The autumnal equinox in late September marks the official beginning of fall — but if you can’t wait that long, Starbucks began serving its fall menu today (Thursday).
The coffee chain began serving its signature Pumpkin Spice Latte among other festive goodies this morning, and people in Arlington were spotted getting their fix.
One Starbucks employee in Virginia Square told ARLnow that a small vat of pumpkin flavoring, ordinarily enough to last the shop two weeks, had to be refilled a couple times by 8:30 a.m. on Thursday. In Ballston, Starbucks employees donned bright orange pumpkin hats to mark the occasion.
Aug. 22 is the earliest the PSL has hit the streets since the drink debuted in 2003. The Starbucks fall menu once came as late as Sept. 8 in 2015, but since then, the drink has tended to arrive earlier and earlier, according to Axios.
Also now available are the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew and Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai, as well as a new drink, the Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai.
The apple crisp drink adds to whole slate of other apple-flavored beverages: an Apple Crisp Oatmilk Macchiato, Iced Apple Crisp Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and Iced Carmel Apple Cream Latte, to name a few.
Autumnal sweet treats include the returning Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin and a Raccoon Cake Pop with a friendly, chocolate frosted face. The company also described its Baked Apple Croissant and Pumpkin & Pepita Loaf as “perfect fall food pairings.”
The seasonal menu isn’t the only sign of Arlington getting ready for fall. ARLnow spotted Halloween-themed merch including spooky candy and pumpkin ale in some local stores earlier this month.
