Apple Crisp Macchiato {Starbucks Copycat}

If you're loving the new Starbucks Apple Crisp Macchiato, you're going to want to try this copycat recipe! Made with espresso, apple brown sugar simple syrup, and steamed milk, this sweet fall coffee drink is the perfect seasonal treat!

Jump to:

• 🧋 What is a macchiato?
• ❗️ Updates for 2022
• 🗒 Ingredients
• 🍎 How to make apple brown sugar syrup
• ☕️ How to make apple crisp macchiato
• 🥛 How to froth milk without a frother
• ❓ Do I need to froth the milk?
• 🍬 What if the drink is too sweet for me?
• 🥤 Can I use less milk?
• 🐄 Can I use a non-dairy alternative?
• 💡 More Starbucks copycat drinks
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

Fall's newest drink is here! Does anyone else eagerly anticipate the new seasonal drinks from Starbucks once autumn is almost here?

Lots of people are obsessed with Pumpkin Spice Lattes, but this year, Starbucks is adding a new seasonal flavor to their fall menu coffee selection... Apple!

And we're not talking apple cider; we're talking apple coffee. The new drink is an Apple Crisp Macchiato to be more specific.

I'll admit I was a little skeptical that apple and coffee could work together. But I immediately went out to try the drink and guess what? It works. Somehow it really, really works. And I think it's way more delicious than the pumpkin spice latte!

I've seen several people compare the Apple Crisp Macchiato to those Caramel Apple Pops many of us enjoyed as kids and I definitely agree with that!

After realizing how delicious the new macchiato is, I decided to go home and try making one myself. It ended up being quite easy and I think it tastes super close to what you get at the coffeeshop!

🧋 What is a macchiato?

This is an interesting question since a traditional macchiato is quite different than a Starbucks macchiato.

The word "macchiato" actually translates to "marked" from Italian, meaning the espresso is "marked" by a little bit of milk foam.

But Starbucks macchiatos are way more than "marked" by milk. In fact, they're mostly milk! The Caramel Macchiato recipe straight from the source itself calls for just 1 shot of espresso and an entire cup of milk.

That's technically more like a latte, but Starbucks is calling it a macchiato.

That means that you don't necessarily need to be a coffee lover to enjoy a macchiato from Starbucks.

And that's probably partly why coffee and apple work so well together here... There's a whole lot of milk involved!

I also have a recipe for the Iced Apple Crisp Macchiato and the Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso.

If you love apple flavor, but don't like coffee, try my recipe for the Caramel Apple Spice.

❗️ Updates for 2022

Did you know Starbucks actually changed their apple macchiato formulation in 2022? When I originally wrote this recipe, the drink was made with 2% milk and regular espresso.

However, they are now making it with oat milk and blonde espresso.

These two changes are actually really great and, I think, make the drink even more delicious! The creamy oat milk makes it taste even more like an actual fresh baked slice of apple crisp. And the blonde espresso seems like a better match for the apple cinnamon flavors.

However, you're welcome to make the drink however you want and I'm including multiple options for you with the recipe!

Update: In 2023, Starbucks introduced another oat milk drink, the Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and in 2024 they introduced the Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai.

🗒 Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients to make this copycat Apple Crisp Macchiato! Here's what's required (be sure to see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full directions)

• Apple Brown Sugar Syrup (I'll show you how to make this below or you can buy it)
• Brewed Espresso or Strong Coffee (use blonde espresso if you want to follow Starbucks' 2022 changes)
• Milk (or dairy/dairy alternative of your choice), steamed with some frothed (use oat milk if you want to follow Starbucks' 2022 changes)
• Caramel and ground cinnamon for topping, if desired

The Starbucks macchiato also has a "spiced apple" drizzle, but that seemed super close to the apple brown sugar syrup I was already making, so I used that instead. Plus, I drizzled on some caramel sauce for fun.

🍎 How to make apple brown sugar syrup

This apple simple syrup is super easy to make and great to keep in your fridge during the fall season! I'll show you how to make it here, but I also have a full post on it if you want even more details.

If you really don't want to make a homemade syrup, I recommend either buying Starbucks' apple brown sugar syrup or combining an apple syrup and a brown sugar cinnamon syrup. I haven't tried this recipe with store-bought simple syrup, but I'm sure it would be close.

I usually make my simple syrups with granulated sugar, but since the Apple Crisp Macchiato calls for an apple brown sugar simple syrup, I used brown sugar instead for this one.

Starbucks doesn’t specify what kind of Apple they use, but I highly recommend a sweet apple.

I love Honeycrisp, but Fuji, Gala, and red delicious are also quite sweet.

To make the syrup, put water, brown sugar, sliced apples, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan and bring mixture to a boil.

Once boiling, lower heat and let simmer for about 15-20 minutes, until mixture thicken and apples have softened.

Strain mixture into a bowl, being sure to press down on the apples with a wooden spoon or spatula to extract as much juice as possible.

Keep syrup in bowl or pour into a mason jar and place in fridge to cool completely before using.

Syrup will thicken as it cools.

When stored properly, this syrup will keep for about a month in your fridge, so you can have a homemade fall macchiato whenever you want!

☕️ How to make apple crisp macchiato

Now that your apple brown sugar simple syrup is done, you're ready to make the macchiato! Don't worry; this is a very easy recipe and results in an incredible hot drink with some fabulous fall flavors!

Simply heat the milk to about 140-150 degrees. You can do this in the microwave or on the stovetop (see below for how to heat the milk and froth it in a mason jar).

Now, add apple brown sugar simple syrup and brewed espresso to a heat-proof glass.

From all the research I did, I found that Starbucks generally uses 2 shots of espresso and 3 pumps of syrup in their grande macchiatos.

A shot of espresso is 1 ounce and there's a lot of conflicting information on how many ounces a pump of syrup is. Answers seem to range anywhere from .25 oz to 1 oz, but it seems the general consensus is .5 oz.

So, I recommend using 2 oz brewed espresso shots and 1 ½ oz apple brown sugar simple syrup. But, of course, you can use any measurements you want!

Now, pour in the steamed milk. And top off with frothed milk.

Drizzle on more of the simple syrup... And caramel sauce if you want to. I also recommend sprinkling a little ground cinnamon over the top.

This coffee drink tastes just like the Apple Crisp Macchiato you get at Starbucks! It's sweet and milky with a nice touch of apple flavoring, making it the ultimate fall drink.

I'm honestly shocked by how much I enjoy the apple flavor along with the coffee and milk, but it's so good!

🥛 How to froth milk without a frother

If you're serious about coffee drinks, chances are you own a milk frother. But if not, there's a super easy way for you to froth milk without one! Actually, there are quite a few ways, but this is one of my favorites.

When I use this technique, I do it for the froth and the steamed milk all in one.

Simply pour milk into a mason jar (no more than halfway full).

Put the lid on and shake the jar as hard as you can for about 30 seconds.

See how frothy it got just from shaking it?

Then pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute, depending on how much milk is in your jar.

I use about 1 ¼ cups milk for this recipe and heat it for 45 seconds.

You can pour the steamed milk right into your coffee and then spoon the froth in.

Check out that froth!

❓ Do I need to froth the milk?

Starbucks Apple Crisp Macchiato does have frothed milk in it, but if you don't feel like going through the effort, you can certainly leave it off and this drink will still be delicious.

And if you want a fun substitute, you can always add whipped cream instead!

🍬 What if the drink is too sweet for me?

If you think this drink is too sweet, simply use less simple syrup! Starbucks special drinks are certainly known for being sweet, but you can always order them with fewer pumps of syrup.

And, of course, when you're making them at home, you can use less syrup. Or more if you like a really, really sweet drink! It's so easy to give this cup of coffee the right amount of sweetness for you.

🥤 Can I use less milk?

Yes! I tried to stay close to the ratios that Starbucks baristas use when making macchiatos, but once you have all the ingredients, you can use any measurements you want.

In fact, Starbucks macchiatos are a little too milky for me. I'm a black coffee drinker typically and while I do love a "treat" coffee from time to time, I still like more of a coffee flavor.

I've been making this apple crisp coffee with 1 oz. apple simple syrup, 4 oz. coffee, and 4 oz. milk with some froth. And it's still a milky sweet treat!

🐄 Can I use a non-dairy alternative?

Yup! Just like how at Starbucks you can order your drinks with almost any kind of milk or dairy/non-dairy alternative, you can use whatever you want in this Apple Crisp Macchiato, too.

And now, in 2022, Starbucks uses oat milk, a very popular non-dairy milk in their Apple Crisp Macchiato... And I think it tastes best with it! Plus, this makes for an easy vegan drink.

Just note that all milks aren't made equal when it comes to frothing and some may be harder to froth than others. Luckily, oat milk is really easy to froth!

💡 More Starbucks copycat drinks

I love going to Starbucks, but sometimes it's fun to make their coffee (and tea) drinks at home. If you love this hot macchiato, be sure to try my iced version of the apple crisp macchiato! You also may like my Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai recipe.

Here are some of my favorite recipes:

I love that I now have a delicious alternative to Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes. Apple generally beats pumpkin in favorite fall flavor polls, so I hope this macchiato ends up sticking around!

What's your favorite seasonal Starbucks drink?

📖 Recipe

View Web Story for this recipe.