Star Wars: What Green Milk Tastes Like In Real Life
When most people think of "Star Wars," they think of milk. Well, they actually think of lightsabers, then Darth Vader, then X-Wings and stormtroopers. But go down that rabbit hole deep enough and you'll reach milk — stunning, nutritious, Technicolor milk. It started with the blue milk in the very first "Star Wars" movie, part of a balanced breakfast for any moisture farmer's nephew. Then in "Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi," Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) expanded the dairy in his diet with green milk, sucked fresh from a thala-siren's teet.
It's a bit grotesque, sure, but when you're living the hermit's life on Ahch-To and your X-Wing is at the bottom of the river, your options are limited, and the DoorDash drivers aren't paid enough to decipher that cryptic starmap. The big question is how that green milk actually tastes.
Hamill revealed in a 2018 interview with Radio Times that the production team used coconut water, "which they enhanced in post with that green color." Hamill said this was far better than what the original "Star Wars" blue milk tasted like, which was a "long life" camping milk dyed blue. That drink didn't need to be refrigerated, making it ideal for the 1977 film's Tunisia production, but Hamill said it was "really ghastly. Oily and sweet and euch! Triggered your gag reflex." That's all interesting, but in the interest of science, we spoke with a professional dietician about what the green milk in "Star Wars" might actually taste like in the galaxy far, far away.
Luke is getting a hearty diet with his green milk
To get to the bottom of the green milk mystery, Looper spoke with licensed dietician and social media influencer Steph Grasso of GrassoFed, LLC. She did her best to apply her real-world scientific knowledge to the colorful sci-fi drink. "Since an animal's diet might affect the milk flavor, I would think it would have a subtle fishy taste with an oily mouthfeel due to the omega-3 fatty acids coming from its seafood-rich diet," Grasso says. "It might also have a mildly algal taste from the marine plants. However, some plants can be sweet, so there could be a hidden sweetness to balance these flavors out."
As for the potential nutritional value of Luke's Ahch-To diet, it might not be too bad. "Theoretically it's possible to survive on a sparse diet supplemented by milk," Grasso tells Looper. "You get high-quality protein, containing all essential amino acids needed for bodily functions. It contains carbohydrates (from lactose), which supply a quick source of energy. The fats contained in milk are important for energy, hormone production, and cell structure." Since we know Luke supplements his milk drinking with a hearty diet of giant alien fish, his strength and agility shouldn't come as a surprise.
Of course, there are concerns that come with drinking raw, unpasteurized milk. "Without pasteurization, you are risking exposure to bacterial contamination, as well as contamination from farming practices or the health of the animal itself," Grasso told Looper. Maybe Luke's handy milking bottle has a built-in pasteurizer of sorts, or maybe thala-siren milk is particularly resilient to bacteria.
You can try green milk for yourself at Disney World
If your green milk curiosity still isn't sated, you can try a version of the beverage yourself by visiting the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge theme park at Disney World's Hollywood Studios. The park drink, which will cost you $8.99 per colorful glass, is a mixture of coconut and rice milk, so it may not be so far off from the version Mark Hamill drank on set. This version is a bit more flavored up to entice guests, of course, with Disney advertising its "zippy citrus and tropical characteristics" on the Disney World website. That's just the Ahch-To island vacay guarantee.
"With sugar listed as the first ingredient (assuming it is added sugar), the added sugars may account for a large portion of the total carbohydrate content," Steph Grasso tells Looper. When it comes to theme park treats, high sugar content is usually a given, and it's unsurprising to learn that Disney World's green milk may not exactly be overflowing in nutritional value.
"Compared to cow's milk or soy milk, green milk is low in protein and also lacks fiber," Grasso says. "The health appeal might come from the spirulina and turmeric, but if you check the nutrition label, they fall toward the end of the ingredients list, meaning only a subtle amount is added (possibly for color)." Despite its lack of nutritional value, this is the closest you'll get to the real thing, and it probably beats a trip to Luke's real-life "Last Jedi" island.