Colorado Springs coffee drinkers will not have to wait until autumn officially arrives on the calendar to get their seasonal flavor fix. Both Dunkin' and Starbucks are bringing pumpkin spice back to their menus before August is out.
Dunkin' is first off the mark, launching its fall flavors on August 19, a date the company publicized through its social media channels. Starbucks follows on August 25, the date set for its complete fall food and drink lineup to reach locations nationwide.
The Starbucks seasonal menu stretches considerably further than its flagship offering this year. The signature Pumpkin Spice Latte is built from espresso, steamed milk, a blend of warming spices including pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove, and a whipped cream topping. Joining it are three new pumpkin-forward drinks: an Iced Pumpkin Cream Shaken Espresso, a Pumpkin Spice Chai, and an Iced Pumpkin Cream Matcha. Rounding out the pumpkin side of the lineup are returning options — the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai, and the Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino.
Pumpkin is not the only flavor anchoring the Starbucks fall menu. The pecan-forward offerings are also making a comeback, with the Pecan Cortado, the Iced Pecan Crunch Latte, and the Pecan Crunch Latte all returning. An entirely new category arrives this season as well: two banana bread-inspired drinks — the Iced Banana Bread Latte and the Iced Banana Bread Chai — both served cold only. Among the new additions likely to draw the most attention is the Chaider, which fuses cider with chai-style spices and is offered in both a hot and an iced format.
On the food side, the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin is coming back, accompanied by two new items: a Chicken Bacon Protein Pocket and a Hedgehog Cake Pop.
The Pumpkin Spice Latte holds the distinction of being Starbucks' top-performing seasonal beverage, and the phrase earned its own entry in the Merriam-Webster dictionary in 2022. Whether individual Dunkin' and Starbucks locations in Colorado Springs will receive their fall menus precisely on the announced national dates, and how long the limited seasonal items will remain available, has not been separately confirmed by local stores.