If you’re one of the millions of of Americans who prefer to start the day with a caffeine jolt, you’re in for some good news.
According to 2023 estimates, an estimated three quarters of Americans drink at least one cup of coffee every single day. This is the highest rate in nearly 10 years and is expected to continue growing as specialty beverages continue to surge in popularity.
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In fact, Americans on average drink more coffee than water — despite what nutritional experts and some hydration evangelists might say about it.
But it’s not just coffee that’s seen a spike in popularity over the past several years. People are seeking tea-based drinks, functional health beverages, and energy drinks at a higher rate as traditional sugary and caffeinated drinks, like soda, fall out of favor.
More Americans are conscious of soda’s drawbacks, and while replacing a daily Coke with a sugary 16-ounce iced vanilla latte isn’t exactly choosing the lesser of two evils, large coffee chains like Starbucks (SBUX) , which specialize in gourmet drinks that cater to a wide variety of palate preferences, have reaped the rewards.
In fact, many of Starbucks’s most popular drinks contain some sort of sweetener, including:
Honey Citrus Mint TeaDragon Drink RefresherBlonde Vanilla LatteBrown Sugar Shaken Espresso Salted-caramel mochaToffee-nut latteVanilla sweet-cream cold brewIced Caramel Macchiato
A barista places an iced coffee in the mobile pickup area at a Starbucks in New York.
Starbucks is popular for coffee-based drinks
Starbucks is beloved worldwide because it serves a reliable cup of coffee (though some coffee enthusiasts might argue with this). It keeps people coming back — and talking about it — because it has essentially reinvented the category of specialty coffee drinks.
Customers in its online Reddit community are constantly swapping secret menu items and new beverages to try. A recent post on the Starbucks subreddit asked baristas and fans alike what their favorite drinks were.
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“I have some recs as a barista and Starbucks lover,” one Barista replied. “Seasonal: my fall go to is a venti iced chai with pumpkin syrup (2 pumps) and pumpkin foam Winter, I’m very basic, it’s always peppermint mocha or peppermint hot chocolate.”
“Triple filtered water,” another replied.
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“You have to make alterations to it thats why, get it to your liking,” another wrote of the perfect Caramel Macchiato recipe. “I add 3 extra pumps of vanilla & 5 extra classic pumps (i like my coffee on a sweeter side) and i get heavy caramel drizzle at the bottom of the cup.”
Starbucks is bringing back pumpkin flavors
Each year Starbucks teases some of its most popular seasonal flavors ahead of fall, sending social media into a frenzy. Its hallmark drink, the Pumpkin Spice Latte, celebrated its 20-year anniversary in 2023; it was first introduced in select markets in autumn 2003.
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Now, pumpkin can be seen almost everywhere during the chillier months during the fall. And Starbucks said in early August exactly when eager customers can look for some of those limited-edition beverages.
On Aug. 5 Starbucks Pumpkin Spice flavored coffees and creamers will officially make their return to grocery stores. The line includes items like:
Iced Espresso Pumpkin Spice Latte Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino Chilled Coffee Drink Pumpkin Spice Flavored Coffee podsFall Blend Coffee podsNew smoked Butterscotch Flavored Coffee podsPumpkin Spice Cold Brew Concentrate Pumpkin Spice Flavored Creamer (dairy and non dairy)
The chain has not yet specified when its cafes will begin serving Pumpkin Spice Lattes, but some baristas are claiming their cafes are beginning to stock the now-famous pumpkin syrups in the back.
“Just got pumpkin spice in!!! We’ll be allowed to open a bottle next week for partner use/training,” one barista wrote in early August. “But the apocalypse will begin soon.”
And another barista claimed that Aug. 22 is the official return date for the so-called PSL, which lands on a Thursday this year.
Starbucks has not yet confirmed whether this date is accurate, though last year it brought back the Pumpkin Spice Latte on Aug. 24, so the dates would align.
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