Every 2022 Starbucks Holiday Item, Ranked Worst To Best

The yearly rollout of the Starbucks holiday drink menu (and its colorful coordinating cups) is one of the many ways modern civilization marks the passing of the seasons. This year is no exception. But for some, the drinks appeared with slightly less fanfare this go-around than they have in years past. Furthermore, no new beverage flavors were released with the 2022 collection and some fan favorites that many hoped might return did not.

Since we weren't distracted by any flashy new offerings, we had more time to focus on the flavors we've grown to love. We were also able to reconsider a few flavors we didn't think so highly of in years past. And with more time to really linger over the drinks, we've noticed some subtle but important changes. Ultimately, we went back and tasted every popular holiday drink flavor, in both hot and cold formats when available, to see how the drinks this year stack up.

So, whether you're a "drink hot chocolate and eat a dozen candy canes" kind of person, or a "sit by the fire and sip whiskey with grandpa" type, there's a Starbucks beverage that will likely appeal to you. Here's how every 2022 Starbucks holiday drink ranks, from worst to best.

In 2021, the hot version of the Chestnut Praline Latte was one of our favorite drinks, behind the classic Peppermint Mocha. So we were looking forward to picking it up again this year. But after the first few sips, we couldn't help but wonder what was so special about it when we tasted this concoction the last time. The first sip certainly yields toasty, nutty flavors, but adding "praline" to the title hints that there will be caramelized sugar that's a little buttery. While it's certainly a sweet drink, we found that the Chestnut Praline Latte was not especially buttery. Indeed, after several sips, it started to taste more like popcorn that was microwaved just a few seconds too long and we were just kind of done with it. It doesn't have the lingering synthetic taste that several Starbucks drinks have had in previous years, but we still detected an over-fried flavor.

While many people are familiar with the holiday image of chestnuts roasting on an open fire, it seems that very few people know what chestnuts actually taste like, giving Starbucks a bit of wiggle room. As far as we can tell from the ingredients list, there isn't actually any chestnut in this drink — or any nut, for that matter. If you order this, be sure to get it with whipped cream, which might help neutralize the flavor of this drink.

If you were to blind taste the Toasted White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino and the Caramel Brulée Frappuccino side-by-side, you'd probably have difficulty telling them apart. Both are ultra creamy with a burnt caramel flavor. They both even have the same curiously synthetic toasty flavor that leaves a slight aftertaste. Since they're so similar tasting it might be difficult to choose which one is actually better. 

We don't love that the Toasted White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino is a little sweeter than the Caramel Brulée Frappuccino, which we think is plenty sweet enough as it is. The Caramel Brulée Frappuccino has slightly fewer calories which is a bonus if you're a regular Frappuccino drinker. Ultimately, we think this is one of the holiday drinks that you can skip over in favor of the more popular Frappuccinos, but if you're a big fan of white chocolate, you'll probably enjoy it.

We tried the Peppermint Mocha in all three formats: hot, cold, and Frappuccino (frozen). No matter what, it's an iconic drink that people are going to flip out for, just like they have every year for the last 20 years. But of the three, we thought that the Iced Peppermint Mocha was the least exciting of all of the formats it comes in. It was almost as if someone had melted down our favorite milkshake and put it on ice instead of serving it nicely frozen or comfortingly warm. And even though we're telling you that it's our least favorite option of the three Peppermint Mochas, you should know that we sucked it down to the very last drop anyway ⁠— so it's still a pretty tasty drink even if we don't think it's exactly perfect.

The biggest drawback of the Iced Peppermint Mocha is that the mocha sauce itself is grainy in cold form, due to the cocoa powder in the syrup. There isn't really anything you can do about that, but we'd suggest ordering it with half of the standard mocha and peppermint sauces. That way the coffee flavor shines brighter, and it's more of a flavored iced latte than a melted peppermint chocolate milkshake on ice. Also, go ahead and skip the whipped cream on this one if your dead-set on getting this drink in iced form.

In 2021, the fan-favorite Eggnog Latte was replaced with the Iced Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte, a non-dairy seasonal offering advertised as a cold drink, although it's also available in hot and Frappuccino forms. While it's still made with espresso and technically a latte, it uses Starbucks' Blonde Roast espresso and almond milk instead of traditional dairy. The result is a much lighter and more delicate holiday drink.

When we tried it for the first time in 2021, we weren't entirely won over by the iced version. But after tasting it this year, it's definitely grown on us a bit. There's something to be said for offering a lighter-textured drink, especially during a season where everything leans a little heavier and richer. The iced Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte drinks like a flavored iced coffee, with sugar cookie syrup that's actually reminds us of buttery sugar cookies. The almond milk doesn't taste especially nutty, but if you'd like to substitute it with another non-dairy or traditional dairy, that's absolutely an option. The only part of this drink that didn't really do it for us is the addition of crunchy red and green nonpareil sprinkles to the top. They're cute, but since there's no whipped cream, they just float on top. And since it's a cold drink, they don't really melt.

For this particular Frappuccino, we did a little experiment. We ordered one Frappuccino with almond milk as the drink was intended, and one with skim milk to see how much flavor the dairy selection actually contributes to the drink. It turns out, very little — the majority of the flavor comes from the Sugar Cookie syrup

In both cases, we thought the Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Frappuccino was a better choice for drinking this beverage cold than the iced version. Since this Frappuccino is technically vegan, it isn't served with whipped cream, only a dusting of holiday sugar, which we thought was great and helped keep the drink lighter. Blended, the ingredients seem a little bit creamier and the chill feels more like a winter's day than the sensation of drinking a regular iced latte. If you'd like to keep it vegan but are allergic to nuts, order it with oat milk instead for a similar experience. 

If the Iced Caramel Macchiato is your go-to summer drink, consider turning the Iced Caramel Brûlée latte into your new favorite holiday drink — although the iced Caramel Macchiato is still on the menu if you can't quite part with it yet. Instead of the vanilla syrup and a hefty caramel drizzle, this holiday latte is made with a Caramel Brûlée syrup and topped with whipped cream and caramel brûlée bits. We think that, as far as cold caramel coffee drinks go, this version is on the nicer end. That's largely because the caramel syrup is incorporated into the drink more thoroughly than the caramel drizzle, which never seems to completely dissolve into the cold macchiato.

We maintain that nothing's quite as sweet as the Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino, but this comes close. Because of that, you've got to pay special attention to discern any toasty brûlée notes. However, that didn't really bother us since we were more invested in the caramel. This also means that the whipped cream topping isn't entirely necessary, though it adds a little extra creaminess to balance out the sugar and helps to make the drink more festive. We'd also gladly ask for a double portion of caramel brûlée bits, since they added a delightful crunch. But if you're not into very sweet drinks, you might want to try one of the more subtle holiday offerings on the Starbucks menu.

Starbucks may have intended for this drink to be enjoyed cold, but drinking it warm is still our favorite way to imbibe it. The hot Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte instantly gives you that straight-from-the oven warm sugar cookie feeling. It's sweet and buttery, but not overwhelmingly so and without any weird aftertastes swooping in to ruin the experience after a few sips. The intensity of the hot Sugar Cookie flavor falls about as close to the middle of the road as Starbucks holiday drinks get — the lawful neutral player of the Starbucks menu, if you will.

Starbucks hasn't added a non-dairy whipped cream to the lineup (given the growing interest in dairy-free additions, we're a little surprised that it hasn't do so yet). Since this drink is intended to be vegan, it doesn't come with whipped cream, but we didn't miss that at all. The Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte is still plenty creamy without being heavy, while the sugar cookie flavor doesn't need any additional buttery flavor. The red and green non-pareil sprinkles on top look nice, but melt into the latte and don't provide much texture. You might not even see them if you don't take the lid off, but they remain a cute touch.

It's a little surprising to us that Starbucks doesn't have a caramel latte on its menu year-round, given how popular such flavors are both at the chain and on the menus of its competition. If caramel happens to be your favorite flavor profile no matter the season, there is a workaround. You can order a warm caramel macchiato or customize your latte to include regular caramel syrup when the caramel brûlée isn't available after the holidays. Still, there's something to be said for enjoying this in the winter. We like the Caramel Brûlée latte because it's familiar and comforting, which goes a long way during a blustery holiday season.

Even in the warm format, this drink is still pretty sweet, but it comes across as a little less so than when served cold. Furthermore, we don't think that it's any sweeter than either of the Peppermint Mocha options. Like the colder versions we tried before it, it's not immediately clear that anything in the mix has been genuinely brûléed, but that's not necessarily a deal-breaker. 

Unlike in other drinks, the whipped cream here is a nice touch, swirling into the latte and giving us warm fuzzy feelings and flashbacks of our grandparents' Werther's Original candy bowl.

If you're going to get yourself a treat, you might as well go all the way, right? That's certainly how we rationalized ordering a Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino, which we still think is the most delightful way to enjoy the Peppermint Mocha flavor after tasting every version of it several times.

Just like its mocha Frappuccino brethren, it's ever-so-slightly chalky. But when the mix is blended into a frozen chocolate peppermint Frappuccino, we absolutely don't care. There's no discernable sign of coffee since, instead of freshly brewed espresso, Frappuccinos are made with a "Frappuccino Roast" that is more like concentrated instant coffee. But the chocolate flavor seems stronger here, while the peppermint flavor is amplified by the chilly temperature of the drink — even though there are fewer pumps of mocha and peppermint syrup in the Frappuccino version of the drink. More intriguing is the fact that the Peppermint Mocha Frappuccinos actually have a lower calorie count in every size than comparable hot versions. As for the whipped cream, it doesn't really melt into the frozen drink, but it's a fun addition anyway.

Even if it were snowing out, we'd choose this Frappuccino. Are you shivering, or is that the caffeine kicking in because you drank the whole thing in a couple of minutes? Is that the strong peppermint burn or ice frosting over your windpipe? Either way, it's worth it. Wear some gloves and jog home to warm up ... and maybe do it again tomorrow.