Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Almond Beverage

This product is exhibit A of the dangers of online shopping. Or shopping after seeing people post delightful things on social media. Amazon knows we're weak. Could you imagine if you could order from Trader Joe's online? Could you imagine the damage that would cause? It would be..brilliant. 

I am not basic. I don't like pumpkin spice. The only pumpkin spice I like is pumpkin spice that doesn't taste too strongly of pumpkin spice. You've been warned. I picked this up because I read an article that suggested pouring it into coffee. Shouldn't I know better than to believe everything on the internet?? 

It was the packaging - the basic-ness and the modern calligraphy. Can't deny that it looks attractive. I also figured it would be similar to a holiday-themed drink, which I actually enjoyed. 

It's supposed to be a dairy free, soy free, vegan pumpkin spice latte. Sort of. Minus the coffee bit. Maybe kid friendly. 

Almond milk + pumpkin + pumpkin spice. Yes, there's sugar, which means it's supposed to be a treat. 

I thought it would be nice to TRY to get a pretty, instagrammable photo out of this. Y'know. A cozy teacup of pumpkin spice almond beverage next to the beautiful package and glowy candle. But real life got in the way. I'm no photographer. I was losing my natural light as the sun set. That teacup has a huge chip. This was the best angle I came up with, and while I'm not particularly satisfied, it got the job done. As for this drink? Oh it is worse than this photo. At least the photo has made an attempt to make it appear appealing...and perhaps for some people, you'll find this drink to be so. But real talk -this drink makes me GAG. Not nearly as much as the pumpkin spice coffee but it's pretty gross. The sweetness is bearable. I can accept the almond milk form of this. My problem is the pumpkin spice taste. When you sip it, it's goes down fine but it hits you with this bitter earthiness that resembles clove, even though there isn't any clove in the ingredient list. I don't find it pleasant at all. In fact, at the end of my first sip, I actually said out loud to none in particular, "that is disgusting." Which is a shame because I was ready with an open mind to potentially like this. 

Admittedly, there are some people out there that LOVE the Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Coffee. I am not one of them. I returned mine for a full refund because I thought it was disgusting. I would only recommend this beverage if you've tasted the TJ's pumpkin spice coffee and actually liked that - this has a similar flavor profile. That doesn't mean that I recommend this - NOT AT ALL. And please don't pour it into your coffee unless you want to ruin it. Almond milk is basically water so you're diluting your coffee (which is fine if you're fine with that. I am...sometimes) AND infusing it with a-not-so-pleasant-overkill-spice-flavor. Why????

As for price point - $1.99 for a quart. Pretty inexpensive compared to a coffee shop PSL. But I think I would take a coffee shop PSL over this honestly. At least that is basically reliable - I know what I'm getting and I probably won't gag upon first sip. This? Try at your own risk. 

TL;DR: Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Almond Beverage. The non-coffee, vegan, dairy-free version of the OG pumpkin spice coffee. Which for me means blehhhhhh. 3 out of 10.