This homemade Strawberry Acai Lemonade Refresher is cool, tangy, and loaded with real strawberry flavor. It's a refreshing blend of brewed acai tea, lemonade, and strawberries that tastes just like the Starbucks favorite (maybe better), and you don't even have to leave the house.
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If you've been to my blog before, you know I am a huge Starbucks fan. I love their drinks, but I don't like spending almost $6 for a drink. Since I discovered how easy it is to make the Best Iced Coffee At Home, I have loved creating Starbucks recipes at home.
This strawberry acai lemonade refresher is one of my absolute favorite drinks. Many copycat refresher recipes use white grape juice, but for some reason, I can't find any, so I used sugar to sweeten the strawberry base instead.
If you love this copycat recipe, you'll also love this Raspberry Iced Tea and Iced Peach Tea Lemonade!
Why You'll Love It
- It tastes just like Starbucks - Sweet, tart, and totally spot on.
- Made with real ingredients - No weird syrups or artificial flavors.
- Customizable - Sweetness, caffeine, and base flavors are all up to you.
- Skip the line (and the $6 price tag) - Make a whole batch for the cost of one drink.
- Ready in minutes - Make the base ahead and assemble anytime.
Ingredients You'll Need
- Fresh Strawberries: Use fresh or frozen strawberries. If using frozen, simmer a little longer.
- Sugar: Use any sweetener of your choice, including honey, maple syrup, or even Stevia.
- Acai Berry Tea: I used Stash Acai Berry Tea bags, but it appears they are no longer making them. You can also use Tazo Passion Tea and ¼ teaspoon acai powder.
- Lemonade: You can make Old Fashioned Cane Sugar Lemonade with fresh lemons or use store-bought lemonade. For extra strawberry flavor, use strawberry lemonade.
- Green coffee bean extract (optional). For a subtle caffeine boost. Skip it for a caffeine-free version.
- Lemon juice. Freshly squeezed lemon juice for the best flavor, but you can also use citric acid.
- Freeze-dried strawberries: These are optional but make a nice garnish, similar to the Starbucks version. You can use fresh sliced strawberries instead.
- Ice - Use crushed or cubed ice, or frozen strawberries.
Full ingredient list with measurements is in the printable recipe card below.
How to Make a Starbucks Strawberry Acai Lemonade Refresher at Home
This recipe makes two 16-oz (Grande-sized) drinks or one 30-oz Trenta.
Step 1: Make the Strawberry Acai Refresher Base
Add chopped strawberries, sugar, water, and lemon juice to a small saucepan.
Simmer over medium-low for 10 minutes, mashing the berries with a potato masher.
Remove from heat and strain through a fine mesh sieve. Chill the base.
Step 2: Brew the Acai Tea
Steep two acai berry tea bags in ½ cup boiling water for 5 minutes. Squeeze out every drop, then let the tea cool to room temperature.
Step 3: Assemble the Drink
In a tall glass or large mason jar, combine:
- ½ cup strawberry base
- ¼ cup brewed acai tea
- ½ cup lemonade
- Optional: ½ teaspoon green coffee extract
- Add ice and top with freeze-dried strawberries
Stir it all up and serve immediately. You can also combine all the ingredients in a shaker and shake to mix. Enjoy!
Variations
- Pink Drink: Swap lemonade for coconut milk.
- Strawberry Acai Refresher: Replace lemonade with water.
- Extra Lemony: Freeze some lemonade into ice cubes and use them instead of regular ice cubes.
- Frozen version: Blend all ingredients with ice.
- Berry twist: Use mixed berries instead of just strawberries.
Top Tips
- Make a big batch of the strawberry base and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Want more zing? Use fresh-squeezed lemon juice instead of bottled.
- Adjust the sweetness to your liking by adding agave syrup, honey, or simple syrup.
- Use clear glasses-this one's made for showing off!
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Keep the strawberry base and brewed tea in the fridge. Assemble fresh when ready to drink.
Not technically, but it gives a smoother, more Starbucks-like texture.
Totally. Green coffee extract provides a gentle boost, but it's not necessary.
Use another berry tea and stir in a little acai powder. Passion tea + powder works well.
Yes! Freeze in small portions (like ice cube trays) for single-serve use.
They use a concentrated lemon blend that's sweetened, but you can get close with homemade lemonade or Simply Lemonade.
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Printable Recipe
Starbucks Copycat Strawberry Acai Lemonade Refresher
Ingredients
Strawberry Base
- 2 cups fresh strawberries washed, hulled, halved or quartered
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Acai Berry Tea
- 2 acai berry tea bags
- ½ cup filtered water
How To Assemble the Strawberry Acai Lemonade Refresher
- 1 cup strawberry base
- ½ cup brewed acai berry tea
- 1 cup lemonade
- 2 cups ice cubes
- 2 tablespoons freeze-dried strawberries for garnish optional
- 1 teaspoon green coffee powder optional
- agave nectar, honey, or simple syrup to sweeten to taste optional
Instructions
- Make Strawberry Base: In a medium saucepan, combine 2 cups of strawberries, 2 tablespoons of water, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Heat the mixture over medium heat until it bubbles, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low and let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes, using a potato masher to break up the strawberries.
- Brew Acai Tea: While the strawberries are cooking, brew the acai tea by placing ½ cup of boiling water in a mug and adding 2 acai berry tea bags. Let them steep for 5 minutes, then remove the tea bags. Use your fingers to squeeze all of the liquid out of the tea bags before discarding. Let the tea cool down.
- Strain Strawberry Base: Strain the cooked strawberry mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove any seeds or pulp. Use the back of a wooden spoon to get as much liquid out as possible. Transfer the mixture to a jar and refrigerate until cool. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Assemble the Drink: Add ½ cup of the strawberry base to each glass as well as ¼ cup of cooled acai tea and ½ cup of lemonade. Stir well to combine. Add ½ teaspoon of green coffee powder to each glass for a caffeine boost if desired. Add 1 cup of ice cubes to each glass and top with a tablespoon of freeze-dried strawberries.
- Serve: Stir with a straw and enjoy immediately!
Video
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Notes
- Use fresh, ripe strawberries for the best flavor.
- Prepare the strawberry acai base ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator.
- Adjust the sweetness to your liking by adding agave syrup, honey, or simple syrup.
- Double or triple the strawberry acai base recipe so you can prepare a drink anytime you want in just a few minutes!
Nutrition
The provided nutrition information is automatically calculated. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
Barbra Jean says
I haven’t tried this yet but is there an alternative to the tea?
And it looks like something that takes time. Is there a quicker way to do this?
Jeri Walker says
Hi Barbra! You can use Tazo Passion tea or any berry tea. If you really wanted to make it quicker, you could just use strawberry syrup, but for the best flavor I would make the homemade strawberry base up to 3 days ahead, and then you can assemble it quite quickly.