REVIEW: Starbucks' New At-Home Coffees And Creamers Bring Festive Fun In Every Sip

'Tis the season for companies to go haywire with holiday product offerings, and of course Starbucks is no exception. Customers eagerly anticipate the annual release of Starbucks' holiday menu all year long, and for good reason — with drinks like the Peppermint Mocha and latte flavors of Chestnut Praline and Iced Sugar Cookie, what's there not to look forward to? Fortunately for those with a Starbucks craving, the company has released some new grocery available products for for holiday sippers to make their own concoctions. 

Starbucks fans probably already know about the company's holiday retail items that have been around for a minute. Folks have long been decking the halls and skipping the lines with past and current products like Gingerbread coffee, a classic Holiday Blend, and White Mocha coffee creamer. As companies do, Starbucks is constantly expanding to offer interesting options for home coffee enthusiasts; the holiday line is no exception.

I recently tried three of Starbucks new at-home cold brew and creamer items: a seasonal cold brew coffee concentrate, Peppermint Mocha creamer, and a non-dairy Sugar Cookie Latte creamer. I'll give you the inside scoop on what you should know and what to expect from each. Spoiler alert: they're all pretty yummy.

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

Starbucks launched three new holiday-inspired products to consumers in 2024. Its Vanilla & Chocolate Cold Brew concentrate was inspired by Irish cream flavors. As a concentrate, it's meant to be diluted with a 1:1 ratio of concentrate to water; so when buying a bottle, remember that it will make about twice as much coffee as what's in the container. If you're thinking that cold brew is an interesting choice for a cold-weather release, don't knock it until you try it — the Irish cream notes make this a cozier alternative to your average cold brew. 

Up next, Starbucks non-dairy Sugar Cookie Latte creamer is a byproduct of the company's 2021 holiday menu addition, the Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte. Rather than being made solely with almond milk, though, this non-dairy blend is made with both almond and oat milk. Finally, I'm a bit surprised it took Starbucks this long to come out with the peppermint mocha creamer; it seems like a no-brainer invention given the popularity of its holiday namesake. It offers an efficient way to give any home coffee concoction a holiday twist.

Wondering how to get your hands on these holiday products? Ultimately, stock will vary depending on store location, but I was able to find all three offerings at various grocery stores in my area. Starbucks has a locator tool that will tell you which stores near you carry the specific product you want, so it's a good idea to consult that before shopping around. Its Vanilla & Chocolate Cold Brew concentrate is at my local Target and Fred Meyer for prices in the $7-$8 range, but you can also get the VAnilla & Chocolate Cold Brew concentrate on Amazon.

Starbucks' Peppermint Mocha creamer is also at quite a few popular grocers in my area, including Target, Fred Meyer, and Albertsons, and it runs between $4-$7 at those retailers. As of the writing of this article, the product is unfortunately not available on Amazon. Similarly, the non-dairy Sugar Cookie Latte creamer is carried by my local Target, Safeway, and Fred Meyer, and costs between $5-$7 at each. This product is also not currently available on Amazon.

We've been impressed with Starbucks' cold brew offerings before, so I was excited to try this one. Not to mention Irish coffees are one of my favorite boozy indulgences, and I was curious to see how this would resemble the popular drink. If you don't make your own cold brew coffee, you're in luck — I quite enjoyed this Starbucks offering, and I especially appreciate that the company chose to make a versatile concentrate. Though the recommended ratio of coffee to water is 1:1, you should feel free to alter this based on your personal preferences.

This concentrate reminded me of Irish cream from the moment I poured it into a glass — it has a smooth chocolate and vanilla aroma, and smells like it should be paired with Bailey's (which you'll definitely find me doing later). You'll love this if your preferred coffee is subtly sweet and goes down smooth. I didn't find this cold brew to be overly sweet, which was a concern I had; rather, the slight sweetness helped round out any bitterness of the coffee, making this easily drinkable black even if you don't normally enjoy black coffee.

After trying it on its own I paired it with the peppermint mocha creamer. The two complement each other well, but I recommend using a light hand when adding the creamer so you don't lose the Irish cream notes in the peppermint. Alternatively, this would make a beautiful cold brew concentrate to use in cocktails.

If choosing a good dairy-free coffee creamer seems like a monumental task, you're in the right place. Full disclosure: I haven't had any of Starbucks' other non-dairy offerings, so I can't say how this compares. What I can say is that I completely forgot it was non-dairy when I was sampling it solo. I'll admit that I wasn't optimistic about this upon smelling it — it was like a sugar cookie scented candle, which didn't leave me super eager to take a sip. Nevertheless, I poured a glass to taste untainted, and I was pleasantly surprised.

One sip transported me to a childhood of making sugar cookies with my mother during the holidays. It absolutely has that sweet, slightly savory, melt-in-your-mouth sugar cookie flavor and is also slightly reminiscent of vanilla frosting. I didn't find it to be too sweet, either, and where it was sweet still was without a hint of the artificial stuff that many sweetened coffee creamers have. I can see consumers really enjoy this splashed in black coffee, but I'm not sure I would use it in larger quantities. I think it was a good choice for Starbucks to make this one non-dairy — the oat milk adds to its velvet texture, while the almond milk is subtle and hardly noticeable in feel. But, it enhances the creamer's overall flavor. 

Given the popularity of Starbucks' Peppermint Mocha holiday offering, it's a little stunning that this creamer is a new release. Regardless, I'm happy it's here now. Peppermint and chocolate are a classic holiday combination, and this creamer provides a way to add some of the holiday flavor to everything under the sun. Aside from using it in coffee, I think it would also make a great addition to hot chocolate, a simple mousse, or your favorite chocolate cocktail.

This creamer looks remarkably similar to chocolate milk upon first pour, and it smells like peppermint chocolate milk, so I had a hunch I might enjoy drinking it solo. As it turns out, I was right — though I could hardly drink a whole glass of the creamer, it could make a nice base for a shooter or a small sweet drink. I liked that it was rich without being too saccharine, and it's strong enough to mellow down even a dark roast while giving it a holiday vibe. The mocha and peppermint work in perfect harmony in this creamer; neither hits you too hard, but you'll be able to taste both in whatever you add it to.

Overall, all of these offering were pleasantly surprising. I'm often wary when it comes to sweetened drinks. I worry that they'll taste sickeningly so, but the fact that each of these was palatable on its own meant that was definitely not the case when mixed with coffee or even something more spirited. The Sugar Cookie creamer was the sweetest of the offerings, but even that was subtle enough not to take center stage in whatever drink you add it to.

I also appreciate the versatility of these offerings, and it was fun to think up different concoctions they could be used for (especially boozy ones). I'd say each of these could be palatable to a crowd and I recommend having them on hand at your next holiday party, whether you're serving up coffee, cocktails, or a mixture of both. They'd also make great gifts for the coffee lover in your life, and since each will only set you back a few bucks, they're easily worth a seasonal try.