Starbucks's New Chocolate Cream Cold Brew Tastes Like Summer Nostalgia

Starbucks just launched its summer menu for 2022, and there's a brand-new iced coffee ready to steal the show. Enter: the Chocolate Cream Cold Brew. Described as a cold coffee designed with summer nostalgia in mind, the beverage consists of Starbucks's traditional cold brew sweetened with vanilla syrup and topped with cold foam flavored with chocolate malt powder. A massive fan of both chocolate and coffee, I wondered if this drink had somehow been pulled from the depths of my own brain. But with such an immaculate flavor profile, I was skeptical to see whether the new Starbucks drink would actually live up to the hype.

As I drove to my local Starbucks, my biggest concern was this mysterious malt flavor; I had never tasted something like that in a coffee before, and I worried it could ruin an otherwise spectacular creation. However, upon first sip, my cynicism vanished; the Chocolate Cream Cold Brew was every bit the refreshing summer treat it promised to be. The cold foam hit my taste buds first — it was sweet and indeed malty, but not overpoweringly so, and chocolaty, but in a way that still allowed me to taste the iced cold brew underneath. As the drink started to melt in the heat of my car, it became even lighter in flavor, and I appreciated that I could down the entire cup without feeling sick.

"The classic combination of coffee and notes of chocolate, along with the malt flavor in the chocolate cream cold foam, are reminiscent of a chocolate malted milkshake or that last bit of melted chocolate ice cream on a warm summer day," said Rosalyn Batingan of Starbucks's drink-development team in a press release. Personally, I was transported back to roasting s'mores at Girl Scouts camp, drinking the milk from a bowl of Cocoa Puffs, and desperately trying to clean up the remnants of a dripping Fudgsicle.

Starting May 10, Starbucks is also offering a new Lime-Frosted Coconut Bar, which is said to be the perfect tropical combination of coconut, lime, and white chocolate. Give Starbucks's Chocolate Cream Cold Brew a try today, and see what summer memories you unlock.