The Bottled Starbucks Frappuccino Hack That Has TikTok Buzzing

Blink and you might miss the latest TikTok trend. But with summer approaching, TikTok is starting to land on a theme: frozen drinks. First, it was White Claw slushies. Now, it's turning a store-bought bottle of Starbucks Frappuccino into an actual Frappuccino. After all, "Frappuccino" is supposed to mean "frozen cappuccino," right? But what they sell you in the store comes off the shelf at room temperature as straight liquid.

The TikTok community is divided on how best to turn a bottle of Frappuccino into something like what you get at a Starbucks cafe. @brookiebarry decided to pour the bottle of Frappuccino into a blender with ice, then blend. "Oh my God, it's like the same texture and everything as a Frappuccino from Starbucks," @brookiebarry declared. "I'm shook."

What's really shook is the second Frappuccino option trending on TikTok, demonstrated nicely by @naatalie_lee. She put a 9.5-ounce bottle of Frappuccino in her freezer after overcoming her fear that the glass would crack. Two hours later, the bottle was intact and the Frappuccino was still liquid. Then she gave it a shake. "This is actually so cool," @naatalie_lee said, stirring a straw through her suddenly slushy Frapp. You might even say... supercool.

So what's with the instant Frappuccino that goes from liquid to solid-ish after just a few shakes — and a couple of hours in the freezer? There is a scientific explanation, as provided by Science Focus. Frappuccinos, of course, are mostly water, which freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Most household freezers are set to 0 degrees. In two hours, the Frappuccino's temperature inside the bottle would be below freezing while still in liquid form — what's called supercooled. This is because freezing temperatures alone aren't enough to make water or Frappuccinos freeze. They need a trigger. It could be a piece of dust for the water molecules to organize around. Or it could be the shock wave created when you strike or shake a container full of supercooled liquid. So, a few shakes, and voila! You've got a real Frappuccino in your hands. (We can't guarantee a safe outcome if you forget to take your Frappuccino out of the freezer. Someone's bound to jostle the bottle when they open the freezer door, and water expands when it freezes — so @naatalie_lee's fears of a cracked bottle were well founded.)

Starbucks doesn't instruct its customers to blend or freeze-then-shake its grocery-store Frappuccinos — only to "serve chilled or over ice." Regardless, TikTokers agree with @deezombiie: "What? I've been drinking these the wrong way forever!" And when @deezombiie posted her Frappuccino experience to TikTok, she included a relevant hashtag: #imshook.