Fall is here! The leaves are changing, the hoodies start popping out, and everything is pumpkin spiced. Everywhere you turn, pumpkin flavored this, pumpkin flavored that, pumpkin flavored everything! The seasonal Pumpkin Spice Lattes are sprouting out like weeds!

What are PSL’s, you ask? They are a mixture of milk and espresso, with a hint of pumpkin, nutmeg, and clove; they can be topped off with whipped cream and real pumpkin spices. It seems like wherever you turn around, you see a new pumpkin creation. To experiment how it tastes, three staff members of the Wingspan set out on a journey to Starbucks in East Norriton to test all of the pumpkin varieties Starbucks has.

We started off with the Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino, which we all agreed was the best drink out of the four. It melts in your mouth and has a graham crackery feeling. It’s much sweeter and brings out more of a pumpkin taste.

Next was the Pumpkin Spice Iced Latte. This particular drink was just a rush of coffee with minimal minimal pumpkin flavor. We do not recommend the Pumpkin Spiced Iced Latte to those who are looking for a real pumpkin flavor.

We had mixed feelings about the original hot Pumpkin Spiced Latte, though the drink’s the appearance may have had an influence on our opinions. One staff member did not mind it while the others despised it. “It looks like soup; it even tastes like it too!” the staff member said, referring to the drinks golden/yellowish color. This might a drink best had with the lid on.

Finally, we reviewed the Chai Pumpkin Spice Latte. Out of the four PSLs, we all liked this latte the least. “You get the taste of pumpkin at first, but the aftertaste hits you hard with an old lady tea flavor,” one staff member noted. We all agreed that the drink seems more watered down than the others.

Now, for the real question: are the PSL’s over hyped? Although we liked some lattes more than others, we each agreed that Pumpkin Spiced Lattes do not deserve the hype. The taste is average rather than out of this world.

Besides the lattes, the winner of this fall season should go to . . .

The Maple Pecan Muffin! Strange to have a muffin be the star of a coffee shop, but there is nuffin’ that can beat this muffin!