P.S I Latte You
- Guild Of Dough
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
What’s round and orange?
If you said an orange, WRONG.*
It’s October, which means the only round orange things that matter are pumpkins.
Pumpkin spice - whether you love it, hate it, or have a weird ambivalence towards it, it’s everywhere this time of year. From tea to candles to hand sanitiser, this spicy combo has transcended the limits of the coffee cup and moved straight to being a full-on lifestyle trend.
But that doesn’t mean we should forget the humble origins of this flavour fad. The L in PSL does, after all, stand for latte. This year, I put myself (and my caffeine tolerance) to the test by trying every PSL I could get my hands on and ranking them.
From worst to first, here’s the official Guild Of Dough 2025 PSL League Table.
Tim Hortons
The coffee in this one was surprisingly bitter. The syrup sat at the bottom of the cup and sulked, meaning that the drink started off as a plain latte and ended up being 90% cinnamon. There wasn’t any evidence of pumpkin flavour at all.
This would be fine in whatever emergency a PSL is called for.
Score: 🎃
Black Sheep
Initially, this was great - a big hit of nutmeg, toasty coffee flavour, and creamy oat milk. The second mouthful was less good, and I was starting to regret buying it by the third. The coffee started to taste bitter and vegetably, and the drink developed a weird soapy flavour. It was also very sweet - finishing anything larger than a small would have been a challenge.
And they forgot the whipped cream.
Score: 🎃🎃
Starbucks
It’s like a Hallmark Christmas movie - a new one comes out every year, but they get progressively worse until you’re just sitting through one per year as part of a seasonal tradition you’re too busy to change.
The coffee was less bitter than I remember it being, and the spicing was heavy without being too much. The vegan whipped cream was a nice touch, but it dissolved quickly and didn’t really add anything. The overpowering sweetness reminded me why I only buy one of these per year.
It was a bit like being beaten to death with a TK Maxx seasonal candle.
Score: 🎃🎃🎃
Pret a Manger
I was surprised by this one. The milk was steamed well and there was lots of cinnamon over the froth, making it good and spicy. There was a nice background of pumpkin in the syrup, and the sweetness balanced well with the bitterness of the coffee. Served at drinking temperature, it was just right for a frosty October morning.
It was also free.
It’s hard to say anything bad about a free coffee.
Score: 🎃🎃🎃🎃
Guild Of Dough
Just the right temperature to drink straight away, each sip is like microdosing fall. There’s enough pumpkin to make it autumnal and to stop the cinnamon topping making it too festive, and then the background flavours of nutmeg and ginger feel like a spicy hug.
The oat milk is smooth and creamy, taking the edge off the espresso without diluting the flavour of the coffee.
It’s dark and rich and caramelised - a pumpkin pie in a mug.
10/10 no notes.
Score: 🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃
*(okay, fine, technically you’re correct)
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