Starbucks went from being a place to grab a cup of coffee to the holy ground of “hipsters” and the “common white girl” through the recent years. But back in 1971, Starbucks was a single store in Seattle’s historic Pike Place Market, which sold freshly roasted coffee. It’s now nationwide and has 21,000 stores in 65 countries. Since Starbucks become such a well-known company, the menu of drinks has grown longer and more confusing to the occasional customer.
“Cappuccino, frappuccino…They all sound the same to me,” Junior Courtney Moran said.

The names of drinks at Starbucks may be very similar, but the taste, consistency and temperatures are all very different. A cappuccino is a hot espresso coffee mixed or topped with steamed milk or cream. A Frappuccino, however, is a cold, sweet, whipped coffee, similar to a milkshake except it is icy rather than creamy.

The frappuccino is the go-to for customers, because of its diversity in flavors it can be made into. Starbucks’ busiest time of the year is the autumn and winter months. This is because of the specialty holiday drinks they have available from the end of August through the holiday season, which gives customers something to look forward to when it starts getting chillier outside.

The most popular holiday drink is the Pumpkin Spice Latte, otherwise known as the “PSL”, which is released at the end of August every year, and is among the favorites of avid Starbucks fans.

There are also the Christmas drinks, with the most popular one being the Peppermint Mocha. However, if you aren’t a fan of peppermint, there are countless other holiday beverages, such as the Gingerbread Latte, Caramel Brulee Latte and the Eggnog Latte.

Another interesting thing about Starbucks is that these holiday drinks are all served hot, but they can be purchased in an iced form if you prefer cold drinks.

Now a lot of people associate Starbucks with just coffee and other coffee- based drinks, but they actually has tea for those who prefer tea over coffee. “I’m not a big coffee fan, so I would order an iced tea but I don’t know which one to get,” Moran said.

Starbucks uses one brand of tea called “Teavana” known for all-natural herbs and ingredients. Starbucks has many different Teavana teas such as black, green, passion tango and peach green tea. You can get all of these cold and have the option to have them sweetened as well. Another cool thing about Starbucks shaken iced teas is they have options to make some of the teas into “Tea Lemonades,” creating a more sour-sweet taste.

There is also a different form of tea that Starbucks makes called Chai tea lattes or just simply tea lattes. The difference between a Chai Tea Latte and a regular tea latte is that the Chai tea latte is spicy, while the regular tea latte is creamy and sweet. The regular latte is perfect for those who love their tea really sweet and creamy, as the Chai is perfect for those who love a bit of spice.

Another drink Starbucks sells that isn’t coffee related is the “Starbucks Refreshers.” There is the cool lime refresher, Valencia Orange Refresher and The Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher. All of these drinks are very fruity and a little bit sour but also a little sweet, perfect for any hot day in the summer. But if you don’t like tea, coffee or caffeinated drinks in general, Starbucks has hot chocolate as well.

They have three different types of hot chocolate: regular hot chocolate, peppermint and salted caramel. All of the hot chocolates are served with whipped cream with a drizzle of either chocolate or caramel on top. Now if you’re more of a simple person who just wants coffee (iced or hot) there is the blonde roast coffee, which Starbucks has recently added to their selection of coffees.

It’s a lightly roasted coffee, so it’s not as strong as the regular clover coffee they usually use. Also, there’s the regular Iced Coffee, which you usually have to fix yourself. Another great option for people who like coffee is any latte Starbucks has to offer, such as the Caramel Latte, Vanilla Latte or the Caramel Macchiato.

Of course, like many other drinks, the option is available to get these hot drinks served cold by asking the workers to make them iced. Another plus is any iced or hot latte already comes sweetened and creamed, removing the hassle of fixing your black coffee/ iced coffee yourself. Overall, Starbucks has many drinks to offer for every type of person.