Frozen Coffee Vs Frappe: What's The Difference?

Coffee drinkers are spoiled with options, from sophisticated flat whites and refreshing iced coffees to steaming mugs with beautiful latte art. To the naked eye, there may appear to be little difference between a frozen coffee and a frappe. Indeed, some people use the names interchangeably to refer to any iced coffee drink that has been blended.

The basic distinction between the two comes down to preparation. A frappe, which originated at the 1957 Thessaloniki International Fair in Greece, contains instant coffee, sugar, and cold water. These ingredients can be blended or simply shaken to create a bubbly foam. It is then poured over ice cubes and the glass is topped off with water and gently stirred. Frozen coffee, on the other hand, is always blended with ice, sugar, and some kind of flavoring.

Recipes for frozen coffee tend to be highly caloric and more like the frappes sold by coffeehouses and restaurants, with whipped cream, creamer of your choice, chocolate syrup, chilled coffee, and ice. To keep the calorie count down, either stick to the traditional Greek method or opt for low-fat ingredients.

Frappes date back to 1957 when an employee from Nestlé attended a trade fair in Greece. His mission was to tout a shaken chocolate beverage for kids. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), while on a break, he realized there was no hot water for a little coffee pick-me-up. Thinking on the fly, he used instant coffee granules and cold water and gave it a good mix in the demonstration shaker. The result was a big hit. This version of the frappe — sugar, cold water, and instant coffee over ice — is still served in Europe. 

Across the pond, most Americans' idea of a frappe is more similar to a frozen coffee, where coffee is blended with ice, sweeteners, and cream for a chilly treat. Most people associate frozen coffee with Starbucks' Frappuccino, but the drink has its origins in a Seattle coffeehouse, where entrepreneur and specialty coffee pioneer George Howell sampled a frozen cappuccino while on a business trip. The businessman introduced the concoction at his shop The Coffee Connection in Boston and coined the name "Frappuccino." 

Students from nearby Harvard latched onto the drink and made it a sensation. Since then, Starbucks has diversified this frozen beverage, creating caffeine-free flavors like the Strawberry Crème Frappuccino and the whimsical neon Unicorn Frappuccino. These tasty treats, more akin to milkshakes than anything else, aren't the traditional Greek recipe, yet are popular all the same.