Starbucks Red Cups launch at Selfridges Birmingham and London #RedCups

For some it's the sight of the Coca Cola advert, for others, the first decorations in the shops that herald the beginning of the Christmas season.

I know, however, that the thing that most bloggers in particular eagerly await is that first sighting of the Starbucks Red Cups.

I was lucky enough to start celebrating early and join Starbucks, Selfridges Birmingham on 24th October for the Red Cups pre-launch. 

This year, classic Red Cups favourites Eggnog Latte, Toffee Nut Latte and Gingerbread Latte are back on the menu, with Honey and Almond Hot Chocolate joining the Red Cups family for the first time.

It's confession time from me; I wouldn't normally try out anything as fancy as this if I were to stop off for a drink and I'd usually go for an Americano or Espresso. However, everyone deserves a treat now and then so I dug in and got to try out two drinks, the Gingerbread Latte and Honey and Almond Hot Chocolate.

The Honey and Almond Hot Chocolate is made from hot chocolate with the addition of almond syrup, chocolate whip, honey and mocha drizzle. To tie in with Selfridges' theme of "A touch of gold" this year, this was also topped off with gold sprinkles! To save a few calories and simply because I'm used to drinking soy, I chose a soya milk base but still said yes to the creamy whip.

I adored the Honey and Almond Hot Chocolate with it's rich, smooth taste, sweet but not too sweet base and that decadent chocolate whipped cream and mocha drizzle on top. I could drink this every day, but instead I'll be ordering this on my next shopping trip.

Next I got to try the Gingerbread Latte. Again, I went for soya and you cna always go for skimmed milk and leave off the whipped cream if you're after a lighter version of the drink. The latte tastes like a gingerbread biscuit with ground nutmeg on top. I found i to be a lot lighter than expected and that's the beauty, that you can personalise your drinks and ask for more or less syrup to be used depending on your preference. 

I also got to take away the famous Starbucks tumbler, this year made in gold.

So what do think, which drink is top of your list to try? The Red Cups launch nationwide on 4th November (but the gold sprinkles are exclusive to Selfridges!)

A big thank you to Clare for having me!