Made with a variety of spices, pumpkin, espresso, milk, and topped with whipped cream, the pumpkin spice latte captures the essence of fall in a cup. It creates an aromatic feel that brings coziness and comfort. “People love fall and the taste of pumpkin like they look forward to it; it’s limited edition,” said senior Casey Hassan. The pumpkin spice mixture was created in 1796 by Amelia Simmons and it was published in her cookbook which is the first American Cookbook, as ‘pumpkin pie spice,’ made to capture the flavor of pumpkin pie without the use of pumpkin. Senior Caitlyn Evans mentioned, “I feel like through the years, as fall approaches, a lot of people look forward to it [pumpkin]. It’s a comforting flavor.”
In the fall of 2003, Starbucks released a drink called the “Pumpkin Spice Latte,” earning the nickname “PSL” as time moved forward. It’s popular because, at this point, I think for some people it represents fall or makes them think of fall – the taste, the fact that it’s related to pumpkins,” stated HS English teacher Cara Patno. “It’s easy to associate it with fall and so it has held on because of that.” On Aug. 24, 2023, they introduced some new drinks and tasty treats and brought some classics back as well. The new seasonal additions include the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte, Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso, Owl Cake Pop, and Baked Apple Croissant. The Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato, and Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin are back for a limited time and until supplies last. Hassan said, “Starbucks is a very popular brand. People like Starbucks and then knowing that they have it [pumpkin spice latte] as limited edition, encourages them to go there more.”
Though pumpkin hasn’t always been a common flavor, the help of Starbucks bringing it to customers every fall drives other brands to bring it to their customers as well. Dunkin’ has pumpkin-flavored donuts and munchkins as well as a crossover snack with Goldfish. Together they created the “Goldfish Dunkin Pumpkin Spice Grahams,” which started being sold on Sep. 1, 2023. Oreos has brought their pumpkin spice-flavored sandwich cookies back for this cozy fall season. Launching in 2014, these Oreos weren’t the talk of town until 2017 when they made a comeback to the store shelves. Five years later, they came back from a small break and presently, anyone can buy these this fall season. Cereal is another item that has been spiced up for the fall season. Cheerios, Frosted Flakes, Frosted Mini-Wheats, and Special K have all created a pumpkin spice-esque flavor. Evans shared, “I tried pumpkin spice Cheerios last year. They’re not bad, but I probably wouldn’t buy them again, but I did try that.”
Throughout the fall season, many fall flavors continue to be in daily aspects of life, especially pumpkin. But another prominent seasonal flavor is apple, including apple cider and apple cinnamon flavored items. Patno said, “I think some people like the changing of the seasons and so when pumpkin spice lattes are out or fall flavors like apple cider doughnuts and things like that come out, then it does significant to people ‘oh it’s fall’ or ‘this is a fall thing.’” Nonetheless, the flavors that fill the crisp air of fall are always here and here to stay – while supplies last.
