The pumpkin spice latte doesn’t deserve all the hate it gets

Photo by Jex Sammael Popov

Goth boy’s first ever pumpkin spice latte.

People put too much stock in how “basic” something they enjoy is instead of just appreciating the simple happiness it creates that brightens our slow march toward the inevitable, creeping death awaiting us all. 

What I’m saying is, the infamous pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks doesn’t deserve all the hate it gets. Sure, it doesn’t really taste like pumpkin and the spice just kicks in as an aftertaste, but the rush of flavor at the beginning blends nicely with the inherent bitterness of coffee, which I find quite enjoyable. 

The flavor is bitter and a bit strong at the beginning, jolting your brain a little, but then it settles into a more mellow taste at the back of your tongue to send off the initial metaphorical kick. It’s not traditionally palatable in the way that it’s overly sweet, but it harnesses its use of spice and bitterness to create its own brand of enjoyability, which I value in this seasonal treat.

Of course, the drink itself isn’t world-shattering — not a lot of drinks ARE — but honestly I don’t think that it even MATTERS how objectively innovative pumpkin spice lattes are. All that matters is that I ENJOYED drinking it. It made me a little happier and I think there’s a lot of value in that.

The value of a pumpkin spice latte is not assigned objectively by how generally palatable it is — we assign our OWN value to the pumpkin spice latte by appreciating our time with it and letting it make our day a little easier.

I know arguing about petty things like whether a pumpkin spice latte is any good or not can be really fun, but you should never let debates like that hinder your experience of something you enjoy or discourage you from pursuing that happiness further. Because simple happiness should always be pursued.