Cue the Mariah Carey voice, because it’s tiiiiiiime! The Starbucks holiday drinks release day might as well be a national holiday at this point. It’s certainly always big news for The Everygirl team; we’re all eager to share our thoughts on the new flavors, the iconic cup designs, and what everyone crowns the best Starbucks holiday drink of the year. Keeping with tradition, we did an official taste test of all the Starbucks holiday drinks for 2026—and our top pick might surprise you. Without further ado, find our comprehensive ranking of the Starbucks holiday beverage menu below. Happy sipping!
Meet our taste-testers
LAUREN BLUE
Editor & Book Club Co-Host
Go-to Starbucks order: Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew
KEELY GEIST
Associate Director of Marketing
Go-to Starbucks order: Iced Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso
CLAIRE WEST
Lifestyle Editor
Go-to Starbucks order: Hot Americano with Oat Milk
How we ranked them
Our three official taste testers each tried 11 Starbucks holiday drinks. We scored each drink on a scale of 1-5 in the categories of “overall taste” and “likelihood to get again” for a total of 10 possible points per drink. The scores you see below are the averages of our three testers’ ratings. We ordered all the drinks without any modifications, so we could taste them exactly as Starbucks intended.
Our official 2026 Starbucks holiday drinks ranking
11. Apple Pomegranate Lemonade Refresher
Score: 2.43/10
From the moment we saw pictures of this refresher in the Starbucks holiday menu announcement, we were skeptical of the Grinch-green and cranberry-red beverage. And it turns out, our judge-a-book-by-its-cover instinct was right. (Although it did prove to be prettier in person with the holiday cup!) All three of us deemed this too-tart drink a major miss, drawing comparisons to Jolly Ranchers, apple lollipops, and sickeningly-sour Appletinis. Keely put it best, claiming that one sip sent her straight back to college, nursing an Apple Schnapps hangover. Not a memory we need to revisit.
10. Snowy Apple Drink
Score: 2.75/10
Okay, we were torn on this one. The Snowy Apple is the Apple Pomegranate Refresher with coconut milk, which we all agreed did help temper the tart (or in Lauren’s words, the “putridly sour”) apple flavor. Although, the splash of milk makes for an unappealing sea foam green color that gave Claire the ick before her first sip. However, Keely—a Starbucks Refresher fan in general—enjoyed this one, so fellow Refresher girlies, you might, too!
9. Iced Caramel Brûlée Cream Chai
Score: 3/10
The Iced Caramel Brûlée Cream Chai is topped with whipped cream, a rich caramel brûlée sauce, and brûlée bits. And the consensus was clear: It’s doing too much. Even as a self-proclaimed caramel lover, the flavor is far too sweet for my liking, and it leans more into butterscotch territory. It reminded us of two things: grandma’s gold-wrapped butterscotch candies, and walking the mall in middle school, Frappuccino in hand. For what it’s worth, Keely deemed the order a “safe bet”—but she’d only be able to drink half.
8. Tiramisu Velvet Latte (Hot)
Score: 4.67/10
As one of the brand-new Starbucks holiday drinks with three versions (hot latte, iced latte, and cold brew), expectations for the Tiramisu Velvet Latte were high. Sadly, all three of us were disappointed. The wow-worthy flavor we expected was missing entirely, so much so that we all agreed the drink tasted like hot milk, and not much else—except for a weird, filmy aftertaste. There’s nothing outrageously bad about this one, but it’s definitely a flop.
7. Sugar Cookie Latte (Hot)
Score: 5.42/10
While the name sounds classic and nostalgic, the Sugar Cookie Latte left us underwhelmed. It’s made with Starbucks’ signature espresso, milk, and sugar cookie-flavored syrup. Plus, it’s finished off with red and green sprinkles. We didn’t have much of an opinion on this one, which tasted too sweet, slightly burnt, and ovreall, like a “grown-up cup of hot milk.” It’s not something we’d add to our usual order rotation.
6. Caramel Brûlée Latte
Score: 6/10
Last year, the Caramel Brûlée Latte took the cake as our number one drink on this list, so we were surprised to find it in the middle of the pack this year. While all three of us liked the hot version much better than the iced, it still isn’t something we’d go out of our way to order. But would we decline a cup if someone surprised us with it? No. We’d gladly sip the warm and velvety drink that tastes slightly nutty—even though Keely noted that she wouldn’t be surprised if it gave her a headache due to its sweetness.
5. Gingerbread Chai Latte (Hot)
Score: 6.1/10
This festive latte combines chai tea, gingerbread-flavored syrup, and steamed milk for a “fun twist on a classic,” according to Lauren. While the chai flavor was prominent, there was only a hint of gingerbread—not enough for the drink to revolve around the syrup. At first sniff, it smelled like a cinnamon winter candle, and the taste reminded us of Red Hot candies. This one is drinkable for sure, but not necessarily anything to write home about.
4. Tiramisu Velvet Cold Brew
Score: 6.46/10
This is the first drink that we tasted some identifiable coffee flavor from, so that’s a win! Even though none of us are straight black coffee girls, the drinks prior to this one weren’t offering any recognizable espresso moments, so we appreciated this element of the cold brew. But the real star of this drink? The velvet mascarpone cold foam, which was “lickable.” The “dusting” of rich cocoa cookie crumbles was more like a dumping, and it made me cough at first, reminding me of the Cinnamon Challenge.
3. Iced Sugar Cookie Cream Matcha
Score: 7/10
Behold, the surprise sleeper hit of the 2026 Starbucks Holiday Menu: the Iced Sugar Cookie Cream Matcha. Sugar cookie cream cold foam and red and green sprinkles put a holiday twist on classic matcha. At first glance, it’s so festive and cheery—and it only gets better from there. I usually find matcha too earthy for my taste, but I’m 100 percent on board with this sweet, smooth, and rich version. There’s a nostalgia to it that reminded us of setting out cookies and milk for Santa. Keely is petitioning to “put that cold foam on everything!” and Claire notes that it tastes like literal frosting. This one is delicious, but it got docked a few points because, for us, it’s too sugary to order very often.
2. Peppermint Mocha
Score: 7.67/10
There’s something about taking a sip of a Peppermint Mocha in a Starbucks holiday cup that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It’s a true holiday classic that will always deliver when you’re in the mood. The flavor reminds us of warm thin mints, and it’s worth noting that it’s the only coffee on this list that will give you fresh breath, which makes it perfect for an ice skating date. Hot chocolate lovers, you’ll eat (er, drink) this one right up, per usual.
1. Iced Gingerbread Cream Chai
Score: 8.67/10
Drum roll, please…our top pick isn’t one any of us expected to claim the crown: the Iced Gingerbread Cream Chai. Served over ice and topped with a delicious gingerbread-flavored cold foam, this drink is a mix of milk and warm chai spices, a combo that we all loved. Even though it’s an iced drink, we all agreed it tastes warming, or “like sweater weather,” per Keely. It made me want to push play on a Christmas playlist, throw on a tartan apron, and bake gingerbread cookies. Of the 11 drinks we tested, this is the only one I drank in full—and was left wanting more. This is definitely a special weekend treat we’ll be ordering on repeat this holiday season.
Claire West, Editor
As an Editor for the Home & Living category of The Everygirl, Claire writes and edits stories spanning topics like food, travel, hobbies, and decorating. During her eight years in the media industry, Claire has touched everything from fashion to relationships to celebrity interviews at magazines like People and InStyle.
Jenna Piotrowicz, Editorial Assistant
Jenna began working as an Editorial Assistant for The Everygirl in 2024. With her eye for detail, she assists the team with content creation, sourcing products and images, and works behind the scenes to support The Everygirl in uploading and updating content.
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