Although the sun has decided to make an appearance this week, we’re edging closer towards the cosy autumn and winter months.
With that, Costa Coffee has launched its 2023 autumn menu and I decided to give it a try.
The coffee chain regularly releases themed menus throughout the seasons and this year, the Maple Hazel range returned with some new items also being added.
Here’s what I thought about the 2023 autumn menu at Costa Coffee.
Costa Coffee releases autumn 2023 food and drink menu
When I saw the autumn menu had been revealed by Costa Coffee, I wasn’t sure about the Maple Hazel items, as the ‘hazel’ part of the name relates to the roasted hazelnut flavoured syrup.
I’m someone who doesn’t like the taste of nuts in food or drinks but I was very curious and thought why not give it a go? – I love trying new foods and drinks so I was up for it.
The autumn range surprised me (in a very good way) and I’ll be returning to Costa Coffee so I can get another autumnal fix before the Christmas range takes to the menu.
Since the menu has both sweet and savoury treats as well as drinks, I decided to try a good selection of it, including the Hog Roast Toastie, Maple Hazel Frappé, Maple Hazel Muffin and more.
You can find out more about the Costa Coffee menu in our article here.
What I thought about the new Autumn menu at Costa Coffee
Hog Roast Toastie
The Hog Roast Toastie makes for a great winter warmer but is perfect if you want a light bite to eat.
This toastie is made with garlic and herb-topped bloomer bread filled with hickory pulled pork, spiced apple glaze, caramelised onion chutney, sage and onion stuffing and oak-smoked cheddar.
I really enjoyed trying this as it was full of flavour and reminded me of having a Sunday roast at home with my family, largely due to the taste of the sage and onion stuffing coming through.
Maple Hazel Muffin
I moved on to try the Maple Hazel Muffin and I was impressed with its soft sponge and maple syrup-filled middle which was a nice surprise.
It was topped with icing and an edible leaf decoration, fitting in with the autumnal theme.
It’s a very good size and although it had small nuts inside, I quite enjoyed it and would be up for having it again but I wouldn't massively rush to get it.
Chocolate Hazel Frappé and Maple Hazel Frappé
Moving onto the drinks and wow, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy them so much!
I mean, I love a Frappé from Costa Coffee but I wasn’t sure if the Maple Hazel versions were going to be as good as the regular menu options.
I tried the Chocolate Hazel Frappé and the Maple Hazel Frappé with the latter being my favourite out of the two.
The Maple Hazel Frappé comes with roasted hazelnut flavour syrup and maple sauce with whipped cream and autumnal-coloured biscuit topping and it was divine!
I actually really enjoyed the nutty flavour I got with this drink which was a lovely surprise.
I feel like it was a very nice spin on the frappés that are available all year round.
However, the Chocolate Maple Frappé lacked in flavour for me as I could taste more chocolate and didn’t get much of the maple flavour coming through.
Having said this though, I think it would be a good option for those who want to give the menu a try but are a bit unsure about the maple and hazelnut flavours.
Maple Hazel Hot Chocolate
Seeing as I don’t drink tea or coffee (outrageous, I know) and I’m a lover of hot chocolate, I couldn’t not try the Maple Hazel Hot Chocolate.
Similar to the Maple Hazel Frappé, the hot chocolate has roasted hazelnut flavour syrup and maple sauce plus it was topped with whipped cream and the autumnal biscuit crunch.
Although this had a more subtle taste to it, the maple flavours worked very well with the hot chocolate.
So, when the cooler autumnal weather comes back around, I’ll be reaching for this as my new go-to hot chocolate.
In short, I’ll be sad to see this seasonal menu leave Costa Coffee and can only hope it returns again sometime soon.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here