On Nov. 7, Starbucks dropped its new holiday drink menu filled with new flavors and ingredients. With Starbucks being a worldwide store, many people had different perspectives on these new drinks.
One of Starbucks’ most anticipated drinks this year was their iced sugar cookie almond milk latte. It is a blonde espresso with sweet sugar cookie flavors, almond milk and a mixture of sprinkles on top.
Their iced gingerbread oat milk chai has continuously been many customer’s holiday go-to since it came out. It is a combination of chai spices with a hint of gingerbread taste and a creamy oat milk base.
Alex Marquez (11) says, “I got the Gingerbread Chai and I thought it was really delicious. Getting the drink every year near Christmas makes me happy because it’s a nice reminder that the holidays are coming. The oat milk makes it taste better, and it was also really sweet which I liked.”
There is also an iced gingerbread oat milk latte that replaces the cinnamony part of the chai with a cooler espresso taste.
Sophie Butler (11) shares, “I thought the gingerbread was very yummy. I loved the gingerbread flavor in it because it reminded me of Christmas and it wasn’t too overly sweet since it was a basic latte instead of the chai.”
The Chestnut Praline Latte is another espresso and whole milk caramelized with a chestnut taste. It also comes with additional praline crumbs on top of the beverage.
Similarly to the Chestnut Praline Latte, the Caramel Brulee Latte is espresso with regular milk but mixed with different flavors of caramel brulee sauce. The crunchy caramel brulee topping strengthens the caramel infused taste of the drink.
Lucie Welch (11) adds, “I love getting the Caramel Brulee Latte during the holiday season. Its caramel flavor is well-balanced and its sweetness is perfect for me.”
The Peppermint Mocha is one of the most well-liked options from the holiday menu this year. It comes with a rich espresso blended with a hint of chocolate and a strong blast of peppermint flavor.
Another caffeinated beverage includes the Salted Pecan Cold Brew with a rich sweet and salty savor. It is sweetened with vanilla syrup and topped with a salted pecan cream cold foam and sugar.
Starbucks also added a holiday twist to their refresher. This year, they added three variations of cranberry drinks.
The Cran-Merry Orange Refresher is filled with citrus tang from the sweet orange and tart cranberry. Its vibrant red color and cranberry inclusions add to the overall holiday aesthetic of Christmas.
Lemonade can be added to the Cran-Merry refresher to emphasize its citric savor, or another variation could be replacing the water base of the original refresher with coconut milk to have a basic Cran-Merry Drink instead.
Any of the holiday drinks could be altered or perfected with a cold foam option of the customer’s choice. Starbucks has a total of five cold foams this year: peppermint chocolate, sugar cookie, chestnut praline, gingerbread and caramel brulee. With the variety of drink options, Starbucks ensures to offer drinks that suit any customer’s tastes.
As the new holiday season approaches, there are many ways to anticipate future celebrations by the various Christmas-themed drinks available at Starbucks.
