I hope it improves the taste. For me, one or two sips is ok but then it just tastes nasty! I've never tried Panera's though. I may have to try it.
I agree. However, I think there's something about the gourd itself that enhances the spices. Sometimes I'll get one that is way to cinnamon-y, or too much of some other spice. The pumpkin tones it down a bit and gives me all the spice flavor without the spice's "kick."Ugh, It's not called Pumpkin Latte, it's Pumpkin Spice latte. Gourds do not have much of a distinct flavor, hence the compensating with all of the spices/butter/garlic/onion/etc.
This is my point too.Ugh, It's not called Pumpkin Latte, it's Pumpkin Spice latte. Gourds do not have much of a distinct flavor, hence the compensating with all of the spices/butter/garlic/onion/etc.{I can't form an opinion on homegrown gourds, I merely speak of the market variety}
I always understood that drink to be the spices found in a pumpkin pie, and never expected it to have any pumpkin flavor. My ex-husband complained about the drink not having pumpkin in it, and would send me links of blogs with PSL recipes that used pumpkin puree. Yum! lumpy coffee!
Still, I'll give this new version a try. The cynic in me believes they'll go back to the old formula if people start to complain that it tastes "weird". See, the change I would like to see implemented would be to make the drink less cloyingly sweet, or figuring out a "skinny" version of it.