Plenty of coffee chains have their own signature roasts and flavors that keep loyal customers coming back.
The underground roaster at my alma mater, for example, had me spending way too much money (and precious sleep hours) on a dirty chai, which is a chai tea latte with shots of espresso.
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New Englanders go wild for Dunkin' Donuts' Iced Mocha Swirl. People out West love Caribou Coffee's Hot Chocolate Cold Press With Caramel (it's cold up there, okay.) And a lot of people concede that McDonald's (MCD) -) McCafé Iced Coffee is actually superior to a lot of others out there.
Still, it's hard to imagine anything more popular than Starbucks' (SBUX) -) own Pumpkin Spice Latte, which has been a fall mainstay since its inception in 2003. It's estimated that over 20 million units of the beloved coffee is sold every year.
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It's not hard to understand why, then, that other coffee chains have tried to replicate Starbucks' success. Dunkin' has had its own version, Pumpkin Swirl, since 2007. Peet's, Panera, Caribou, McDonald's, and Tim Horton's all have their own version now. Many coffee shops say they see a discernible increase in foot traffic once pumpkin comes out.
Thus, every fall the great pumpkin race begins.
It might be a little early to call it fall. Starbucks traditionally releases its PSL in the final days of August. Dunkin' tries to release its at least a couple of weeks early to catch the eager crowd. But this year, a coffee chain has bested even Dunkin', releasing its version of pumpkin coffee while August is still in its earliest days and many of us are still happily sipping on iced cold brews at the beach.
7-Eleven announced in early August that its pumpkin spice drinks aren't just coming back. They're already here.
“Pumpkin Spice Lattes are back,” 7-Eleven wrote on its website. "Too soon? Too late. We’re taking the lead in manifesting cooler days. Sorry ‘bout it."
The lattes were available for purchase starting Aug. 1.
Similarly, donut chain Krispy Kreme released its version of pumpkin fanfare on Aug. 7. Its Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed Doughnut, Pumpkin Spice Cake Doughnut, plus its new Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake Swirl Doughnut and Pumpkin Spice Maple Pecan Doughnut are available for purchase beginning Monday.
