The PSL Is Officially Making Its Return & It's Earlier Than Ever

Today, Starbucks shared a riddle on its Facebook group, confirming that the PSL will make its triumphant return next Tuesday, August 27th. This is the earliest the PSL has returned to shops in its 15-year history. But somehow it still seems like we've been waiting forever after weeks of anticipation and rumors.

The Pumpkin Spice Latte is a cultural phenomenon. The Pumpkin Spice Latte is a meme. The Pumpkin Spice Latte is camp. Yet, despite being a Starbucks staple since it was first introduced in 2004, when and if the Pumpkin Spice Latte will return has remained a huge source of annual stress for coffee sippers everywhere.

We’re in the last leg of summer and we’re doing all the summer things: BBQ’s, picnics, long days at the beach, sweaty nights by the bay, road trips, the works. Then suddenly, as insidiously as hot gust of wind, thoughts of the PSL dropping grip us and pull us out of our summer fun. We’re not the ones making them, but we must be prepared. We are on high alert and the PSL won’t slide onto a Starbucks menu without us catching a whiff of that pumpkin spice first. Here's what we know so far.

It was touch and go there for a while but Starbucks has officially confirmed via Facebook that the Pumpkin Spice Latte will return to shops nationwide on August 27th. After some pretty damning images making the rounds on Reddit, we're not surprise. Alleged Starbucks employees had already received their first “PSL sauce” shipment of the season as early as the first week of August.

In fact, it has. Rumors were making the rounds that August 27th would be the date and the rumors were true, making it the earliest national release.

As always, thirst for pumpkin spice has been brewing, so it was anyone's guess what Starbucks had up its sleeve this year. All we know for sure is that it's totally absolutely possibly coming back... around the same time it did last year. Business Insider recently shared that, according to Starbucks baristas and their social media, the PSL was set to return on August 27th. This makes make 2019's release the earliest national release we've seen to date. Could it be because Dunkin is bringing back the pumpkin on August 21st?

Historically, the PSL usually lands during the last week of August. There are, however, some recent and notable exceptions that challenge the predictability of this pattern. The earliest day that Starbucks has ever released the Pumpkin Spice Latte was in 2014, when the drink was released to Starbucks Rewards members only on August 25th, followed by a nationwide launch on the 26th. Last year, in celebration of the drink’s 15th anniversary, the Seattle-helmed coffee shop chain released the beverage on August 28th.

Our guess is that the days of the sneak-preview launch for Starbucks Rewards members only are over and that all kinds of PSL fans will be able to sip on the spice as soon as August 26th this year (there might even be a happy hour involved).