I’ll shamelessly admit there’s nothing I love more than waking up on a crisp fall day, putting on my Uggs, and going to my local coffee shop to order a Pumpkin Spice Latte. (I know, cue the eyerolls. But don’t knock it till you try it.)
As much as I love spending upwards of $7 on a PSL, it’s not the most sustainable for my wallet, which is why I’ve set out to find slightly more affordable alternatives to get my seasonal caffeine fix.
Enter: the Ready-to-Drink Pumpkin Spice Latte Taste Test. I’ve always been curious about the pre-made pumpkin spice-flavored coffees you can buy at the grocery store, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to see which ones (if any) are worth buying.
In the name of service journalism, I tried six different popular brands of pumpkin spice-flavored coffees, and let’s just say, I was surprised by the one I ended up liking best.
For the sake of keeping things consistent, I stuck to bottled coffees and didn’t test any pumpkin spice-flavored coffee grounds. I wanted something that could be made easily in less than a minute, so I figured the prebottled stuff was the way to go. I also wanted to try both lattes and cold brew concentrates, so I segmented the taste test into the two categories.
These were the “ready-to-drink” lattes I tried. Each one was sweetened and premixed with milk.
And the two brands of unsweetened cold brew concentrate, which suggested adding milk or water when serving.
To make sure the taste test was as fair as possible, I decided to conduct a blind taste test. I relied on my roommate to pour an equal amount of each latte into plastic cups…
…which corresponded to this lineup. I wasn’t in the room during the pouring process, so I didn’t know which cup held which coffee.
I judged each latte on three categories: pumpkin spice flavor, sweetness, and coffee flavor, making notes on my overall thoughts on each and whether or not I’d purchase the drink again.
After the latte portion of the test was done, I moved on to the cold brew concentrates. The same process was conducted for these, only my roommate was instructed to pour this exact ratio to best follow serving instructions: 1/4 cup of whole milk to 1/8 cup of cold brew concentrate (a two to one ratio of milk to coffee)…
…which corresponded to this lineup.
For the cold brew concentrates, I judged the coffee on two main components: pumpkin spice flavor and coffee quality.
4. Starbucks – Good pumpkin spice flavor, but way too sweet.
3. Califia Farms – Perfect level of sweetness, but had a weak coffee and pumpkin spice flavor.
2. La Colombe – Smooth and creamy with a strong coffee taste, but lacks a strong pumpkin spice flavor.
1. Pop & Bottle – Well-balanced with the perfect ratio of coffee and milk.
2. Trader Joe’s – Tasted flat, and it had a slightly artificial pumpkin spice taste.
1. Chameleon – Robust and smooth with a perfect hint of cinnamon and nutmeg.
I’m honestly surprised that I ended up liking the Pop & Bottle coffee over both La Colombe and Chameleon, given how much more popular the other two brands are. I’m going to be working my way through these six jugs of coffee over the next few weeks, but in the meantime, I’m curious: Do you have a favorite pumpkin spice-flavored coffee that you like? Let me know in the comments!
If you’re in a pumpkin spice mood, download the free Tasty app to browse and save the best seasonal pumpkin recipes — no subscription required.
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