Let the festivities begin! Starbucks releases new holiday cups, beverages

Starbucks is ready for the holidays! The coffee giant announced on Thursday, November 1, that its annual line of holiday cups and festive beverages will be available at Starbucks stores in the United States and Canada starting Friday, November 2.

Seasonal flavors making their return include of Peppermint Mocha (which is back for a 16th year), Toasted White Chocolate Mocha, Caramel Brulée Latte, Chestnut Praline Latte, Gingerbread Latte and Eggnog Latte. Per a press release from the company, each of these flavors are available hot, iced, or as Frappuccino blended beverages.

And because no holiday beverage is complete unless it’s served in an appropriately themed vessel, Starbucks has also unveiled a new line of four patterned festive cups, all of which use a red and green color palette. “We started (this season) by looking to the past,” said Kristy Cameron from the Starbucks Creative Studio.

To do that, the team of cup designers snipped pieces from Starbucks holidays past – a star, a branch of coffee cherries, a flame – and added doses of vintage colors and patterns to give the cups a new look. While Starbucks has come under fire in the past for debuting cups that didn’t embrace the holidays enough, that doesn’t seem to be the case in 2018.

As one fan wrote of the cups on twitter, “[They’re] super cute this year.” Another deemed the festive drinking vessels “beautiful.”

What’s more? Since Starbucks is committed to promoting sustainability, the chain also announced it is giving U.S. customers who order a holiday beverage on November 2 the opportunity to celebrate all season long with a free, limited-edition iconic red reusable cup, in participating stores while supplies last. When customers then bring in their reusable cups to a participating Starbucks store in the U.S. or Canada after 2 p.m., they will get 50 cents off their grande holiday beverage through Jan. 7, 2019.

See how your favorite Starbucks treats stack up below!