Season to drink and be merry

The frosty holiday season is as good a time as any to live out the age-old cliche, "eat, drink and be merry." So one rainy Friday evening, I dragged my roommates out of our apartment and on a mission to find the newest holiday drinks to see how they really measured up. The verdicts were as varied as the drinks themselves.

Pepsi's Holiday Spice: When I read that Pepsi claimed its newest creation was "the great taste of Pepsi with a festive blend of holiday spices" I was a little skeptical. I like my cola not tasting like a Christmas tree, thanks. But Holiday Spice, which is festively red in color (as we discovered when my roommate spilled it all over our carpet), really does taste like the Pepsi everyone loves, with a little kick of cinnamon added. I loved it, and we devoured the 12-pack within days. It comes in 2-liter bottles or a 12 pack of cans.

Starbucks' Gingerbread Latte/Hot Chocolate and Peppermint Mocha/Hot Chocolate: Not being a huge coffee fan, I tried both the hot chocolate version and the latte version of these holiday drinks. If you long for the days of spending the better part of December decorating gingerbread houses and munching on candy canes, you'll love these drinks, in either the caffeinated or non-coffee forms.

Starbucks' Eggnog Latte: I'm not a huge fan of eggnog, and I don't know many people who are, but I tried to keep an open mind when I took a sip -- until I burned my tongue. The drink was more eggnog than coffee, and I wasn't brave enough to ask if they even attempted to make this in hot chocolate format. However, if eggnog is your thing, it's worth a shot. After all, it's only around until January.

Oregon Chai's Chai Cider: For the holidays, Oregon Chai combined one of its usual flavors, black honey tea, with apple cider to make Chai Cider. Although it takes a little effort -- mixing the concoction with water and heating -- it's well worth it. It tastes more like apple pie than cider or tea, and also comes in Chai Nog.