I Tried Dunkin’ Donuts’ New Almond Joy Hot Chocolate & It’s Just As Delicious As It Sounds

When I think about Almond Joy candy bars, I think of my childhood. I think of the morning after Halloween, when I would go through my loot before school and rationalize that almonds are nuts and nuts are healthy and a handful of mini-sized Almond Joy bars is a perfectly balanced breakfast. So if you want to know what the new Dunkin' Donuts' Almond Joy Hot Chocolate tastes like, just close your eyes and reminisce about October and your childhood. Ride that nostalgic sugar rush all the way back in time. Yes, just in time for Halloween, Dunkin' Donuts' has released a new beverage that's going to make your morning commute a lot sweeter.

It's time to change up your morning drink routine. Forget the spices, forget the pumpkin, pecan, and maple stuff for a minute, and take a chance on a drink that actually tastes like a melted candy bar. You deserve it, and October is the unofficial month of candy overload — all that other stuff can wait. And while Dunkin' Donuts isn't letting us know for sure how long it will be around, this special drink is limited edition, and totally seasonal — meaning, it'll likely be gone after Halloween is over. So, you'll want to take advantage of it while you can. Though it does seem like it's at the very least safe on the drink menu through Halloween... fingers crossed.

There's just something about dynamic sweet tastes in the morning that make getting out of bed and trekking through the cold a bit less miserable. When you've got a warm cup of sugary goodness, you feel like you can handle the morning. No matter how cold it is, no matter how late the train is, no matter how many meetings you have lined up, you can handle it, because you've got a belly full of warm sweetness. At the very least, a sweet drink in the morning is perfectly distracting from the day ahead.

Even if you're a coffee-only kind of person, you might want to consider going the hot chocolate route as the seasons change and you get into your fall stride. As the last hints of warm summer days leave us, we could all use and a little bit of comfort. Not to mention, sometimes the combination of early morning coffee and early morning frustrations can lead to major anxiety. So take it easy for a hot minute.

As for how the beverage lords at DD actually craft the drink, they're not yet sharing their secrets — though I imagine they create the drinks from the safety of a gingerbread workshop where everything is edible and everything is made of sugar — though they have not yet confirmed this theory. But what they will say about the drink is that it's mean to induce just enough of a sugar and Halloween spirit rush that you have the energy you need to ... go out and get more candy. A few sips of the Almond Joy Hot Chocolate and you're going to be feeling warm and ready to trick or treat, even if that's not your thing. Yes, expect to get a resurgence of your youthful Halloween spirit.

As for what the drink literally tastes like? Well, I can report that it's basically like this: you know when you leave a wrapped candy bar in your pocket and it gets all gooey and somehow tastes much better that way? The flavors blend into each other in a sugary tango that's beyond harmonious. Yeah, that's what this new drink tastes like. It's a combination of warm milk chocolate, coconut and almond flavors that blend into each other seamlessly creating a super nostalgic sweet tooth satisfaction that's totally worth skipping your morning coffee for.