There’s a chill in the air, and all of our favorite chain coffee shops have sensed it, too. In all honesty, they probably sensed it far before the rest of us, with Dunkin’ Donuts dropping its fall menu on August 20th, and Starbucks quickly following suit on August 26th. It’s practically an undisputed annual tradition for companies to bombard customers with seasonally inspired food and drink in the name of coziness (and probably capitalism).
The fall beverage that generates the most buzz is usually the pumpkin spice latte, commonly referred to by the acronym “PSL.” Starbucks first launched the PSL in 2003, and since its debut, the drink has gathered a cult following. It has also brought together a slew of “pumpkin spice haters” who consistently deem the drink “basic” or criticize its flavor. Anti-pumpkin-spice commentary is plentiful on the Reddit page “r/unpopularopinion,” though disliking the flavor actually seems like something that’s become quite popular as of late. As the PSL celebrates its 21st anniversary, self-identified “pumpkin spice haters” can buy a selection of t-shirts, mugs, or tote bags proclaiming their aversion with a simple Etsy search.
Keeping in mind the consistent taste of the pumpkin spice latte and societal exhaustion with the flavor profile, I decided to spend my week trying drinks that took a different approach to scamming autumn-enthusiasts out of $5+. For these reviews, I visited Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, and Blank Street coffee with the intention of analyzing each drink based on cost, taste, and sugar level.
- Starbucks Iced Pecan Crunch– 12 oz for $7.57, 29g of sugar.
Rating: 8/10
The cost of this one really hurt, and I must admit I had to pull out some Starbucks rewards stars to justify ordering it. Thankfully, it was delightful! The base was very sweet initially with notes of caramel and vanilla, but the pecan flavor added a potent savoriness to the aftertaste. The drink was overall very nutty and the actual espresso was masked by general creaminess. The vanilla sweet cream cold foam on top was so thick it seemed like a dessert on its own, and it had a very sparse sprinkle of what I assume was supposed to be the pecan crunch. I did have to knock some points, as the drink was so foam heavy a lot of it actually would not fit through the lid of the cup.
- Starbucks Pecan Oatmilk Cortado– 8 oz for $6.26, 13g of sugar.
Rating: 7.5/10
I’m a big fan of the Starbucks brown sugar oatmilk cortado, so I was eager to give this one a try. The cortado only comes in a short size and is STILL over $6, so it’s easy to write this one off as a waste of time and funds. It’s important though, to give this drink props for its lower sugar and high caffeine content (230mg). I’d say it’s more of a functional beverage, and its smaller size suits the fact that it’s served warm instead of iced. The pecan cortado had an overall nutty sweetness that really complimented the espresso. I found the starbuck’s pecan flavor a little less enjoyable warm compared to cold. While the flavor is around, however, I’d for sure give this one a try as a pre-study or pre-workout treat!
- Blank Street Iced Banana Bread Matcha– 16 oz for $6.70, 27g of sugar.
Rating: 7/10
Similarly to the PSL, this returning drink has gathered significant public accreditation. I was also pleased to discover it was $0.32 cheaper than the other fall matcha from blank street. You have to celebrate the small wins! I would personally call the drink a win as well. In accordance with the blank street stereotype, the matcha taste was weak. I found it less chalky than the carrot cake matcha and creamy even when I substituted the oat milk for skim. For this one in particular, I would recommend swapping the oat milk if your sweet tooth tends to get overwhelmed. There’s strong notes of banana, cinnamon, and nutmeg, giving the drink a very bakery-esque taste.
- Dunkin Donuts Iced Cereal N’ Milk Latte– 16 oz for $6.30, 29g of sugar.
Rating 7/10
I’m a little ashamed to rate this one so highly because I wouldn’t objectively say it’s very good. It’s very creamy and extremely sweet, practically at the risk of being deemed sickly sweet. There is also virtually no sign of actual coffee in this drink, which is clear by the fact that it’s so milky it’s almost white. Nevertheless, I loved the thickness and the heavy marshmallow taste. This is one of the rare instances where a small drink felt like plenty, and I actually only ended up finishing half of this.
- Blank Street Iced Carrot Cake Matcha– 16 oz for $7.02, 22g of sugar.
Rating: 5.5/10
I can’t say that carrot cake is a flavor I commonly associate with fall, but blank street’s history of concocting unique matcha combos (i.e. the pb&j matcha of spring 2025) had me intrigued. The drink was undeniably on the pricier end of this review and advertised notes of carrot, cinnamon, honey, and vanilla icing. Upon trying the drink I found the overall matcha flavor very weak and a bit chalky. The cinnamon and honey shone through with this one and I actually tasted a bit of banana instead of carrot? I have to say I really enjoyed the addition of the vanilla icing both for flavor and texture purposes. For the high cost, I would not get this one again and found it to have very little resemblance to anything carrot cake. Ultimately though, it was fun to try.
- Dunkin’ Donuts Almond Spice Iced Coffee– 16 oz for $5.76, 26g of sugar.
Rating: 5.5/10
Somehow, 3 pumps of pumpkin were indeed snuck into this drink. You could have fooled me though, because there was absolutely no pumpkin taste at all. This was probably the most “coffee” tasting coffee I tried for these reviews, a true iced latte. The almond flavor was strong, but there was a very artificial, almost stevia-like aftertaste that made this coffee hard to drink. Additionally, a second opinion confirmed that it was somewhat bitter. Though Dunkin’ pricing is much more agreeable, the formulation of their coffee can be a bit lackluster.
- Blank Street Iced Gingersnap Latte– 16 oz for $6.53, 40g of sugar.
Rating: 4/10
This latte advertised notes of ginger, coconut blossom, and biscoff- a strange sounding trio but intriguing nonetheless. Additionally, I’m a true biscoff fiend so I couldn’t say no. Consequently, the biscoff element of this latte was the only thing I can say I somewhat enjoyed, and even that was ruined by the fact that the cookie crumb topping was directly on top of the coffee and was therefore soggy and gross. There is an extremely mild ginger taste and zero coconut. 40 grams of sugar where blank street?! This latte tasted overwhelmingly artificial and I felt victimized by its cost and lackluster drinking experience.