Say Goodbye to the PSL and Hello to Your New Favorite Fall Coffee Drink (It Asks For Just 4 Ingredients!)

In the coffee world, one drink—and one drink only—has signaled the unofficial, increasingly-early start to fall: the pumpkin spice latte. Popularized by Starbucks after its launch in 2003, and since recreated by countless other coffee shops, supermarket brands, and home baristas, the PSL has become as synonymous with autumn as changing leaves, cozy sweaters, and mums. 

It’s such a phenomenon that our Test Kitchen has not only perfected a DIY Slow Cooker Pumpkin Spice Latte but also developed edible recipes inspired by it, from bundt cakes to whoopie pies.

Pumpkin spice has reigned as the number one fall flavor for years—until recently. Back in 2022, we predicted that it could be the start of pumpkin spice’s downfall. Now, that forecast is backed up by culinary pros across the country who helped us select 2024’s fall baking trends. 

We have yet to delve into what might take its place on the throne of the coffee drink of fall, so we decided to brew a cup of coffee (sans cinnamon and nutmeg) and call up a few experts to pinpoint the next PSL.

Is the PSL Losing Steam?

The draw to pumpkin spice is not anchored solely in its deliciousness, claims Collin McIntyre, owner and operator of Lost + Found Coffee Company in Tupelo, Mississippi.

“I think it’s more about the feelings and emotions the drink conjures,” he says. “It smells like that candle that your mother burns every October, and tastes a little like your granny’s sweet potato casserole.”

The nostalgic sentiments pumpkin spice evokes are strong—but so is the spice blend itself. (ICYMI, pumpkin spice generally involves a mix of cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg, and sometimes allspice.) One of the pastry chefs we talked fall baking trends with even made the bold claim that “pumpkin spice should disappear. It just overpowers everything.”

Jon Kung, a Detroit, Michigan-based chef, refers to pumpkin spice as the “American masala,” comparing it to the warm mixture of spices that sets the foundation for many Indian dishes.

“It’s nothing more than a warming spice blend with a rather superficial set of spices that aim for warmth and inoffensiveness,” he says. “That has propelled it to incredible heights of popularity. Younger generations are more adventurous and more open to complex flavors.” In other words: The door is wide open for the next PSL to make its way in.

“It’s been so fun to see the pumpkin spice latte’s takeover, but I do think people are ready for a new favorite fall coffee beverage,” adds Bernadette Gerrity, vice president at Cafe Aroma in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Whatever said beverage is, it has to trigger similar sentimental feelings, McIntyre says. (“It needs to impact people right in the feels.”) It also needs to allow the coffee itself to shine a bit more, if you ask Hugo Cano, owner of Amberson Coffee in Indianapolis, Indiana.

“We are understanding coffee better as a seasonal fruit, and along with lighter-roasted coffees, I see a lot of shops and home brewers wanting to highlight the inherent flavors of a given coffee,” he says. 

The future looks like coffee drinks that are less fussy and more minimalist, Cano continues. The ingredients will still commemorate the season but also complement and celebrate coffee’s natural acidity and sweetness.

Why the Brown Sugar and Orange Latte Is Fall’s New Go-To Coffee Drink

Pumpkin spice simply doesn’t exist without the spice. And warming spices like cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves are directly linked to warmth, depth, and all things fall, McIntyre says. But they’re not the only ingredients that can deliver the taste and smell that has you cozying up to your mug while thinking, “Ahh, autumn.”

“Rich, deep syrups like honey, maple, or brown sugar have complexity that sends the mind straight into a frenzy of nostalgia,” he explains.

Cano chimes in to add that it’s about time for a more coffee-forward drink, “one that incorporates simple syrups and small quantities of spice, such as cinnamon, clove or nutmeg, plus a fruit component, such as apples, pears or winter citrus, could be a drink we could see as the next big trend going forward.”

The drink that checks all of those boxes? One of the latest hits on the menu at McIntyre’s Mississippi coffee shop: the Brown Sugar and Orange Latte.

How to Make a Brown Sugar and Orange Latte

According to Gerrity, for a food or drink trend to really go viral, it must be simple, made with accessible ingredients, and relatively-inexpensive to recreate. The brown sugar and orange latte delivers on that, alongside warm flavor (courtesy of the molasses notes in brown sugar) and a hint of fruitiness (via the orange extract, which you can find in most baking aisles and online from companies like Watkins).

“The use of dark brown sugar adds a deeper, more rich sweetness than regular sugar,” McIntyre says. “The molasses flavor elevates the complexity of the drink, and offers more contrast to the crisp orange flavor in the extract.”

Instead of ordering a PSL (again), here’s how to DIY your BSOL.

Brown Sugar and Orange Latte Recipe

Serves 1

Ingredients

• 2 ounces brewed hot espresso
• 1 ounce brown sugar simple syrup (or 1 ½ tablespoons lightly packed brown sugar)
• 10 drops (½ teaspoon) orange extract
• 10 ounces steamed milk

Directions 

1. In a glass or mug, combine espresso, simple syrup, and extract, then stir to combine.
2. As you pour in the steamed milk, continue to stir vigorously so the extract doesn’t cause the ingredients to separate.

Test Kitchen Tip: To make brown sugar simple syrup, combine ½ cup lightly packed brown sugar with ½ cup water in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir to combine, and then again occasionally until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat, allow to cool, and transfer to a Mason jar. Refrigerate for up to 4 weeks.