As a daily coffee drinker, I was over the moon when Starbucks announced their holiday menu drinks. I took the challenge of breaking the bank and trying all six holiday drinks.

1. Peppermint Mocha
I was pleasantly surprised as to how much I liked this drink because I usually am the girl who goes for vanilla over chocolate, but this time it was different. The mix of mint and mocha blended perfectly in the espresso and milk foam goodness. Peppermint surprisingly works well in a hot drink and is perfect for drinking by a fire on a cold winter night.

2. Iced Sugar Cookie Almond Milk Latte
I personally always drink an iced coffee no matter the season or how cold it gets in the Chicago-land weather, so trying this drink got me excited. The addition of a dairyless milk was also nice and added a lot of flavor to the sweet drink. The flavors all blended nicely and reminded me of baking around Christmas time.

3. Toasted white chocolate mocha frappuccino
I have always been a fan of Starbucks’ white chocolate mocha latte, so I was excited to get my hands on the frappuccino version of this drink. A milkshake-like drink in the dead of winter wouldn’t be my first choice, but I really liked the flavors of this holiday drink. The white chocolate flavor worked surprisingly well in this frozen drink, but I don’t think I would get it again unless I got half the sweetener.

4. Chestnut praline latte
This hot drink had the perfect mix of sweet caramel and coffee flavor as well as hints of chestnut. Tasting this drink reminded me of Christmas and what I imagine chestnuts roasting by an open fire tastes like. The milk foam and bitter espresso paired well with the caramel which isn’t mentioned in the name but is prominent in the drink.

5. Caramel Bruleé Latte
I have always been a vanilla girl but after I saw my sister who doesn’t like coffee fall in love with this drink, I knew it would be good to try. This drink tasted like a caramel explosion which had notes of milk foam and espresso. The drink was a little too sweet for me to get regularly, but if you are looking for something that tastes like a desert, will keep you warm and you don’t mind spending 5 dollars on, this is for you.

6. Irish cream cold brew
This iced drink was perfect for me because of the balance of sweet foam and the cold brew coffee. This drink had a lot of flavors, but the ones that stood out the most were the sweet foam, chocolate and vanilla syrup and the bitter coffee. Thai by far was the smoothest drink and something I could definitely see myself drinking year round.