Pumpkin Spice Taste Test – Finding the Best Drink for the Fall

Every time I smell pumpkin spice, it reminds me of a nice cool Fall day. So, what better time to do a Pumpkin Spice taste test, than now, in the Halloween to Thanksgiving period? 

This taste test took me to restaurants three times, getting take-out for the Covid-19 world. At each, I tried one of their pumpkin items. In my reviews below, I have rated them, ranking them from my least favorite – the worst – up to the best. 

#4 – Starbucks Pumpkin Scone Review

Normally I love Starbucks, whether it is their their pastries or their drinks. In fact, you might say I am their best customer in the entire world. Well, maybe not. However, when they fail, I have to tell it like it is, and this Pumpkin Spice Scone from Starbucks fell short. In fact, if they did not name it “Pumpkin,” I would have guessed that it was a gingerbread concoction, not pumpkin spice. On the plus side, the frosting was very good. However, adding the frosting made the scone overly sweet, leaving an aftertaste in my mouth when I was done. Perhaps it needed a coffee to wash that taste out, but standing alone, unfortunately this Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Scone gets only one star on the Jessica’s Reviews rating scale.

#3- Alpine Spiced Apple Cider for Keurig

I didn’t even have to leave my dorm to review the Alpine brand Spiced Apple Cider for Keurig. All it took was popping one of the Alpine cups into the coffee maker, and pressing the brew button! I made a cup of this cider while writing this article and decided to include it because it fits with the Fall theme, and, well, I felt like telling everyone about it! I have made this in the past and remembered it as coming out too watery and was hoping that this time it improved. This time it did seem to have a better apple – like flavor than I had remembered from last Fall. Despite that, the Alpine Spiced Apple Cider tasted somewhat artificial, but still made a nice drink for a chilly day.

#2 – Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino

This was the second time I tried Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino. The first time was a long time ago and it made a very poor first impression. My memory was that it a bit too bitter.

Not holding a food grudge, I decided to try it again with an open mind and see if my tastes changed. This time, I ordered a coffee-free version. It seemed to be made of pumpkin pie spice flavoring, milk, ice, whipped cream. How was it? It was wonderful this time. The Pumpkin Spice flavor was just right – noticeable, but not overbearing. You can order this drink at Starbucks, by asking the barista to make a cream-based version. They actually make it with milk but for some reason the Starbucks lingo is that it is “creme based”. You could also just say, “frappuccino without coffee”. That is what I do. 

#1 – Jamba Juice Pumpkin Smash Smoothie

Now we have made it to #1 – the Winner of my pumpkin spice taste test: the Pumpkin Smash Smoothie from Jamba Juice. That means the Pumpkin Smash Smoothie is the “best drink for the Fall.” I loved this one so much. It tasted like pumpkin pie in ice cream. However, it actually was healthy. The pumpkin smash recipe that Jamba Juice publishes lists its ingredients as: 2% milk, pumpkin spice blend, and fat free vanilla frozen yogurt. The texture was very creamy which I liked. It also was very sweet from the frozen yogurt, but not overly sweet.