As the leaves gradually turn crimson and the air embraces the crisp fall chill, cafes unveil their seasonal delights and pumpkin spice drinks.
My favorite time of the year is back with various new drinks featured nationwide in all sorts of coffee shops, grocery stores and social media to quench my thirst on a cool autumn day. Fall aesthetics are now swarming my socials, featuring returning and new drinks alike to be put to the supremacy test.
As a coffee lover and all things pumpkin spice, I visited the top three coffee chains most popular among Miege students: Dutch Bros, Dunkin’ and Starbucks. Having planned ahead, I knew they had new PSL-themed beverages for me to try. Knowing that each brand had mastered the basic pumpkin spice latte, my focus was on the foam, mixture of syrups, novelty and flavor of the new drinks.
Starbucks: Since debuting the Pumpkin Cream Chai, it has had tons of raves from customers. I got this drink partially because of its popularity on social media, but mainly because I have been anticipating it all year. Every time I take a sip of this drink I am immediately taken back to the fall of my sophomore year. Going to haunted houses and playing The Smiths while the window is rolled down, blowing in cool air with the smell of old damp leaves on the ground. This nostalgic wave is a huge contributor to my love for this drink. I appreciate how the chai is a non-coffee drink that consists of the Starbucks chai concentrated atop the famous pumpkin cold foam all over a bed of ice or warmed – sprinkled with a dash of cinnamon on top. The cold foam tastes very natural, lacking any artificial taste, as well as a sweet, fall flavor that I constantly desire. The pumpkin foam is what completes this drink, especially while licking the lid when you finish – along with the combination of the latest nugget ice at Starbucks. I appreciate how the Pumpkin Cream Chai is a creamy black tea that contains caffeine, with combinations of flavors like ginger, cinnamon and pumpkin — perfect for caffeine-abstainers who strive for that autumn taste.
Dunkin’: As a coffee drinker, I have formed an obsession with Dunkin’s original iced coffees. Dunkin’ is infamously known for having intensely sugary drinks, but I have alternative orders to overcome this and find that perfect balance. The new order I tried at Dunkin’ is the Nutty Pumpkin Iced Coffee, which is a part of their eight seasonal drinks. This drink is the original iced coffee with hazelnut and pumpkin swirl. One less pump of each swirl subdues for a much warmer pumpkin flavor but creates a hint of artificial flavoring. Although I love the variety of drink options, the Dunkin’ syrup barely compares to Starbucks pumpkin spice syrup due to its artificial taste, arguably comparable to a spiced pumpkin candle. However, this drink is still very tasty and immensely meets the fall vibes
Dutch Bros Coffee: Dutch Bros Coffee peaked last year, opening many new locations throughout the Kansas City metro area. Dutch Bros came out with three pumpkin spice drinks this year, starring the Caramel Pumpkin Brulee Breve. It is a very milky drink thanks to the breve, a creamy espresso created with steamed milk and half-and-half as opposed to regular milk. I would suggest adding cold brew to this drink, as the breve overcomes most of the pumpkin and coffee flavor. While drinking the breve, I did not taste as much pumpkin as I would have preferred, assuming their pumpkin syrup is standard.
Of the three variations of fall drinks tasted, the Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte from Starbucks triumphed on top. As described, the drink offers an astonishing blend of spices in its foam, concentrates and syrup. Feelings of nostalgia, comfort and fall submerge my mind with one sip. Other Dunkin and Dutch Bros drinks could surpass this beverage, but out of the ones sampled, they both leaned too much towards a flavor resembling a wax-like essence within the syrups. As I love experimenting with the variety of drinks these places offer, I am ecstatic to come back to Starbucks on Oct. 1 to try the brand new Pecan Crunch drinks.
