The art of making homemade "Starbucks" drinks

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So, since I like to cook, I attempted to make a Starbucks-style unsweetened vanilla-spice iced almond latte--and failed big-time. First, I poured out some Gold Peak iced tea (I didn't measure it, but I'm guessing about a cup) and added exactly 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk--in case you're unfamiliar with almond milk, it's not almond-flavored milk, but a non-dairy milk substitute made from almonds. Then I added a pinch of cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, and a pinch of ginger. I tasted it--yuck! There were clumps of spice. So I strained it, and it still tasted bad, so I added an extra drop of vanilla. It still tasted bad! I poured it out in the sink, feeling like I was going to get sick from those few sips. Any tips on what I could have done better--that don't involve adding regular milk, soy milk, sweetener, or sugar?

I assume you are trying to make a Starbucks like drink without using any Starbucks ingredients? I can tell you right now that the only secret/thing that makes Starbucks coffee unique is it's coffee beans and how they roast/process them. Every thing else like the milk and flavors used and how much is used is common public knowledge and is really no different then your common "run of the mills" espresso stand.

They must be very generous, that they make a secret about how to create bad tasting coffee. XD

A french press works well, and when using coffee from a local roaster gets me coffee thats as strong and flavorful as a redeye for a lot less $$$ in the long run.

What makes you think I said anything about about it being good or bad.? I never implied that.

Go find a recipe to make chai masala from scratch. Preferably use whole spices. Probably best off checking your Indian market for the spices, gonna need cardamom most likely.

EDIT, a sugar packet has like 15 calories or something. Seriously, you'll be fine. No need to be OCD.

Tea for latte? Quality ingredients are everything. If you want masala chai, make your own or check out www.yogicchai.com. They have won awards a few years running.

For a decent coffee latte, pick up a coffee grinder, and a stovetop expression maker. (Bialetti makes a style that will steam your milk as the coffee brews.) A freshly ground quality French or espresso roast will hold up well with milk. If you want flavor, the syrups that most coffee shops use can be easily found online or in stores.

A good tasting coffee, you dont want to flavour, because it ruins the taste of the coffee. Its the like mixing a tasty wine with Cola.

I was not active when they rolled out the VSL however, I would not recommend making an iced latte with tea. As an Iced latte is made with a base of milk and espresso over ice. The vanilla spice had its own syrup, which you can buy if you go to the right stores. (Non-franchised starbucks are more likely) however they would most likely be out of date and already tossed as stated by SOP. From what I heard the "spice" part is nutmeg, with a little cinnamon. You could do a pure almond milk VSL with espresso a few teaspoons of vanilla with some cinnamon/nutmeg over ice, or do one with a combination of soy and almond milk. Just putting my few years of two cents out there!