If you’ve been curious about the cherry chai latte from Starbucks, you’re going to love this homemade version—it’s sweet, spiced, and way easier to make. This recipe skips the cherry powders and flavored syrups and uses real cherries instead, giving you that juicy cherry flavor with warm chai spice.
The result is a creamy, cozy latte that tastes like a spiced cherry dessert in a cup. No fancy equipment or complicated steps required—just a cafe-style drink you can make in minutes right at home.
Here’s how to make this creamy cherry chai latte at home!
Why You’ll Love This Cherry Chai Latte
- One of the easiest Starbucks recreations ever
- Save money instead of buying it out
- An easy and quick chai recipe
- Experiment with different flavor combos
- It’s creamy, flavorful, with the perfect tartness
What is a Cherry Chai Latte?
A cherry chai latte is a unique twist on the classic chai, blending warm, spiced tea with sweet and fruity cherry flavor. It gained popularity as a limited-time item on Starbucks’ spring menu—a sweetened chai latte topped with cherry cold foam and cherry cookie crumbles. Starbucks uses cherry powder in the cold foam, which many describe as tasting like almond extract or amaretto.
While it sounds delicious, the cherry chai latte is polarizing: some fans love the floral cherry-spice combo, while others think it tastes like cough syrup.
This homemade version skips the cherry powder and uses real cherries instead for a naturally juicy flavor that pairs beautifully with chai spices. It’s a simplified, homemade take that keeps all the flavor without the complicated steps.
Does This Chai Latte Have Caffeine?
Yes, chai is made from black tea, which has a lot of caffeine. For instance, take an 8-oz serving, brewed green tea has 30-50 mg of caffeine, while black tea has 50-90 mg. 1 espresso shot alone has 60 mg of caffeine, so black tea can make you feel wired or stay up longer.
If you’re sensitive to caffeine, drinking this chai latte earlier in the day is best! Or opt for making it decaf if possible.
Do Cherry and Chai Go Together?
Honestly, I wasn’t sure if cherry and chai would work together, but after testing this recipe, I was surprised by how well they pair. The cherry flavor isn’t super strong—it’s more of a subtle background note since the spices in chai are definitely the star here.
But that touch of cherry adds a juicy, slightly sweet finish that softens the spice and makes the whole drink feel more balanced. And if you top it with creamy cold foam? Game changer. It adds this rich, velvety layer that brings everything together and leaves you with the dreamiest, smoothest finish.
This cherry chai latte kind of reminds me of a spiced cherry pie or an almond cherry tart—like something warm and cozy you’d eat during the holidays. The combo of juicy cherry and warm spices gives off major dessert vibes, almost like a cherry crumble with cinnamon and cardamom (with a scoop of vanilla ice cream???? omg heaven).
How to Add Cherry Flavor
I’m a fan of easy and delicious ways to add flavor to recipes, and luckily, with fruit, it’s as easy as blending the fruit and adding it to milk or cream. For the recipe, I blend cherries and a little water to make a quick cherry puree, which I add to heavy cream to make cherry cold foam! This gives you the best cherry flavor and a nice mouthfeel.
Hack: You can also simmer cherry juice to make the easiest cherry syrup ever.
But here are other creative ways to add cherry flavor to your drink:
- Cherry Kool-Aid: Now, this is a hack. Just add a teaspoon of cherry Kool-Aid and a little water to make an instant cherry syrup.
- Cherry Jam: You can use this as a substitute for cherry syrup or puree, and it adds a nice jammy, sweet cherry flavor. Combine a teaspoon with a little bit of water to make it easier to dissolve into your drink.
- Cherry Powder: Starbucks uses cherry powder for their drinks, and you can add it directly into your cream or milk for a subtle cherry flavor. Experiment with the amounts!
- Maraschino Cherry Syrup: If you have maraschino cherries lying around, you can use the syrup as an impromptu cherry syrup! While it’s mostly sugar and less cherry flavor, it’s a convenient hack if you don’t want to get cherries.
How to Make Cherry Syrup
However, a close second to cherry puree would be cherry syrup, which is also incredibly easy to make and store. You get a much smoother texture and a sweeter flavor. For cherry syrup, you can make it by making simple syrup, adding cherries, and simmering until the juice cooks out.
Let cool and store in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks! It’s delicious in this chai latte, or other drinks, and even on pancakes, yogurt, etc.
How to Make Cherry Cold Foam
No matter what form of cherry you add, cherry cold foam is super easy to make! The base is a sweet cream cold foam, which is a light and fluffy mixture of heavy cream and milk.
Add heavy cream, milk, optional sweetener, and your cherry puree or syrup to a tall glass. Whip the cream for 10-20 seconds with an electric handheld frother until soft and fluffy.
It’s perfect for drinks or pancakes, smoothies, ice cream, and more. It tastes just like cherry ice cream! Freeze it for a delicious frozen treat.
How to Make Chai
This recipe uses my favorite chai concentrate from Kimbala Chai, which is a small family-run business based in Austin, Texas! I religiously use their chai concentrate in all my chai recipes. Now, Starbucks doesn’t sell its chai concentrate, but Tazo’s chai concentrate is a fan-favorite from the grocery store.
You can easily make chai concentrate at home, too! Just brew 3 black tea bags or 1 tbsp of loose-leaf black tea with ¼ cup of water, then remove the tea and add sugar and your favorite chai spices.
How to Make a Cherry Chai Latte
Ingredients:
- Cherry Cold Foam
- ¼ cup fresh or frozen pitted cherries (about 5-6 cherries)
- 2 tbsp water
- ½ tsp sweetener (optional)
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp milk
- Chai Latte
- ¼ cup chai concentrate
- 1 cup ice
- 1 cup milk
Cherry Chai Latte Recipe
- Add cherries and water to a small blender. Blend until the cherries are smooth and have no visible chunks.
- Add cherry puree, heavy cream, milk, and sweetener (if desired) to a tall glass. Whip cream for 10-15 seconds using a handheld frother until soft and fluffy but still pourable. You can also use a blender.
- Buy or make chai concentrate. For homemade chai concentrate, brew 3 black tea bags or 1 tbsp of loose-leaf black tea with ¼ cup of water for 3-5 minutes or until well-brewed. Remove tea and add sugar and spices (cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, etc.) to your tastes.
- Add ice, milk, and chai concentrate to a glass, then top with cherry cold foam. Garnish with a dusting of cherry powder or half a cherry.
- Mix and enjoy!
Other Chai Recipes to Try
Chai is such a delicious and versatile tea, especially since it has blown up in popularity in the 2010s. On top of traditional chai, there are all sorts of creative flavors and combinations to try. Here’s some chai recipe inspiration you should try next:
- Matcha chai latte (Must Try!)
- Kashmiri chai (pink tea)
- Dirty chai latte
- Horchata chai
- Gingerbread chai
- Vanilla cold foam chai
- Brown sugar oat milk chai
Creamy Cherry Chai Latte Starbucks Copycat
Ingredients
Cherry Cold Foam
- ¼ cup fresh or frozen cherries about 5-6 cherries
- 2 tbsp water
- ½ tsp sweetener optional
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp milk
Chai Latte
- ¼ cup chai concentrate
- 1 cup ice
- 1 cup milk
Instructions
- Add cherries and water to a small blender. Blend until the cherries are smooth and have no visible chunks.
- Add cherry puree, heavy cream, milk, and sweetener (if desired) to a tall glass. Whip cream for 10-15 seconds using a handheld frother until soft and fluffy but still pourable. You can also use a blender.
- Buy or make chai concentrate. For homemade chai concentrate, brew 3 black tea bags or 1 tbsp of loose-leaf black tea with ¼ cup of water for 3-5 minutes or until well-brewed. Remove tea and add sugar and spices (cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, etc.) to your tastes.
- Add ice, milk, and chai concentrate to a glass, then top with cherry cold foam. Garnish with a dusting of cherry powder or half a cherry.
- Mix and enjoy!
Tips:
- Make Layers: For beautiful layers, add the chai concentrate to the bottom of the glass, add ice, and carefully pour the milk directly onto the ice. The ice breaks the fall of the milk and helps it float on top of the chai. The cold foam has air in it, so it will automatically float on top!
- Add Vanilla: Vanilla always helps round out flavors and goes well with literally any and every sweet flavor on the planet. It makes the cherry taste less tart and gives it a nice, subtly floral, and creamy taste. Add it to the cold foam or latte!
- Add Cherry to the Latte: Starbucks only adds cherry flavor to the cold foam, so for extra cherry flavor, add the syrup or puree to the chai latte itself. You’ll get much more fruity cherry this way!
- Leave Room for the Cold Foam: People (including myself) always underestimate how much room cold foam takes up and end up overfilling the glass. Leave an extra inch at the top of your glass to fit all the yumminess without spillage.
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