Happy December 1st! I’m sure most of us will be glad to see the back of this year but, as always, moving in to December brings some little moments of joy and festive cheer.
That being said, it’s time for my annual Costa Christmas update! Apologies for using the same pictures from previous posts for this one – my Costa experiences this year have been confined to drive through visits and then straight home so very few Christmas cup photo opportunities!
This year we have some new drinks, and the return of a couple of festive favourites. The good news is that you can now get delivery from so many Costas across the country so even if you’re working from home or having to self-isolate it’s still possible to get a Costa Christmas fix.
It’s worth keeping in mind that Costa now offer oat milk. I’ve always found the staff happy to give the steam wands an extra clean and haven’t had any issues since they introduced it. The gluten content in the milk they use is reported at being less than 100ppm so your drink would need to be around 20% oat milk for it to be above the <20ppm as reported safe for coeliacs. However, if you’re concerned or have a separate oat issue then it would be safer to avoid milk related drinks from Costa.
Here’s the gluten free offerings in Costa this year.
The Quality Street®- The Purple One Latte – can’t say I’m a fan of The Purple One so I don’t think I’d be trying this, but for all of you who love the Quality Street classic then this might be for you. It’s a Costa signature latte with caramel chocolate sauce and hazelnut syrup.
Terry’s Chocolate Orange Hot Chocolate – signature hot chocolate with orange syrup, topped with whipped cream and glitter. It also comes with a Terry’s chocolate orange segment. This does come up with a cross contamination warning for gluten on the website and this is due to the Terry’s chocolate orange segment which we can’t have. I believe this comes on the side rather than on the drink but perhaps best to check with the staff in store if you are ordering this one.
After Eight® Hot Chocolate – Another hot chocolate option, this time with a mint syrup and a free After Eight. This is a winner for me as I love After Eights and mint flavoured drinks at all times of the year. This drink is gluten free as it is.
Black Forest Hot Chocolate and Frostino – basically a hot chocolate with cherry syrup, whipped cream, sour cherry sauce and some black forest chocolate sprinkles. Both the hot and iced versions are gluten free as in pevious years and no modifications are needed.
Gingerbread and Cream Latte – this is gluten free if you ask for it without the mini gingerbread man that comes on top
Irish Velvet Latte, Hot Chocolate and Frostino – these drinks are flavoured with a non-alcoholic Irish Coffee sauce and topped with caramel sprinkles. These drinks are all gluten free.
Cinnamon Spiced Cappuccino – this sounds like a proper wintery drink. The cappuccino is infused with spices including cinnamon, nutmeg and star anise and is gluten free.
Hot spiced apple – this drink is gluten free
The menu this year has a lot of variety and something for everyone. What I’d like to know is whether I can get the After Eight as a Mocha? I like coffee in my chocolate drinks.
Let me know in the comments what you’re ordering from Costa this Christmas.
You can view their full menu here.
My previous Costa posts can be found here.
I tried the Gingerbread Latte last year and loved it! The little Gingerbread man that came on top was cute!