Starbucks’ holiday lineup includes both hot and cold drinks, including the new Cran-Merry Orange Refresher (left). | Photos courtesy of Starbucks
Starbucks made its holiday menu reveal official, unveiling the seasonal collection of beverages, food items and red-and-green to-go cups that roll out nationwide Thursday.
Although the Seattle-based coffee giant tries to keep the holiday menu secret until launch day, social media sleuths posted the lineup last month. The final menu is a close match to the Instagram version.
Leading off on the beverage side is the festive red Cran-Merry Orange Refresher, the chain’s first holiday drink in its Refreshers line. This one’s a blend of cranberry, sweet orange and warm spice notes, including cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom. It’ shaken with water, ice and fresh cranberries and can also be ordered as a Cran-Merry Orange Lemonade Refresher, shaken with lemonade.
The Cran-Merry Drink is another line extension, mixed with coconutmilk and poured over ice and cranberries. All the Refreshers are infused with green coffee extract from unroasted coffee beans for a caffeine kick.
Like Starbucks’ iconic Pumpkin Spice Latte, Peppermint Mocha has been going strong for more than 20 years, and it returns again this holiday season. Also making a comeback are some of the newer espresso-based winter drinks that have become fan favorites: Caramel Brulee Latte, Chestnut Praline Latte and Iced Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte. Tea lovers can get their holiday fix with Iced Gingerbread Oatmilk Chai.
The newest holiday cold foam is infused with gingerbread flavor.
Holiday Cold Foams are a relatively new addition to the holiday repertoire, created to cap off cold brew and iced coffee with a sweet, airy crown. They are usually made with dairy cream but can also be customized with a nondairy product.
Starbucks’ holiday menu boasts five vanilla sweet cream cold foams, including the new Gingerbread Cream Cold Foam blended with spiced gingerbread flavors. Other choices include Peppermint Chocolate Cream Cold Foam, Sugar Cookie Cream Cold Foam, Chestnut Praline Cream Cold Foam and Caramel Brulée Cream Cold Foam. Other chains, including Dutch Bros with its signature Soft Tops, offer similar on-trend creamy toppers—and café customers expect them.
On the food side, a Thanksgiving-inspired savory pastry is making its debut. The Turkey Sage Danish, which is filled with turkey sausage and a creamy bechamel sauce, is more of a lunch or afternoon snack item than a breakfast baked good.
The savory Turkey Sage Danish evokes Thanksgiving flavors.
On the sweeter side is a new mini bundt cake called the Dark Toffee Bundt, with rich toffee flavors and a Christmas candy garnish. Also new is a buttery iced Penguin Cookie and a Snowman Cake Pop.
Starbucks makes an effort to create food and drink items that celebrate “winter holidays” rather than Christmas per se, but the 2024 cups seem clearly dressed in Christmas colors even if they don’t sport trees, holly, ornaments or other icons.
The cups are designed in shades of Starbucks green and cranberry red paired with soft pastels. “We’re really excited to lean into greens this year,” Kristy Cameron, Starbucks creative director for this year’s holiday cup designs, said in a statement. “The jade green is so vibrant and bright, and we love how it references our brand colors in a way that brings a spark of joy to our holiday cups this season.”
There are four hot cups with themes such as Siren Chorus with patterned stripes of holiday charms; Lyrical Landscape reminiscent of holiday gift box ribbons; Joyful Connection with circular green and red shapes that evoke coffee roasting trays; and Warm Wishes, a design of interconnected dots that resemble glowing holiday lights and togetherness.
The “Warm Wishes” cup design resembles holiday lights.
The cold cup is designed with holiday charms in white—no Christmas colors here.
The Starbucks Reserve Roasteries and stores in Seattle, Chicago and New York City will also offer a holiday lineup—this one with an eggnog theme. There’s Iced Caramel Brulée Eggnog Latte, an Eggnog Espresso Martini and Fog Nog Tea Latte. Plus the Starbucks Reserve Peppermint Mocha and Peppermint Mocha Espresso Martini return to the menu, along with a variety of seasonal food, merchandise and experiences.
When Starbucks drops its holiday menus, fall classics like Pumpkin Spice Latte, Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew and Iced Caramel Apple Cream Latte typically come off the roster soon after. Starbucks is working on streamlining its menu and operations, announcing last week that its Oleato olive oil-infused beverages will be eliminated with the launch of the holiday drinks. It’s possible that other items will be axed, too, as the coffee giant looks to simplify the menu to increase efficiencies.
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