Express.co.uk had the joy of trying out all of the Christmas range at Pret , Costa and Caffè Nero .
While a few were given an impressive five-out-of-five stars, one was described as abhorrently "artificial". According to one reviewer on the team, the Christmassy hot chocolate tasted "too artificial" and "too sweet" leading to the lowest score possible. Costa 's Black Forest and Cream Hot Chocolate smelt overly cherry-like and left a pungent aftertaste.
The hot drink, after all, does have whipped cream topped with cherry sauce. Given only one star out of five, the reviewer conceded, "Others may like it." However, the other two new Christmassy drinks on Costa 's menu received impressive remarks.
Costa 's Festive Spice Flat White was given the highest accolade—"five stars!" "Amazing," the team reviewer exhaled after a sip of the Christmassy hot drink. "Very nice." She added: "It's the perfect amount of Christmas ; not overpowering, not super sweet.
" A post shared by costacoffee (@costacoffee) A post shared by costacoffee (@costacoffee) Also gaining top marks (five out of five) at Costa is the new Caramel Nutcracker Latte , which tasted "very nice" because of its "subtle hint of caramel" that was "just right". Another Christmassy hot chocolate drink was dismissed as "too overpowering". Pret's classic Festive Orange Hot Chocolate has "too many festive spices" for one reviewer's liking.
"It's too overpowering," the reviewer said with a scrunched-up nose. "Just orange would have.