By Daniela Palatchi
Get out your uniform approved V-necks and crewnecks because it is finally FALL! Okay, maybe not technically fall, but for some, Labor Day marks the beginning of the apple-picking, pumpkin patch-visiting, sweater weather season. For Starbucks customers, August 24th marked the seasonal, sacred, special Fall Menu’s arrival in stores in the United States and Canada along with the holy grail Pumpkin Spice Latte, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. I tried the iced Chai Pumpkin Cream Latte and Apple Macchiato to honor this year’s fall drinks.
Iced Chai Pumpkin Cream Latte. Perfect for all non coffee drinkers that want a pumpkin drink. There’s no actual coffee in this latte and no bitter taste. It’s the iced Chai Latte but with some pumpkin whipped cream on top, so it autumn-a-fies the drink. I had to stir in the cream sitting on top with the rest of the drink or else I would have been drinking them separately, and that’s no fun. The pumpkin cream adds that balance of sweet and spicy flavors that one might enjoy from a cinnamon roll. Make sure to drink it in sips, though, as the cream along with the chai can be a bit sweet at times. It is most definitely a dessert drink for sweet tooths with a passion for fall. As always, order the drink with light ice to get the most bang for your buck.
Apple Macchiato. This was my first time having a macchiato in my whole life, so I didn’t have anything else to base that on. A macchiato is an espresso drink topped with a small amount of foamed or steamed milk. The smell enchanted my palate with cinnamon and green appley notes, but the taste felt drastically underwhelming beneath all the oat milk and coffee, which overpowers the apple or cinnamon notes if you aren’t looking for them. If anything, it tastes like a plain oat macchiato with a little cinnamon in it and some sweet apple pie undertones. There is so much oat milk flavor that it almost tastes like the Quaker Oats apple cinnamon instant oatmeal in coffee drink form. I recommend the drink to anyone interested in blending apple and strong coffee flavors- and someone who might have a dairy allergy, too.
Starbucks for Fewer Bucks. If your wallet can’t bear taking a trip to Starbucks every morning for your coffee, Starbucks is now selling their at-home prepared coffees in grocery stores. This includes Pumpkin Spice Flavored coffee grounds and K-cup pods, Salted Caramel Mocha coffee grounds and K-cup pods, Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew Concentrate, Pumpkin Spice creamer, Fall Blend coffee grounds and K-cup pods, Iced Espresso Pumpkin Spice Latte and a Chilled Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino.These products provide a more practical, but still fun way to consume your fall coffee. With these products, it’s a lot easier to put the coffee in an IV bag and start pumping. If your wallet is feeling confident one day, you can also take a trip to one of the six Starbucks Reserve Roasteries in the U.S. to explore some higher end drinks and foods such as the Spice Cake and Pumpkin Maritozzo, and Italian bun.
Caffeine-Free Ways to Fall for Fall. Even if coffee isn’t really your cup of tea, there are still many ways to embrace the autumn embrace, such as taking a walk through the bullpen to admire the falling leaves, visiting a pumpkin patch or apple orchard, drinking apple cider while wearing a scarf, listening to Noah Kahan and Hozier or watching Gilmore Girls with a cup of hot chocolate and mini marshmallows. Enjoy the summer while it lasts, but on September 23rd, when fall officially begins, the Fall Feels are on!
