The best holiday coffee drinks are the ones you’ll make more than once. A bottle of peppermint syrup can turn your usual mocha into a Christmas favorite, while gingerbread or brown sugar cinnamon syrup can make a simple latte feel ready for a cold morning.
These 10 holiday coffee recipes use ingredients you can mix and match: coffee or espresso, milk, chocolate, and a few seasonal syrups available on Java City’s website. Each recipe makes one drink, and you can adjust the syrup to taste.
A quick note before you start: A double shot of espresso is about 2 ounces. If you do not have an espresso machine, use ¼ cup of strongly brewed coffee for the latte recipes. To make warm milk foamy, heat it without boiling, then whisk it or use a handheld frother.
1. Classic Peppermint Mocha
Chocolate and peppermint are a holiday staple for a reason. Start with a little mint; you can always add more.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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1 tablespoon chocolate sauce
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1 to 2 teaspoons Torani Peppermint Syrup
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¾ cup milk
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Optional: whipped cream and chocolate shavings
How to make it: Stir the chocolate sauce and peppermint syrup into the hot espresso until smooth. Add warm, frothed milk. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings if you like.
Espresso Tempo is a good coffee to try here because Java City blends it to complement milk-based drinks.
2. Gingerbread Latte
This is the Christmas latte recipe to make when you want warm spice without gathering a cupboard full of ingredients.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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1 tablespoon Torani Gingerbread Syrup
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¾ cup milk
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Optional: pinch of ground cinnamon
How to make it: Stir the gingerbread syrup into the espresso. Pour in warm, frothed milk and finish with cinnamon. Torani’s syrup brings ginger, cinnamon, and molasses-style flavor to the drink.
3. Iced Peppermint White Mocha
Holiday coffee does not have to be hot! This one is creamy, minty, and easy to make in the afternoon.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso, cooled slightly
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1 tablespoon white chocolate sauce
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1 teaspoon Torani Peppermint Syrup
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¾ cup milk
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Ice
How to make it: Stir the white chocolate sauce into the espresso while it is still warm. Add peppermint syrup, then pour over a glass of ice. Add milk and stir.
4. Brown Sugar Cinnamon Shaken Espresso
The cinnamon flavor makes this feel festive, but it is simple enough for an everyday coffee.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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1 tablespoon Torani Brown Sugar Cinnamon Syrup
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½ cup milk
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Ice
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Optional: cinnamon for the top
How to make it: Add espresso, syrup, and a handful of ice to a jar with a tight lid. Shake for about 10 seconds. Pour into a glass with fresh ice and add milk. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
5. Salted Caramel Mocha
A little salt brings out the chocolate and makes this mocha taste especially rich.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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1 tablespoon chocolate sauce
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2 teaspoons Java City Salted Caramel Syrup
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¾ cup milk
How to make it: Mix the chocolate sauce and salted caramel syrup into the hot espresso. Add warm, frothed milk. For an iced version, dissolve the chocolate in the espresso first, then pour everything over ice.
6. Toasted Hazelnut Latte
Hazelnut, coffee, and a dusting of cocoa give this latte a dessert-like flavor without making it complicated.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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1 tablespoon Torani Hazelnut Syrup
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¾ cup milk
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Optional: cocoa powder
How to make it: Stir the hazelnut syrup into the espresso. Add warm, frothed milk and dust lightly with cocoa powder.
7. Gingerbread Mocha
If you are making gingerbread lattes already, use the same syrup for a chocolate version later in the week.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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2 teaspoons Torani Gingerbread Syrup
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1 tablespoon chocolate sauce
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¾ cup milk
How to make it: Stir the syrup and chocolate sauce into the espresso. Add warm, frothed milk. A small pinch of cinnamon on top is lovely here, too.
8. Vanilla Cinnamon Christmas Coffee
No espresso machine needed for this one. Make a pot when guests are over and let everyone sweeten their own mug.
Ingredients
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8 ounces brewed Java City coffee
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1 tablespoon Java City Vanilla Syrup
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2 to 3 tablespoons milk or half-and-half
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Pinch of ground cinnamon
How to make it: Stir the vanilla syrup into hot coffee. Add milk and cinnamon. For a bigger batch, put the coffee in a carafe and set out the syrup, milk, and cinnamon alongside it.
9. Iced Gingerbread Cold Brew
This is an easy make-ahead option for holiday mornings when you would rather open the fridge than turn on the espresso machine.
Ingredients
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¾ cup cold brew
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1 tablespoon Torani Gingerbread Syrup
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¼ cup milk or half-and-half
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Ice
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Optional: pinch of cinnamon
How to make it: Fill a glass with ice. Add cold brew and gingerbread syrup, then stir well. Pour in the milk and finish with cinnamon.
10. Caramel Cookie Latte
Vanilla and caramel make a sweet, bakery-inspired latte with syrups you can keep using well after the holidays.
Ingredients
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2 ounces espresso
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2 teaspoons Java City Caramel Syrup
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2 teaspoons Java City Vanilla Syrup
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¾ cup milk
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Optional: a small crushed shortbread cookie for topping
How to make it: Stir both syrups into the espresso. Add warm, frothed milk and, if you want the full cookie effect, finish with a little shortbread on top.
How to Set Up a Holiday Coffee Bar at Home
You do not need ten different syrups to try ten different drinks. Pick two or three flavors you know you’ll use, then change the coffee base or add chocolate to make something new. Peppermint makes both mochas and white mochas; gingerbread works in lattes, mochas, and cold brew; and vanilla is useful long after the Christmas decorations come down.
Keep espresso or freshly brewed coffee, your preferred milk, ice, and a chocolate sauce on hand. For more ideas you can make throughout the year, see our easy coffee recipes using syrup, or browse the syrups available at Java City.
If you’re local to Sacramento, swing by our Java City trailer at our Headquarters for some fresh holiday drinks! Explore our Sacramento coffee shop menu here.
