Summer is right around the corner, so it’s time to switch your order. This season, we’re spicing it up with the 10 best Starbucks cold foam drinks, more decadent than plain iced coffees with milk.
If you’ve never had cold foam, but you love frothed milk over your latte, you’re in for a treat. We have more than a few cold foam drink suggestions from Starbucks that might become your new favorites.
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What Is Cold Foam?
Cold foam is cold-frothed skim milk, plain or with some flavorings like vanilla or pumpkin spice. Unlike hot-frothed milk, cold foam doesn’t melt when poured over an iced drink.
Hot foam uses a steam wand, but the cold foam is made with a handheld frother. Skim milk is often used because it has the highest amounts of protein, making the foam fluffy.
Cold foam originated as a method to satisfy the need for a layered iced coffee that wasn’t a frappuccino. Thanks to social media, which is nowadays responsible for almost all popular drinks, avid espresso lovers got their foamy goodness.(1)
As a result, cold brew and iced lattes finally got their meringue-like topping that holds up!
Types of Starbucks Cold Foams
The best thing about cold foam is the option to have it plain or mixed with flavorings and sweeteners. This allows you to upgrade your regular cold brew without much effort.
Starbucks currently offers plain, salted caramel, and vanilla sweet cream cold foam.
Standard Cold Foam
The standard cold foam is a classic frothed cold milk with no additions. It’s a good option for those who don’t want to alter the taste of their coffee too much.
However, since cold foam uses skim milk, the taste might not be everyone’s preference. It’s more watery and not as creamy as hot foam, which uses whole milk.
Salted Caramel Cream Cold Foam
Salted caramel is a crowd favorite, even in foam form. Starbucks’ salted caramel cream foam is made with vanilla sweet cream and caramel syrup.
It works wonderfully with a tall glass of cold brew.
A homemade version includes a pinch of salt, sugar, milk, and homemade caramel syrup. Froth it up and you’re good to go!
Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam
Vanilla sweet cream cold foam is rich, creamy, and fragrant, transforming every black coffee into a decadent drink. It’s heavier than plain cold foam since it contains cream besides milk.
Starbucks also provides a recipe for a homemade version, including powdered sugar and vanilla extract.
Top 10 Starbucks Cold Foam Drinks
Starbucks popularized the cold foam, so it’s natural for them to have the best drinks. If you’re wondering which drinks contain cold foam, we’ve selected the best-tasting ones.
Scroll down for the best Starbucks cold foam drinks to drench your thirst. Hint: it’s not only coffee!
1. Vanilla Sweet Cream Nitro
Flavor:
Regular robust cold brew gets a creamier upgrade with the subtly sweet vanilla cream as a topping. This drink includes the nitro cold brew over ice and a layer of vanilla cold foam on top. As the liquids meet, they create a mystical-looking drink.(2)
How To Order:
“Hey, can I grab a Nitro Cold Brew with vanilla cold foam?”
How It’s Made:
- Brewed Coffee
- Vanilla Cold Foam
2. Iced Butter Cookie Latte (Secret Menu)
Flavor:
The iced butter cookie latte uses the iced chai tea latte as a base with a few swaps. Ask for oat milk instead of regular milk, add hazelnut syrup and vanilla sweet cream cold foam on top.
It tastes like a butter cookie with a hint of spices and caffeine.
How To Order:
“I’d love a grande Iced Chai Latte with oat milk, 2 pumps hazelnut, and sweet cream?”
How It’s Made:
- Chai Tea
- Oat Milk
- Hazelnut Syrup
- Vanilla Sweet Cream
3. Pink Drink with Vanilla Cold Foam
Flavor:
It’s impossible to have missed the Pink Drink craze that’s been going on for the last few years. This drink is essentially a strawberry acai refresher made with coconut milk instead of water and topped with vanilla cold foam.
It’s refreshing and creamy with an intense fruity flavor.
How To Order:
“Can I have a Pink Drink with Vanilla Cold Foam?”
How It’s Made:
- Strawberry Acai Base
- Coconut Milk
- Freeze Dried Strawberries
- Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam
4. Fluffy Iced Caramel Macchiato
Flavor:
The fluffy iced caramel macchiato is a new take on the cloud macchiato. The base is espresso over ice with milk, vanilla, and caramel syrup. Then it’s topped with double the cold foam.
If you’re a fan of the staple drink, you’d love this upgraded version.
How To Order:
“Hey, I’d like an Iced Caramel Macchiato, add 2x cold foam.”
How It’s Made:
- Milk
- Caramel Sauce
- Brewed Espresso
- Vanilla Syrup
- Cold Foam
5. Salted Caramel Cream Cold Brew
Flavor:
Salted caramel cream turns the plain cold brew into a creamy drink with nuanced flavor.(3) The base is simple, cold brew over ice. The topping, however, is made with vanilla sweet cream, milk, vanilla, and caramel syrup.
Although there’s a lot of vanilla, it’s far from overpowering.
How To Order:
“Hi, just a Salted Caramel Cream Cold Brew, please.”
How It’s Made:
- Brewed Coffee
- Vanilla Syrup
- Salted Caramel Cream
6. Extra Foggy London Fog (Secret Menu)
Flavor:
London fog, but make it extra foggy with a dollop of cold foam. Take the base of the London fog, which includes milk, an infusion of lavender, black tea, and bergamot, and top it with cold foam & caramel. The fragrant milky drink becomes extra comforting.
How To Order:
“Can I get an Iced London Fog with extra cold foam & caramel drizzle, please?”
How It’s Made:
- Black Tea
- Bergamot Essence
- Lavender Flowers
- Milk
- Cold Foam
7. Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew
Flavor:
It’s easy to get bored of cold brew on its own. Keep the caffeine but change the texture with delicious cold foam.(4)
Add some vanilla syrup to the regular cold brew and top it with vanilla cold foam.
How To Order:
“Hi, can I grab a Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew?”
How It’s Made:
- Brewed Coffee
- Vanilla Syrup
- Vanilla Sweet Cold Foam
8. Vietnamese Iced Coffee (Secret Menu)
Flavor:
Vietnamese iced coffee uses iced shaken espresso as a base but elevates the bare taste. Add an extra shot of espresso to the base drink and top with cold foam.
Even espresso purists would love to indulge in this combo!
How To Order:
“I’d like an Iced Shaken Espresso, add 1 shot espresso & cold foam.”
How It’s Made:
- Brewed Espresso
- Milk
- Classic Syrup
- Cold Foam
9. Matcha Pink Drink (Secret Menu)
Flavor:
Pink Matcha uses the pink drink, a strawberry acai refresher with coconut milk, and tops it generously with cold foam mixed with a scoop of matcha powder. The end result is a fusion of two contrasting colors with crunchy freeze-dried strawberries floating around.
How To Order:
“A grande Pink Drink with Matcha cold foam would be great!”
How It’s Made:
- Strawberry Acai Base
- Coconut Milk
- Freeze Dried Strawberries
- Cold Foam with Matcha Powder
10. Salted Honey Almond Cold Brew (Secret Menu)
Flavor:
If you want to skip the dairy but still make your cold brew creamier, this is your drink. Start with a cold brew with almond milk and add honey blend. Top it with salted caramel cold cream for some extra creaminess.
How To Order:
“A grande Cold Brew with a splash of almond milk, 2 pumps honey blend & salted caramel cold foam, please.”
How It’s Made:
- Brewed Coffee
- Almond Milk
- Honey Blend
- Salted Caramel Cold Foam
Summary
Milky foamy drinks are not meant to be hot only, and cold foam is here to change that. The Starbucks cold foam drinks list is more than tempting, from simple drinks like cold brew to complicated infusions like London Fog.
If you can’t find something that catches your eye, you still have the option to make your own cold foam drink. We recommend combining the cold foam with lighter drinks, so you get the full creamy effect.
More Questions
Can you add cold foam to any Starbucks drink?
You’re free to add cold foam to any cold drink at Starbucks, from iced tea to coffee. You can’t add it to hot drinks because it will melt right away.
You also can’t add it to frappucinos since they usually include whipped cream as a topping. Pair the cold foam with something lighter, like an iced macchiato or cold brew.
Is Starbucks cold foam whipped cream?
The cold foam and whipped cream are based on the same idea, but cold foam uses non-fat milk. There’s also a difference in the texture; cold foam has a lighter, airy texture with microbubbles.
This is primarily due to the low-fat content, unlike whipped cream, which has a dense and creamier feel.
Can cold foam be made with almond milk?
You can’t get almond cold foam at Starbucks, but you can try to make it at home. Cold foam keeps up because of the high protein and low-fat content, which almond milk can’t replicate.
But if you do decide to make it at home, use barista-style almond milk and be ready for a less stable foam.
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