and drink variations which is always nice and appeals to a bigger crowd. I have to give credit for the campy names though. They all capture the essence of classic Halloween vibes and that purple cold foam deserves a standing ovation.

Dunkin's Spooky Season is in full effect with its special Halloween menu launching Wednesday, September 30. In addition to all of the drinks, Dunkin' also has a variety of other additions, like the $6 meal deal. At my local Dunkin' in Boca Raton, the price for small sizes of the eight drinks I purchased ranged from $3.29 to $5.34. All of the new Dunkin' drinks can be customized with different flavors and milks to suit your preferences.