It's PSL Season! Ranking Starbucks' Fall Limited Menu Items
By: Hannah Skinner ‘23
The time of Pumpkin Spice is upon us. If you’ve walked into Trader Joe’s or Starbucks recently, you already know this. Pumpkin Spice is the iconic flavor of fall, and if you are anything like me, you happily purchase too many Pumpkin Spice products each year. I really enjoy the memories that autumn food evokes. We barely even feel the seasons change here in LA, so I purposely make up for the lack of crisp fall air and falling orange leaves with seasonal beverages.
This fall season I took it upon myself to try all the Starbucks limited fall drinks and food. So, without further ado, here is my ranking of the Starbucks fall menu items from the ones you can skip to the ones absolutely can’t miss.
#6 Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato (Iced)
I find that Starbucks iced macchiatos are normally too milky for my taste buds. I don’t like it when the espresso gets lost in the milk. However, the Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato has a good presence of espresso within the creamy oat milk. Ultimately, its downfall for me is its core element–the “Apple Crisp.” This flavor is too overpowering and almost like a perfume. My friend could smell the apple in the drink from three feet away. Overall this drink has potential but, ironically, would be better without the apple crisp.
#5 Pumpkin Spice Scone
Visually, the Pumpkin Spice Scone might look dry and rock hard, but the thick layer of icing is misleading. It is a moist and dense cone with a texture similar to that of a muffin or pumpkin bread. I am no baking expert, but typically, scones should be more fluffy and layered since they are meant to be consumed with butter or jam. Even though the texture was not scone-like, the flavor was lovely–heavy on the gingerbread and nutmeg flavors. Together, the hard icing and the spices reminded me of a gingerbread house.
#4 Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino
The Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino is basically an icey version of the Pumpkin Spice Latte. It has the same fall flavor, only a little bit sweeter. This drink is a great fall pick me up.
#3 Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin
This is one of the only baked goods I like to order from Starbucks, so it’s a shame that it’s only seasonal. I’m already a pumpkin bread and muffin fan, but this muffin takes it up a level with a sprinkling of crushed pumpkin seeds on the top and a cream cheese filling. The aromatic fall spices, nutty pumpkin seeds, and sweet and tangy cream cheese go well together. This muffin is moist and fluffy, and the cream cheese adds a richness and density. Make sure to ask to have it warmed up!
#2 Pumpkin Spice Latte (Iced)
The Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte is the queen of fall. To give it anything less than the number two spot would be disrespectful. It paved the way for pumpkin spice to rise up as autumn’s most iconic flavor, and now, so many other coffee shops have followed suit with spiced drinks. As I sip the PSL, I can practically hear the crunch of fall leaves underneath my feet and feel the chilly winter wind coming.
#1 Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew
The Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew feels like a modernized PSL. It respects the coffee by not drowning the drink in flavoring. The fluffy pumpkin spice cream balances the cold brew. You don’t need to stir it much, either, since as you tip the cup and sip, the cold brew organically blends with the cream. I like how the Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew doesn’t feel as heavy or as sweet as the PSL which, ultimately, makes it number 1.
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