Starbucks UK Matcha and Pistachio Slice review

I have had my eye on this matcha and pistachio slice from Starbucks for a couple of weeks now and finally gave in and decided I had to try it. It is described as having a spiced shortbread base, a layer of pistachio, almond and matcha frangipane with cranberries, flaked almonds and a pistachio crumble. I have to admit that I have never actually heard of matcha so I had to look it up and discovered that it is a ground powder made from green tea. Seeing as I don't like green tea this may have put me off but the promise of almond and pistachio frangipane and spicy shortbread as too tempting.

I sat down with the slice and although it was quite small I was still excited to try it. I cut through it with the knife which was quite difficult as it kind of just crumbled. I took a bite and in all honesty  I was left feeling a little flat. The texture was very dry which is quite common with shortbread but the flavour didn't really make up for it. The shortbread as spiced but so mildly it wasn't very noticeable. The frangipane layer was where most of the flavour came from but in all honesty even this had quite a subtle flavour. The addition of the cranberries added a chewiness to the texture and a sharp sweetness that I did quite like although the pistachio crumble and flaked almonds just made this seem even more dry. The matcha aspect of this slice was something that I didn't even notice in all honesty which I wont actually complain about seeing as I'm not a lover of green tea, however if this is something that appeals to you then you may be disappointed. I had such high hopes for this slice but ended up being really disappointed. It wasn't awful but it wasn't worth the money that I paid for it as it was just a rather bland dry tray bake.