I am an avid Starbucks drinker, bordering on addict.
Yet I am stuck in the cycle of ordering the same four drinks over and over again: the Pink Drink, Salted Caramel Cream Cold Brew, Strawberry Açaí Lemonade, and, now that the Fall menu is out, the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte.
Hoping to add another drink to my cycle, I decided to try every fall drink on the menu. Turns out there are 12 of them, not five as I had anticipated.
This order made my friend and I receive a lot of looks as the tall drinks continuously came out. The long sigh of the worker—and the high price—started to make a lot more sense after the 12th drink was finally set on the counter.
- Pumpkin Spice Latte
This is a staple of the Starbucks fall menu and is highly anticipated throughout the year. I find it lackluster. It’s simply fine; it’s just a latte. However, my friend, like many others, loved it.
- Steamed Apple Juice
I will never order this again. I adore sweets, but this was far too aggressive in its sweetness. It tastes like terrible hot apple cider, and I am a cold apple cider girl all the way.
- Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato
I have mixed feelings about this one. My friends enjoyed this apple drink, but I felt it took too long for the flavor to hit. The taste reminded me of pie, and while I do thoroughly enjoy apple pie, I don’t know if I want to drink it.
- Caramel Apple Spice
This drink’s name is misleading; it should be called “Apple Spice With a Hint of Caramel at the End” considering how much of an afterthought the caramel was. It also had the odd taste of milk when no milk was involved in the making of this drink.
- Chai Tea Latte
I love the iced pumpkin version of this drink, so I was hopeful I would in turn enjoy this hot beverage even though I usually stay far away from hot drinks even in the dead of winter. I absolutely adore this drink and will 100% order it again. It had very fall vibes even though it had no apple or pumpkin flavoring added. It made me reconsider my ban on hot drinks.
- Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso
This was bland; it didn’t mix well and simply did not have any added flavor as it advertises. It was a waste of time and money to take a sip of this boring drink.
- Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew
This used to be a staple of my fall, but after I finished the cold foam, there was no flavor that made me feel like I was wrapped up in leaves sitting by a fire—my goal when looking for a fall drink. It is definitely good, but that is all. It’s not wonderful or fantastic; it is simply good.
- Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte
This has replaced the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew as the new staple of my Fall drinks. I absolutely adore this drink and will probably cry when it is removed from the menu. I will order as many as I can to brace myself for the long wait until next fall. I recommend this drink to everyone. Though the pumpkin flavor is, again, only in the cold foam, there is an earthy fall taste throughout the whole tea latte.
- 9-12. Frappuccinos
There are four Frappuccinos I was unaware of, and now I know why. The Pumpkin Spice, Apple Crisp Oatmilk, Pumpkin Spice Crème, and Apple Crisp Crème Frappuccinos are of no significance. Both pumpkin Frappuccinos could use more flavor while the apple drinks could use a significantly less amount of flavor. They are good options for the younger Starbucks addicts, but I would not order them for myself.
It was chaotic to try all 12 drinks, but I am glad I did. Now I know only two drinks (basically one) are worth the hype around the fall menu. Maybe Starbucks will wow me next year, but I was disappointed in the below-average beverages that I tried. I will stick with my Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte for sure.
