Which Is The Best PSL? We Tried Them All

Each year, the precursor to the true autumn season sees just about every store and food producer creating their version of a pumpkin-spiced favorite. Taking inspiration from the source material, coffee companies have long been integrating the flavors and ingredients of a pumpkin pie and turning them into lattes. The iconic Pumpkin Spice Latte itself was even created by the development team at Starbucks in the early aughts only to rise to eternal fame and glory, creating a world of inspiration and fall-flavored monetization across the United States.

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But, even with Starbucks being the creator of the Pumpkin Spice Latte that doesn’t necessarily mean that they do it the best. We’ve had 20 plus years of PSL season now, and that means other companies have had plenty of time for good ol’ recipe and development. In a direct comparison, who’s really going to come out on top of the PSL charts? We here at Sporked had no choice but to find out for ourselves. Of the big coffee chains that most Americans have access to―Starbucks, Dunkin’, and Tim Horton’s―who has the best PSL?

The Pumpkin-Spiced Showdown

Starbucks

Listen folks, I went into this someone who’d never even tried the original PSL from Starbucks. So trust me when I say that it’s not emotional attachment or a predisposition that made the Starbucks PSL come out on top of this ranking. There’s just something about it that makes it irresistible. First off, the flavor of the spices taste very natural and not like some extract. And, it tasted like more than just cinnamon. The spice combination tastes complete, warming, and like it’s a cozy hug on a crisp autumn morning.

I do think it’s a bit strangely greasy on the palate and the bright orange color to give the illusion of it actually containing pumpkin in it are far from ideal. I mean, the flavoring could just actually use pumpkin to do that. Not only would it then be more natural, but it would have that lovely caramel-y earthy flavor that so many of us already adore in a pumpkin pie. There’s certainly room to improve, but as it is, it’s by far the best display of a PSL on such a large and accessible scale.

Rating:

8.5/10

Sporks

Tim Horton’s

I liked this latte quite a lot(te, hehe). Honestly, it was nice to sip on and I appreciated the actual espresso flavor being able to come through. That said, it was quite a milk pumpkin spice flavor. And I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. It’s simply that I think someone who comes and orders it might be a bit disappointed in the flavor’s strength. The whipped cream and cinnamon on top did give it an extra ounce of delicate fall flavor, though.

Rating:

6.5/10

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Dunkin’

Not only is the actual pumpkin spice flavor not really strong or persistent in this latte, but neither is the coffee. It’s pretty aggressively artificial right out of the gate, but then it loses all body. I like the added touch of the whipped cream and toppings since a sweet coffee experience like this already feels like such a treat. But I would have expected more from Dunkin’ for this flavor, especially since it’s so beloved.

Rating:

3.5/10

Sporks