Panera Bread Pumpkin Spice Latte

This one was a somewhat accidental PSL trial. I was on my way to class at 5:45 and thought I’d get a Starbucks PSL. Unfortunately, the line was out the door. I headed across the street to Dunks and – same problem. Then on the street I ran into Kristina (btw, if you’re reading this you really need to check out her blog, http://ifthatdishcouldtalk.com/ which is 100 times more profesh than mine) who alerted me that there was no line at Panera.

Now usually, I don’t like Panera’s coffee. It tends to taste watered down and like the pots haven’t been cleaned properly. No matter, everything is topsy-turvy in pumpkin spice latte land, and Panera ended up serving me one of the best PSLs I’ve ever tasted.

The secret to the perfect PSL is balance. You shouldn’t forget you’re drinking a latte. There needs to be milk and coffee in there. The spice should be a complement to those flavors.

The best word I can come up with for the flavoring of Panera’s PSL is “soft.” Cinnamon and vanilla meld with the milk flavor, to make a soothing, sleepytime version of the drink. The drink did not come with whipped cream, but the flavor was so balanced, whipped cream might have pushed it over into too sweet territory.

The best part of this drink was that I could continue sipping it for my entire four hour class because the flavoring never turned nasty. It was a highly drinkable, yummy beverage.

Location: Panera in the Theater District

Price: $3 + something

Calories:340

Room Temp Flavor: yummy

Pumpkin Rating: Mommy, Daddy and Baby Jack-o-Lanterns in a Row on a Porch