As I opened my Starbucks app this morning to place an order for my beloved Irish Cream Cold Brew, I was sad to see it is no longer available because unfortunately it is March. As I was reminiscing about how I would have to wait another nine months to be reunited with my Irish Cream Cold Brew, I noticed a new Cold Brew flavor: the Cinnamon Caramel Cold Brew. I was intrigued and actually pretty excited that I almost immediately got over my sadness, and decided to investigate. The drink is Starbucks Cold Brew with their new Cinnamon Caramel Syrup and Cinnamon Caramel Cold Foam. It sounded pretty amazing because I am a lover of all things cinnamon, but I was nervous about the caramel part. Although I can appreciate a good caramel drizzle every now and then, I feel like I’ve outgrown the Caramel Syrup flavor after all those Caramel Frappuccinos in middle school. Nonetheless, I was feeling pretty adventurous, so I decided to go for it.
When I got the drink, I couldn’t help but notice how gorgeous it was. The way the cold foam seeps into the cold brew and makes that delicious textured cloud of dairy is something I will never get tired of looking at. I took my first sip, and it was definitely sweeter than I expected. I did order the drink with extra cinnamon caramel syrup because I do like my coffee pretty sweet, but next time, I will probably go with the standard amount of syrup in the drink. I definitely was not disappointed with the drink, but all in all, I was correct about not liking the caramel syrup flavor as much. The cinnamon flavor is subtle, but present. I would probably order this drink with cinnamon powder on top instead of the cinnamon dolce sprinkles it comes with for that extra kick of cinnamon. Overall I would rate the drink an 8/10. Since I don’t love the regular caramel flavor, this drink loses some points for me, but the subtleties of the cinnamon flavor make this drink taste more elevated and mature. The flavor of the Cinnamon Caramel syrup teeters between the Cinnamon Dolce syrup with its touch of spice and the Caramel Brulee sauce with its depth of sweetness.
If you don’t drink cold brew but want to try it, this drink is an excellent introduction to the world of cold brew. I used to be such an espresso girly, and Starbucks winter lattes were my favorite, but my daily caffeine intake would be through the roof when drinking espresso, and it definitely got to the point where caffeine had minimal effect on my ability to stay awake. I find the caffeine content of cold brew as a happy medium for me where I can enjoy it every now and then, but it doesn’t leave me feeling drained if I haven’t had some coffee for the day. Ideally, I will be working my way down to iced coffee which has an even lower caffeine content, but for now I am enjoying cold brews.
Starbucks has also released a Cinnamon Caramel Cream Nitro Cold Brew along with the regular cold brew version, and I’m excited to try it next!