Emma is definitely a connoisseur of coffee, and usually takes her coffee as some type of mocha cold brew with milk, and sometimes will throw a sweet-n-low into the mix to make it extra sugary. After working at Dunkin’ for almost six years now, she went into this fully prepared, as she has tasted all, and it was time to rate these drinks.
Liz buys coffee almost every single day, her go-to is usually a caramel iced coffee with almond milk. She usually tries different holiday drinks when they come out, but is very picky about her coffee making her a tough critic of these drinks.
Dunkin’
Iced Sugarplum Macchiato
Emma: This drink took me back to childhood days of grape cough medicine, on first taste. Macchiatos are supposed to be layered, but we decided to mix the drink to improve its taste. This helped, but I still wouldn’t order another Sugarplum macchiato.
Liz: It seems like it has grapes at the bottom of it. It was like you put fruity cereal milk and espresso into one cup. It’s a super weird mix of flavors and I would not recommend getting this drink.
Rated:
Emma: 1 out of 5 stars
Liz: 1 out of 5 stars
Iced Gingerbread Latte:
Emma: Going into this I knew this wouldn’t be my favorite because I’m not the biggest fan of gingerbread. The taste of the gingerbread was way too overpowering and it did not excite my taste buds at all.
Liz: It’s a bit overpowering on the gingerbread, so I’d recommend doing one pump of the swirl. If you really like the flavor of gingerbread I would recommend this drink.
Rated:
Emma: 2 out of 5 stars
Liz: 3 out of 5 stars
Hot Peppermint Mocha Latte:
Emma: This is essentially Christmas in a cup. This reminds me of stirring a candy cane into my hot chocolate when I was a kid, but adding a bit of a caffeine kick to it. It’s my favorite all-time holiday drink, you can’t go wrong.
Liz: If you melted an Altoid into a coffee, this would be the resulting concoction. This drink tastes a little like toothpaste. It definitely is better hot than iced because the iced one is terrible. It’s not my favorite, but it’s definitely better than the Sugarplum.
Rated:
Emma: 4 out of 5 stars
Liz: 2 out of 5 stars
Starbucks
Hot Peppermint Mocha Latte:
Emma: This is my ultimate favorite drink, a Starbucks just does it right. But the one thing I wish is that there was a bit less peppermint. The strong taste overpowers the mocha a bit.
Liz: This tastes like peppermint hot chocolate to me, but it’s definitely better than Dunkin’, and more “Christmasy”. If you’re balling on a budget go for the Dunkin’ one, but it’s not so much better that it’s worth the price difference.
Rated:
Emma: 5 out of 5 stars
Liz: 3 out of 5 stars
Iced Caramel Brulee Latte:
Emma: I get the caramel aspect of it, but what makes this “Brulee”? I couldn’t really taste the espresso either, which is definitely a big part of a latte, which turned me off.
Liz: Tastes like caramel milk, but there isn’t enough espresso in it. I’m surprised I don’t love it because I love caramel. Maybe it would be better hot?
Rated:
Emma: 2 out of 5 stars
Liz: 2 out of 5 stars
Iced Chestnut Praline Latte:
Emma: This tasted like peanut butter, but not a good kind of peanut butter. But perhaps if you like peanut butter coffee this might be for you.
Liz: I definitely get the chestnut. It tastes like Ferrero Roche. I like it, but I don’t love it.
Rated:
Emma: 2 out of 5 stars
Liz: 3 out of 5 stars
