Naturally, we were intrigued when two major players in the PSL game—Starbucks and Panera Bread—announced cleaned-up versions of their lattes for fall 2015. Starbucks said its drink would finally contain real pumpkin. Panera was quick to reply: The chain’s PSL has always had real pumpkin, reps boasted, but this time it’d be free of all the other unsavory additives recently banned from its menu. So we conducted a blind taste test here in the office to see which cleaner pumpkin spice latte tastes best. We bought samples from Starbucks and Panera, then threw in Dunkin Donuts’ artificial pumpkin spice latte as a wild card. MORE: Shrimp and Pumpkin Noodle Salad If you’ve never tried a PSL before, know this: All of these drinks are extremely sugary, and the pumpkin-ness completely eclipses any hints of coffee flavor. But, if you’re looking for something dessert-esque in your cup, this is the beverage for you. Which one should you buy? Here’s what we thought after careful rounds of tasting: Our Least Favorite: Starbucks How could it be that the PSL originator whipped up our least favorite latte? We may never know. But we do know that our tasters described this beverage as “artificial-tasting,” “bitter,” and, “like drinking potpourri.” MORE: Starbucks Announces Big Change for the Pumpkin Spice Latte This Fall Meh: Dunkin Donuts The thing about artificial flavors is that sometimes (OK, a lot of times) they actually taste pretty good—at least, they taste better than Starbucks’ natural latte. Tasters noted mercifully subtle hints of clove and nutmeg in this latte—but they weren’t enamored of its excessive sweetness. “Way too sweet,” wrote one. “This is straight up milk and sugar.” Best: Panera Bread Surprise, surprise: Panera ousted the once-mighty ‘Bucks from its throne of liquefied sugar comas. Panera’s latte was hailed as the smoothest, creamiest, and mildest across the board, with the best attempt at tasting like pumpkin (instead of just spice). “I HATE coffee, but this was creamy and made me think I might actually take up a coffee habit,” wrote one taster. “Warm and comforting,” said another. The bottom line: Panera takes the crown this time around.
