The Starbucks Holiday Drink We'd Order As A Latte Instead Of Cold Brew

Few things say "seasons greetings" like the Starbucks holiday drink menu. When the crispness of fall is still hanging around, but you want a little sweet, chilled festive coffee, you might be tempted to order one of Starbucks' seasonal beverages (or secret menu holiday items) made with cold brew. It's a reasonable choice, with some seasonal flavors — looking at you, pumpkin cream cold brew — tasting nice and refreshing served up with the concentrated cold coffee. However, in the case of Starbucks' new Tiramisu Velvet Latte, even though you can order it with cold brew, we recommend you order it as a latte (iced or hot). This is mostly because the milk in a latte really brings home the dairy element that makes the tiramisu flavors sing. 

In our recent ranking of Starbucks' 2026 holiday menu, our taste tester sampled the Tiramisu Velvet seasonal drink in two cold formats: as an iced latte and made with cold brew. Overall, the elements of vanilla and espresso, plus Velvet Mascarpone Cold Foam, mocha drizzle, and cocoa cookie dusting delivered — making it a definitive hit, rather than a miss. While our taste tester enjoyed the drink with cold brew, ultimately she thought it was better as an iced latte since "the latte had more of an even mix between the espresso and the milk flavors, which created a more balanced texture and taste for the drink." 

Classic tiramisu, complete with layers of espresso-soaked ladyfinger cookies, fluffy mascarpone whipped cream filling, and a dusting of cocoa powder, has a nice balance of creamy dairy, biscuits, and pleasant hints of coffee throughout. Our taste tester wrote that while the cold brew version of the Tiramisu Velvet was "very coffee-forward." The signature espresso functioned nicely in the latte, resulting in a more balanced flavor profile. Though the latte was sweet, the sweetness was not overwhelming. While this strong coffee taste of cold brew is ideal for some, those who want to experience all the tiramisu flavors in the beverage — including the milk — should order it as a latte. 

"Either way, the Tiramisu Velvet drinks are a total win for the season," our taste tester wrote. Customers agree. On an r/Starbucks Reddit post where one person expressed their love of the 2026 holiday drink, others also weighed in with praise for the Tiramisu Velvet (though some warned to have caution in regard to the amount of calories in the seasonal beverage). "Try the hot one!!" another user commented, noting that it "tastes a lot more like tiramisu." 

Tiramisu is usually served chilled, so it makes sense that the iced latte was our taste tester's favorite format for Starbucks' new Tiramisu Velvet. However, ordering the latte hot with steamed milk can create a distinctly cozy take on the tiramisu coffee drink.