While my coffee addiction may not be good for my bank account, I do believe it is good for my soul. Every morning I wake up excited to get a latte. I usually go for either a vanilla or a salted caramel latte, but one morning I was feeling curious. I read “almond” as a flavor you could add in, and since I never heard of it before I had to try it. This made me want to try every flavor, as I kept reading pumpkin, peppermint, and COCONUT! I had to try them all. So I thought, why not make an excuse to put my whole paycheck towards coffee and write about it too!
1.) Salted Caramel
This is my all time favorite. No matter what mood I am in, a salted caramel latte will cheer me up, no question. Somehow it is SO much better than caramel and I can’t quite explain why. It is very sweet and delicious with a little salty flavor that I think balances the sweet out nicely. I would 10/10 recommend this to anyone who likes a sweet coffee, as it is perfect for the cooler weather.
2.) Vanilla
The classic. Before expanding my horizon, vanilla (and caramel) were the only two flavors I ever got. It was not overly sweet like some others I tried, but it definitely satisfied my sweet tooth, nonetheless. Vanilla is the flavor I always give to new coffee drinkers. It is not too sweet that it overpowers the coffee flavor, but it also makes it a treat. It is the perfect go-to latte.
3.) Coconut
I just have to say I had one sip and I fell in love. This would be at the top of my rankings, except I have to keep in mind a lot of people do not like coconut. Personally, coconut is one of my favorite flavors, and that’s exactly what you can expect. The smell is amazing, it is not too sweet, and it has a pure coconut flavor.
4.) White Mocha
I had never tried white mocha until I thought of the idea for this article, and oh boy was that a big mistake. Before getting the latte, I thought of white chocolate as a fake chocolate, so I thought white mocha would be the same. While it was not very chocolatey, it was delicious. I was so shocked taking my first sip, and was immediately hooked. It is perfectly sweet and I can’t quite describe the flavor expect for amazing. It is definitely not a flavor to overlook.
5.) Caramel
The other classic. While this was a bit sweeter than vanilla, it was still a good flavor to start your coffee journey on. I always find a normal caramel latte very creamy and smooth. In places that do not have salted caramel, your normal caramel still satisfies.
6.) Plain latte
A plain latte is good if you don’t want anything with extra sweetness. It is still sweet since it is mostly milk, and you get a stronger espresso taste, which many people want. I also found the plain latte was very smooth since it was just your espresso and milk. Personally, I like to add another flavor, not because I don’t like a plain latte, but just to make it like a treat for myself.
7.) Mocha
I like sweet, and while delicious, this was way too sweet, and that is coming from me. It tastes almost exactly like hot chocolate and was so heavy. It was really yummy, and on a cold winter day it would be a good choice. For an everyday option, it was even too sweet for me.
8.) Hazelnut
I grew up putting hazelnut creamer in my coffees, so I am a little biased in the fact that when I go out I do not like to grab a hazelnut flavored drink. While this drink was yummy and moderately sweet, it is towards the bottom of my list since it did not taste very strongly of hazelnut. I am used to a strong toasted hazelnut flavor, and was sad when I took a sip and it was overpowered by espresso. While this is good for some, I prefer the added flavor to be a bit stronger.
9.) Almond
Very similar to hazelnut, there was a faint flavor of almond, and overall, it was not very sweet. I don’t quite know how to explain how it tasted since it was not what I think of as almond. To be honest, there was a very small difference to a normal plain latte taste. It is important to keep in mind that different baristas could have put more milk or a smaller pump of flavor than others, and this could affect how strong the taste of almond actually is. Overall, for almond, it was not unpleasant to drink by any means, but I think that with all of my other options above, I would not have it again.
10.) Pumpkin Spice
Honestly it seemed like all spice no pumpkin. While this was not a bad latte, if I was blindfolded I would not have guessed it was pumpkin. It almost had a coffee chai mixed flavor, which isn’t what I excepted. Although it was not bad by any means, I do not think I would order it again from on campus. While not being very pumpkin-y, I can confidently say it still made me feel very seasonal, as the leaves were turning colors and I was sipping a “pumpkin” spice latte.
11.) Peppermint
Umm big no from me. Now, I have tried Starbucks peppermint lattes and liked them a lot, so I am unsure where this one went wrong. It could have just been one bad cup, but the taste of the mint was more like toothpaste than peppermint to me. I barely wanted to finish it, and that is the only time I would say that about a latte.
Overall, I can confidently say this was the best research I have ever done. While this is my personal ranking, I think many can agree (maybe with the exception of coconut being so high). I would urge you to keep your mind open at the next coffee shop you are at, and try some flavors out of your comfort zone. Who knows? You may find a new favorite drink!
Can’t get enough of HC UMass Amherst? Be sure to follow us on Instagram, listen to us on Spotify, like us on Facebook, and read our latest Tweets!