Stars, stripes, flames and coffee cherries, all adorned in cheerful shades of red and green.
These are the four designs included in Starbucks's latest batch of seasonally themed cups, which will debut Friday as the company kicks off the holiday season. This year, the coffee-making titan said it wanted to "look to the past" and draw inspiration from its signature Christmas blend.
The cups seem harmless at first, granting consumers a festive way to enjoy their favorite sugary — and sometimes over-the-top — beverages. But in recent years, watching some of Starbucks’s seasonal design choices trigger controversy has become a holiday tradition in itself.