The Starbucks holiday menu arrived Thursday, bringing back classics such as the peppermint mocha and showcasing new cozy drinks, cups and food items.
The 2024 holiday cups — the 27th iteration since the Seattle coffee company began the tradition in 1997 — feature bright red, green, light green, pink and white geometric designs. This season, the coffee giant debuted four different festive designs for hot cups featuring stripes, swirls and circles, plus one new cold cup design.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
And for the first time, the holiday drink menu features new iced refreshers: The “Cran-Merry” Orange Refresher can be ordered on its own or paired with lemonade or coconut milk.
The hot beverage list also includes the caramel brulee latte and the chestnut praline latte. Iced latte flavors are available for a gingerbread oat milk chai and a sugar cookie almond milk latte.
New food items include a turkey sage danish, a dark toffee bundt cake, a penguin sugar cookie and a snowman cake pop. The classic Cranberry Bliss Bars — a Starbucks holiday favorite — have returned, along with the Sugar Plum Cheese Danish.
Starbucks faced controversy in 2015 over its simple red holiday cup design when some Christians deemed the lack of Christmas iconography to amount to “a war on Christmas.”
Credit: undefined
Credit: undefined
Then, in 2017, its white cartoon-style design again sparked criticism when some speculated whether a depiction of two arms holding hands on the cup amounted to a representation of LGBTQ+ relationships.
This year’s cups were inspired by vintage holiday ornaments and peppermint candies, the company said. The designs also feature badges on the back of cups for baristas to write their customers a special greeting or message.
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