Pumpkin Spice Latte

With fall upon us, a variety of restaurants and coffee shops have begun serving the classic Pumpkin Spice Latte. At The Crusader, we decided to try to find out where our readers could find the best Pumpkin Spice Latte this season.

We decided to narrow our taste test down to three different lattes: McDonald’s, Dunkin Donuts, and Starbucks. We also decided to focus on the iced versions of the Pumpkin Spice Latte. 

DUNKIN DONUTS

BRENNAN: For me, Dunkin had the worst one. It was way too spicy compared to the other lattes I tried. It was very cold and had too much ice in it. I did not like all the extra things they added and also thought it was a little too expensive for my liking.

 MRS. JONES: I am a bit biased because my daughter works at Starbucks, but I tried the Dunkin Latte with an open mind. Unfortunately, it was just a little too sweet for my liking. It tasted more like sugar than pumpkin.

PRESTON: The Dunkin Latte reminded me more of a homemade coffee with a bit of pumpkin creamer in it. I tried it two separate times, and it gave me the same feel. It’s not that Dunkin’s latte was unenjoyable, but it didn’t taste much different than your ordinary latte.

STARBUCKS

BRENNAN: This was the best one by far. The spice was at a good level and overall was the best. You can tell they are the pros at making these drinks and the presentation of the drink was good. I thought the extra things they put in there worked well and made the drink better.

 MRS. JONES: This was my favorite as well. I think it has the perfect mix of pumpkin flavor, coffee, and sweetness. My only complaint is that it is A LOT of calories! If only they made a sugar free version…

PRESTON: This latte I would say was very sweet for sure, but this is a classic flavor for Starbucks . I enjoyed it overall, but it would be second on my list. I recommend getting a small since it’s super sugary but totally worth getting or trying.

MCDONALD’S

BRENNAN: This one was not the best but still better than Dunkin. You can tell they don’t deal with making these types of drinks. I thought their spice was good but did not handle the presentation well and had almost no extras. It was the cheapest one, however, so that helped its case.

MRS. JONES: I think this is my least favorite of the three. Mine was almost all ice and got watered down in no time. I also tasted very little pumpkin flavor…I almost wonder if they gave me the right drink!

PRESTON: I hate to be the odd one out, but this one was my favorite. This was the first one I tried, and I loved it. The taste sat right with me and used a perfect amount of both cream and pumpkin spice.

In the end, Starbucks had the favorite latte among the Crusader staff, and that would be our ultimate recommendation this fall season!

ENJOY!