Starbucks is already the reigning champ of holiday-themed beverages, but they've got one more to throw into the mix right under the festive wire: the Christmas Tree Frappuccino. Not only is it quite literally shaped and designed to look like a Christmas tree, but it has a mix of flavors so curious and unprecedented in Starbucks drink lore that it's only natural that many people are wondering what the Starbucks Christmas Tree Frappuccino tastes like before taking the plunge. Enter me: sister, daughter, Bustle editor, and Starbucks Frappuccino-guzzling hero, here to answer any and all questions you may have related to this concoction.
The frapp — which is available on very limited release from Dec. 7 to Dec. 11 in stores in the U.S. and Canada — has a Peppermint Mocha Crème Frappuccino base, so it won't be too much of a surprise for loyal Starbucks frapp drinkers. Instead of being garnished with ornaments and pine needles that you somehow find under your furniture six years after the fact, though, it is topped with a matcha whipped cream and sprinkled with candied cranberries, a caramel drizzle, and a little dried strawberry "star" on top. Basically, Starbucks took every flavor vaguely reminiscent of Christmas and put it in a cup.
(Please take a moment to respect the hit to my dignity that was posing for a picture with a giant themed frappuccino outside of an extremely crowded Starbucks in the middle of New York City, home to the greatest cynics in America. You're welcome.)
Honestly, I was pretty wary when I first read the description for this drink. I'm a big fan of peppermint anything, but I'm hit or miss with matcha — and I've never considered the two of them flavors that might go together, let alone flavors that would also be combined with cranberry and caramel to boot. But the result made a surprising amount of sense to my tastebuds, even if it didn't quite make sense to my brain. The Peppermint Mocha Crème Frappuccino base was delicious as ever, and the Matcha whipped cream was surprisingly subtle. The flavor wasn't so overpowering that it conflicted with the peppermint, and the crunch and sweetness of the caramel and candied cranberries actually straight up led me to the kitchen to grab a spoon and eat the "tree" write off of the frapp. (Hashtag no regrets.)
Verdict: 10/10, would leave out for Santa as a snack if it wouldn't melt on the fireplace ledge.
That is, of course, far from the only sugar high you can ride this holiday season. Also available at participating Starbucks are the holiday spice flat white, the Caramel Brulée Frappuccino, the Chai Eggnog Latte, the Chestnut Praline Frappuccino, the Eggnog Frappuccino, the Gingerbread Frappuccino, and the Peppermint Mocha, most of which are available both frozen and hot. Fans of traditional coffee can enjoy the Holiday Blend and the Christmas Blend, and those of us who multiple sweet teeth can pick up dessert options like the Snowman and Peppermint Brownie Cake Pop, the Cranberry Bliss Ba, and the Gingerbread Loaf.
Plus, there's no time to indulge quite like right now — Starbucks is running its "Project Give Good" initiative all through the holiday season, and offering a ton of prizes. The "Give Good" squads of baristas will be out in the wild handing out 50,000 $20 Starbucks gift cards to lucky passerby, and a contest will be running with prizes like free Starbucks for a week, for a month, and even free Starbucks for life. (I can't even imagine what having that kind of power would be like.)
In the meantime, make sure if you want to get in on the Christmas Tree Frappuccino magic, you head to Starbucks before Dec. 11 — this deal is almost as fast as Santa's sleigh!
