When does pumpkin spice season start? It already has at Dunkin', Krispy Kreme and 7-Eleven
Ready or not, the fall flavor's onset has begun, with Dunkin' launching its fall menu today – earlier than in the past – pouring Pumpkin Spice Signature Lattes and pumpkin coffee.
Think that's early? Heck, Krispy Kreme and 7-Eleven both started offering pumpkin spice goodies earlier this month. Starbucks and other favorite stops historically on the pumpkin spice bandwagon aren't likely far behind.
7-Eleven picked its earliest date ever, too – August 1 – to bring back its Pumpkin Spice Latte and pumpkin coffee. “We decided to break out the pumpkin a little bit early this year,” said Dennis Phelps, 7-Eleven's senior vice president of merchandising (vault & proprietary beverages), in a statement. “It may not quite feel like fall outside yet, but it sure can taste like fall as we enjoy the first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season.”
Supermarkets also have a harvest of pumpkin products including cereal, creamers and cookie dough available, while pumpkin ales and stouts are already vying for shelf space with Oktoberfest beers. Estimates of the "pumpkin spice industrial complex" – range from about $300 million to $600 million annually.
“Pumpkin spice has solidified its role as autumn’s comfort flavor, just as we associate ice cream with summer months and soups with winter," Darren Seifer, food and beverage industry analyst for research firm Circana, told USA TODAY.
But there are signs of weakness in the pumpkin patch. Consumers opted for slightly less pumpkin and pumpkin spice food and beverages last fall, than in fall 2021, down 6% with consumption of 4.8 annual "eatings" per person dropping to 4.5 in the most recent 12 months, which included fall 2022, according to Circana, formerly IRI and The NPD Group.
And an unscientific poll on X, formerly known as Twitter, found that half of 422 respondents said they had "No taste for pumpkin," while 23.5% said they "can't wait" for pumpkin spice coffee and foods to hit stores, while 26.5% said "Pumpkin spice is ok."
We do still love our pumpkin drinks, especially coffee and specialty coffee, which has gained about 5 percentage points in the past three years, and now accounts for nearly 10% of all pumpkin and pumpkin spice consumption, Circana says.
Here's a look at some of the pumpkin spice products already available or coming soon.
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Dunkin' pumps up fall menu: pumpkin spice latte, coffee, donuts, muffins ... and Goldfish
Dunkin' expanded its menu Wednesday with several fall pumpkin flavored treats. In addition to its Pumpkin Spice Signature Latte and Nutty Pumpkin Coffee, both available iced or hot, the food stop also has pumpkin cake donuts, donut holes and a pumpkin muffin – and Goldfish Dunkin' Pumpkin Spice Grahams.
Pumpkin not your preference? Dunkin's fall menu also includes a chorizo and egg wrap, a chicken and roasted pepper wrap, as well as a Maple Sugar Bacon Breakfast Sandwich, including an option of vegan bacon.
Krispy Kreme has two new pumpkin doughnuts
The purveyor of doughnuts (the company prefers to not use the word "donut") began serving up four different kinds of pumpkin doughnuts on August 7: two new treats, the Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake Swirl Doughnut and Pumpkin Spice Maple Pecan Doughnut, plus two returning ones, the original and cake pumpkin spice doughnuts.
7-Eleven let's you pumpkin up your coffee drinks
In addition to its Pumpkin Spice Latte and Pumpkin Coffee, 7-Eleven also has pumpkin spice creamers and pumpkin syrup available to enhance your coffee drink at participating 7-Eleven, Speedway, and Stripes stores across the U.S. No pumpkin donuts, but there's a limited-time Apple Cider Donut to pair with your pumpkin drink – and a pumpkin muffin coming to stores later this month.
Starbucks' Pumpkin Spice Latte coming soon
Starbucks typically brings its Pumpkin Spice Latte back by the end of August. This season marks 20 years since Starbucks created its signature coffee drink, followed in the years since by a cornucopia of Starbucks pumpkin spice products including a Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino Chilled Coffee Drink, Iced Espresso Pumpkin Spice Latte, Pumpkin Spice Flavored creamers (dairy and non-dairy versions), and at-home Pumpkin Spice Flavored Coffee and K-Cup pods.
IHOP's pumpkin spice pancakes and cold brew returns August 28
Coming to IHOP locations nationwide on August 28:
- The Pumpkin Spice Pancake Combo with two pancakes made with real pumpkin and seasonal spices with whipped topping, served with hash browns and bacon or sausage.
- Pumpkin Spice Cold Foam Cold Brew, 100% Arabica iced cold brew sweetened with vanilla, and topped with a pumpkin spice creamy foam.
An ever-earlier August crop of pumpkin beers
Each summer it seems like autumn seasonal beers arrive earlier, in part because consumers can't wait for them. "You heard us right: two major breweries, Samuel Adams and Dogfish Head, released their signature pumpkin ales on Tuesday – in the middle of a heat wave," wrote Hannah Staab of VinePair, a drinks culture site, on August 2.
For the record, Southern Tier Brewing Company of Lakewood, New York, began promoting its Pumking Imperial Pumpkin Ale and Warlock Pumpkin Stout on July 31. And a few days later unveiled a new pumpkin beer, Caramel Pumking Imperial Ale.
Call it "pumpkin creep," wrote Dennis Lee at food and pop culture site The Takeout.
In addition to Samuel Adams Jack-O Pumpkin Ale and Dogfish Head Punkin Ale, other perennial favorites available now include Schlafly Pumpkin Ale, Rogue Pumpkin Patch Ale, Shipyard Pumpkinhead and its boozier cousins Smashed Pumpkin and a bourbon barrel-aged Smashed Pumpkin.
For a few years, demand had gotten "soft, "but it's rebounded," said Norm Yow, owner of Norm's Beer and Wine in Vienna, Virginia. "Fall seasons are probably the strongest segment of craft beer."
Sales figures bear that out. Seasonal beers typically account for 9%-10% of total craft beer sales during the year, but during the fall – when pumpkin beers and Oktoberfest beers dominate – seasonals' share rises to the 12% to 14% range, according to data from Bump Williams Consulting, a Shelton, Connecticut firm, which services the alcoholic beverage industry and uses NielsenIQ data.
Pumpkin cookie doughs from Nestlé and Pillsbury
Want to bake your own pumpkin snacks? You've got some options. Nestlé has Toll House Pumpkin Spice Cookie Dough, made with pumpkin spice flavors and white chocolate morsels. Other fall flavors include new Toll House Hot Cocoa & Marshmallow Morsels and the returning Toll House M&M's Ghoul's Mix Sugar Cookie Dough.
“Fall-flavored products continue to spark excitement, particularly among Gen Z and Millennials,” Chandra Kumar, president of Nestlé USA's bakery sweets division, told USA TODAY.
You can quickly bake pumpkin cream cheese cookies and sugar cookies graced with pumpkin shapes with Pillsbury Ready To Bake refrigerated cookie doughs, arriving in early fall. Pillsbury's Pumpkin Cream Cheese cookie dough has pumpkin-flavoring and cream cheese-flavored chunks. Pillsbury Pumpkin Cookie Dough comes with 20 pre-cut sugar cookies adorned with orange and green pumpkin art.
Another cookie concoction, Betty Crocker Pumpkin Spice Cookie Mix, requires just a few ingredients before baking. You can find it in Target and Walmart at the end of the month.
Not a cookie fan? Pillsbury Pumpkin Spice Grands let you bake five big pumpkin spice cinnamon rolls and you can top them with premade pumpkin spice icing.
Pumpkin muffins, Pop-Tarts, fruit bars, cereal and more
Lärabar Pumpkin Pie fruit and nut bars, available for a limited time, are made from nine ingredients including pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg allspice, ginger, apples, and nuts including almonds.
Entenmann's Little Bites Pumpkin Muffins, in stores now and available nationwide through October, are bite-sized in 200-calorie portioned pouches. They are made without high fructose corn syrup and have 0 grams of trans fat.
Kellogg's Limited Edition Frosted Pumpkin Pie Pop-Tarts are in stores, well, if someone hasn't snatched up the available inventory.
An alternative: Nature's Path Frosted Pumpkin Toaster Pastries, made with organic pumpkin filling – and available all-year-round. The food maker also makes Pumpkin Spice Frozen Waffles.
Those aren't the only pumpkin breakfast options. There are Pumpkin Spice Cheerios and Kellogg's also has Frosted Mini-Wheats Pumpkin Spice, Frosted Flakes Pumpkin Spice and Special K Pumpkin Spice cereals.
Chosen Foods Pumpkin Spice Avocado Oil Caviar
Here's a new pumpkin spice product we didn't know we needed: Chosen Foods' Pumpkin Spice Avocado Oil Caviar. Its circular shape mimics caviar, but it's made with 100% pure avocado oil and fall spices – and can be used as a topping on all kinds of foods and desserts including pancakes, yogurt and ice cream.
Some are out of their gourd over pumpkin spice
You don't have to go to Starbucks, Dunkin' or anywhere but your supermarket to augment your morning caffeine jolt with pumpkin or other fall flavors. One shopper posted an image of their pumpkin product harvest on Instagram. "Ready for alllll the Fall coffee. 🍂☕️," they posted.
An artist on Instagram not only enjoys the pumpkin spice arrival but creates art – of a Pumpkin Spice character, available on Etsy – for others to celebrate it, too. "Krispy Kreme fired the first shot and creamers are back in stores, Dunkin' and Starbucks are rolling out. Can’t wait to chug gallons of pumpkin spice everything over the next few months!" they posted. "Stickers, prints and pins of this pumpkin spice dude are available in my shop!"
Another shopper posted, "I really consider Sept to be the start of #allthingspumpkin but I sure am excited to try all these," displaying a shopping cart full of pumpkin spice cocoa, coffee, creamer and other products.
But some consumers aren't as enamored with the seasonal "pumpkin creep."
A video clip on X, formerly known as Twitter, questioned the need for Pumpkin Spice Cheerios in August. "August 15th come on now!! Enough," they posted.
A poster on Instagram said about the Member's Mark Pumpkin Spice Empanadas, empanadas, made with pumpkin and cream cheese: "August used to be in the Summer. I think we're calling it pre-Autumn now. ….sigh…. "
Another poster on X used a Game of Thrones meme to sum up the situation: "Brace yourself. Pumpkin Spice everything is coming."
Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider &mikegsnider.
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