First of all, let me say that I am NOT a coffee connoisseur. I’m just your average college girl who enjoys a good cup of coffee here and there as a special treat.
Fall. The season of the famous pumpkin spice latte (psl for short).
Now, I myself have never tried a psl. I’ve always wanted to, but it wasn’t until I moved out that I was able to start drinking coffee. So finally having the ability to try it, I decided to put two coffee places to the test.
First, I ventured to Starbucks on Dave Ward Drive and got a tall, iced psl. The price was $5.60, which is a little steep for a single cup of coffee. But I digress.
Look wise, she was very beautiful. She had fresh, seasoned whipped cream on top, and caramel drizzled at the bottom. She also smelled very pumpkiny. (Is that a word? It is now!)
On first taste, it was a sweet kind of taste. Not crazy overwhelming, but smooth. Like a gentle hug. It has more of a sweet flavor rather than a coffee flavor. I think I would rate this a 7/10.
Our next contestant is 7 Brew Coffee. I did get a small, iced psl for a price of $3.25. I feel like this is a more reasonable price for a small cup of coffee.
She didn’t have any whipped cream, which made me a little sad. But she did have seasonings at the bottom of the cup. It did have more coffee than ice, which is something that I cannot say about Starbucks.
At first taste, it had a very prominent coffee taste, not very strong but not very sweet, either. It also does taste very milky. Even though it is supposed to be a pumpkin based drink, you don’t get that hit of coffee until the very end, which is a bit disappointing. But the flavor is still there.
I would say that 7 Brew Coffee pumpkin spiced latte is more of an affordable mellow drink for the average college student.
Overall, I personally think that the psl from Starbucks tastes and looks more appealing to the coffee connoisseur, at a cost. But for your average college student, I do think that for the price and taste, you get what you pay for. So I think that Starbucks has won this battle.
