Autumn is a time to get cozy. Crisp, cool mornings call for snuggling into an oversized sweater. Fallen leaves delightfully crunch under your boots. All you need now is a warm pumpkin spice latte, the drink that has become practically synonymous with the season.
Pumpkin spice blends vary, but typically they include some mix of allspice, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and/or nutmeg. (That’s right, no actual pumpkin.) For many people, pumpkin spice’s warming aroma evokes nostalgia for autumns of yesteryear filled with good food and good company. The blend is also called ‘pumpkin pie spice,’ referring to its original use in classic Thanksgiving dessert.
Even if you don’t drink coffee or enjoy pie, pumpkin spice is almost inescapable. From candles and soaps, to yogurts and muffins, to pumpkin spice ramen in a cup. There is no shortage of lists declaring the best and weirdest pumpkin-spice-inspired products. It could take weeks to get through the offerings from Trader Joe’s alone.
Yet the history of Pumpkin Spice Everything is pretty new. It dates to the early 2000s, when Starbucks introduced the PSL—the drink’s common nickname—and helped launch a cultural craze.
From Ancient Pumpkins to Modern Pie
Understanding the history of modern pumpkin spice means understanding the origins of the spices themselves and of pumpkin pie. Pumpkin spice somewhat overlaps with British mixed spice, although its components are actually native to Southeast Asia. For example, the earliest recorded use of nutmeg as a seasoning dates to 3500 years ago in Indonesia.
Pumpkins are native to the Americas, and ancient inhabitants cultivated them in Mexico as early as 7000 B.C. Pumpkins were a staple in the diets of many Indigenous Americans. European settlers also began eating pumpkin, but it was not until 1796 that the first widely known recipe was published resembling today’s pumpkin pie. New Englander Amelia Simmons’ American Cookery had a ‘Pompkin’ recipe to bake a spiced pumpkin custard in a crust. Simmons’ work adapted European-style cooking to suit local ingredients.
Americans became increasingly fond of pumpkin pie during the 1800s. This coincided with President Abraham Lincoln‘s call for an official Thanksgiving holiday. (Thanksgiving became a Federal holiday in 1870, although the exact timing was not codified until 1941.) By the early-to-mid 1900s, modern technology helped pumpkin pie reach iconic status. Libby’s began selling canned pumpkin in the 1920s, which removed the time-consuming, laborious task of preparing the gourd from scratch. McCormick introduced a pre-made “pumpkin pie spice blend” in the 1930s, which helped further standardize these autumn flavors.
Pumpkin pie was an American Thanksgiving standard by the end of the 20th century. And pumpkin spice was about to reach new levels of popularity.
Starbucks Ushers in a New Pumpkin Spice Era
PSL. A three-letter acronym embedded in pop culture. In 2003, Starbucks introduced the pumpkin spice prototype drink at a limited number of stores in Washington, D.C. and Vancouver. Starbucks’ PSL debuted across the United States the following year—marking a new milestone in the history of pumpkin spice.
Other companies mixed pumpkin spice and coffee before, but Starbucks made it famous. The PSL quickly became one of Starbucks’ most iconic seasonal drinks. It is also one of the best selling, with more than 350 million sold since its debut, according to the company. Until 2015, the PSL recipe had no actual pumpkin. However, Starbucks reformulated the recipe after a public outcry, and a version with pumpkin puree remains on the menu today.
By the 2010s, pumpkin spice was a full-blown cultural phenomenon. It was so popular that Starbucks stores sometimes ran out of PSLs. By 2015, Forbes estimated that pumpkin-spiced drinks were a $500 million industry. In 2019, SPAM pumpkin spice sold out in seven hours, showing that even canned meat was capitalizing on the craze. However, pumpkin spice also became the subject of cultural debate and backlash. Is pumpkin spice a feminine flavor? Is enjoying it a sign of buying into mass consumer culture? Are people sick of pumpkin spice market saturation?
Most criticism of pumpkin spice fails to ask a key question: do people like it? Strong product sales suggest that the answer remains yes. And there seems to be no end in sight. The bottom line is that many people find pumpkin spice to have a pleasant aroma and taste. Like the first day of school or a Labor Day cookout, your first Pumpkin Spice Something can signal the transition from summer to autumn. So if you are a fan, raise your mug high and celebrate the season.
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