Autumn is finally upon us, meaning that Starbucks has officially re-added its selection of fall-themed drinks to the menu. The yearly wave of drink reviews has been making its way across social media, and these drinks have received great praise, but do all of them really live up to the hype? We taste-tested four of Starbucks’ most viral fall drinks: the pumpkin spice latte, iced apple macchiato, iced pumpkin cream chai latte, and pumpkin cream cold brew to see which ones are actually worth your money.
Pumpkin Spice Latte: 4/10
Disappointingly, this classic pumpkin drink did not nearly live up to its iconic status. Don’t be deceived by the latte’s creamy-orange color or its hefty amount of whipped cream, as we found that the latte didn’t taste like pumpkin at all. Despite the whopping four pumps of pumpkin syrup in the base of the drink, the flavors were overall very bland, and the small amount of flavoring that we could taste dissipated as soon as the whipped cream mixed with the rest of the latte.
Iced Apple Macchiato: 9/10
Although we were hesitant about this drink’s unique combination of apple and espresso, the sweet yet earthy apple flavoring blended nicely with the bitterness of the macchiato. Our only complaint was that the flavors of the drink would be better with pumpkin spice cold foam, which can be an add-on to the drink. Overall, those who enjoy their coffee with a sweet kick should try the macchiato on their next Starbucks run.
Iced pumpkin cream chai latte: 10/10
The iced pumpkin cream chai latte undeniably lived up to its reputation. Unlike many of the other drinks we tried, it was delicious with or without mixing in the cold foam and the pumpkin and cinnamon flavors were more noticeable. The chai latte was more exciting with pumpkin cold foam than with the normal sweet cream cold foam you can get year-round. Even though the chai was very sweet, non-coffee enjoyers will definitely appreciate this fall drink.
Pumpkin cream cold brew: 6/10
We weren’t particularly fond of the pumpkin cream cold brew compared to the other drinks we tried. Prior to mixing the drink together, the coffee was too strong and lacked pumpkin flavor. After mixing, the drink was sweeter, but there was still minimal pumpkin. The strong coffee and the lack of fall flavor kept us from enjoying this drink as much.
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