Emma Pufahl – Opinion Columnist

I love fall and all of its foods and drinks. Pumpkin pie is my favorite pie so naturally Pumpkin Spice Lattes are a seasonal must. Don’t worry Gusties, I tried every (hot) Pumpkin Spice Latte in St. Peter so you don’t have to.
Coming in last… River Rock… They don’t have Pumpkin Spice Lattes but their own special “Harvest Spice” syrup. It was a 2/10 for pumpkin spice flavor. One of the spices in their syrup was similar enough to pumpkin spice that I didn’t rate this drink lower. Because this isn’t a true PSL, I decided that I should also rate the drink overall. This drink itself has a rating of 5/10. The flavor was great but only a hint of it. When I order a flavored drink, I’m expecting it to be the main flavor of the drink, not the ‘background’ flavor. This drink needed more of an umph. If I were to order it again, I would need to have double the amount of syrup, which would be unfortunate because I thought that this drink was the perfect level of sweetness.
In second was the Courtyard Cafe. Which was a complete shock to me. It lacked any flavor. It was a good latte but not a good PSL. The amount of espresso was great, but there wasn’t much else notable about this drink. I could have been convinced that it was a dirty chai latte (which is definitely not a compliment, I think that Oregon Chai is extremely weak). My original rating was a 3.5/10 but the drink redeemed itself in flavor when I got to the bottom of the cup, so I give this location a 4/10 (just make sure to grab a stir stick).
The STEAMery placed higher than the Courtyard Cafe. The STEAMery and Courtyard have the same exact syrups, but taste testing Pumpkin Spice Lattes made me question if they really do have the same syrups. I could taste the spice in the drink, but the espresso was kind of weak. It tasted like milk with a splash of espresso (which is one of the reasons I never get hot drinks from the STEAMery). I had a tough time ranking this drink because when I would take a sip, I would get hit with the spice flavor, but the aftertaste was bland. This was a good drink while drinking it, but somewhat disappointing once it was gone. 5/10.
Starbucks, the creator of the PSL, didn’t make the top three. I went to the Hyvee location, and I’m not sure if it was because I got a hot latte over a frappuccino, or if it just isn’t that good of a pumpkin spice latte, but this drink was kind of a disappointment. I really thought that Starbucks would have been in first or second place for best St. Peter location, but it just didn’t hit the mark. It definitely smelled the best out of all the lattes: it was creamy, full, and tasted like coffee. It was just very sweet and it just didn’t taste the best. It fell flat when it came down to pumpkin spice. It was a good latte, but not a good Pumpkin Spice Latte.I didn’t think it was worth the almost $5.50 that I paid. 7/10.
Diamond Dust is third place in this competition. It had a strong pumpkin spice flavor. Like I mentioned before, I want to be hit with the flavor of my flavored latte, so I was very excited. The flavor wasn’t overpowering either. It had a full flavor and feel to it. I would definitely get it again. It was barely too sweet for my taste, but everything else was pretty spot on. 8.5/10.
I was torn on which location to put in first place. My dilemma is that when I order pumpkin spice, I want to taste pumpkin and spice. Every drink except for one only hit the spice category.
The best pumpkin spice latte… Dunkin’ Donuts. This latte had the best pumpkin flavor of anywhere that I went. This drink was full and rich. The texture and flavor was like a pumpkin hot chocolate, minus the chocolate, yet I could still taste the coffee. It was pretty sweet, but significantly less sweet than I expected from Dunkin. I was shocked that this drink was among the best PSLs but it got a 9/10.
Rounding out first place is…Caribou! It had a great flavor profile. I could taste the coffee and I could taste the pumpkin spice. It was not too sweet, which surprised me because Caribou’s drinks tend to be on the sweeter side. When I got my first PSL of the season from Caribou, I was at home. They gave me a plain latte. I almost didn’t go to Caribou to try again, but I figured that I should try again because the Caribou Cabin deserved a shot. I am very glad that I tried again because this was the best drink of them all. 9.5/10.
Every drink was between $4-$5.50 for a 16 oz drink. Dunkin’ and on campus options stayed around the four dollar mark, while almost everywhere else was around five bucks. Going into this, I did not expect the results I got. I did hot lattes because I think that it says more about a coffee shop if they can make a good hot latte than a good iced latte. I hope that this guide helps lead you away from the worst Pumpkin Spice Latte. Get outside and enjoy the best season while sipping your favorite caffeine hit!