Who doesn’t love seasonal treats that only come out once a year? Everyone has their favorite Christmas Guilty (or, not so guilty) pleasures. Mine, as well as a host of others, love Starbuck’s seasonal offering. As displayed by my Halloween Coffee post, I love Holiday drinks! So of course, I took myself to Starbucks to try each of their seasonal brews!
Caramel Brulee
This is my number one pick from the current line up over at Starbucks. I love sweet things, and by that logic, I love caramel. Which definitely accurate. This drink is a great substitute if you’re tired of the same old peppermint. I never thought I’d be tired of the peppermint mochas, despite loving them so so so much.
This drink has a nice smooth finish, the majority of the flavor is caramel but that tapers off into a mellow espresso flavor. It’s a delicious winter drink that I can’t recommend enough if you fit these two requirements:
- You love any and all things Starbucks
- You’re like me, and you love sweets
This would be a great drink to sip as you hang out with the girls, or a relaxing night in by the fire with your partner!
Toasted White Chocolate Mocha
This one, I didn’t manage to grab a picture of. But as you’d imagine, that’s far from a travesty being that so many of the drinks look the same and taste so different. This one, to me, was not really -good- different. I generally don’t enjoy fruity flavors in my coffee, I’m cream all the way. This latte has a dusting of cranberry sugar on top, and the mingling flavors of caramel and mocha. Strangely, this one is actually too sweet for me and the surplus of sugar comes across bitter somehow.
If you’re really, and I do mean really into sweet coffees and enjoy a touch of fruitiness in your coffees for the holidays, this might be for you. And I think I’m going to let you guys have this one.
Gingerbread Latte
One of the ones I was excited to try this year was the Gingerbread latte, despite not being too huge on gingerbread. I did try this as a frappe a while back, which you can see below. I made the mistake of thinking that I liked Gingerbread a lot. Oh boy was I was wrong. It was too much. During a raining evening after work, I decided to give with the hot variant a try for this post!
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While this isn’t my usual thing, it’s not bad at all. Each sip has a nice spice to it that is brought down by the somewhat harsh espresso. I’m not sure that I’ll be getting this one again, because I really don’t care for ginger. It’s pretty true to what it’s based off it. I think it’s a loving homage to a traditional Christmas treat. It’s not my favorite thing on this list, but it’s also not my least favorite. It’s squarely in the middle. If you guys want to enjoy a Gingerbread cookie without the hassel of… y’know, eating it, this is for you! I will add really quick, that I did really like the frappe. I would not recommend pairing it like I did, unless you love ginger.
Juniper Latte
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I know this post is a little late to the party with the Juniper Latte, but guys, life. That’s all I have to say. Times is hard, in the immortal words of Ms. Lovett.
Anyway, I did make it in to taste this unique brainchild. Of course, I sniffed it first to see what the smell was like. It smelled almost savory, which is not a thing I associate with my coffee. The overall flavor is woodsy. It’s sprinkled with sage, so it has a bit of an herbal taste as well. I made the mistake of taking a large swallow, thinking it was coke, and holy. crap. Immediate regret. It has a sharp, earthy aftertaste and not even the good bite of espresso. My question to Starbucks is this: why. Why would you market this? Come on. I guess I understand, it’s a unique idea. “Hey, let’s make a coffee that tastes like a tree,” because of course, we have to try it.
I’m a little rusty on my coffee reviewing skills, and guys, I took a sip and that aftertaste hits hard. I don’t think I’ll be getting this again. Literally, all I can say now that I couldn’t say before is “I drank tree flavored coffee”. And is that a bragging right I really want to have?
I was really hoping to wrap this post up on a positive note. I was hoping it was going to have more a piney, vaguely evergreen vibe. How wrong I was. If you guys took one for the team, what were your thoughts? Will you be buying it again?
With that trainwreck, we wrap up another day of our countdown! We still have more on the schedule, so be sure to check back tomorrow! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to find some coffee to hold me over til tomorrow!
Java and Jeans 