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Pumpkin spice lattes are back at Starbucks on Tuesday, because August is fall now

Get your autumn on starting this week.

Gael Cooper
CNET editor Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of "Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the '70s and '80s," as well as "The Totally Sweet '90s." She's been a journalist since 1989, working at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and NBC News Digital. She's Gen X in birthdate, word and deed. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she'll be first in line.
Expertise Breaking news, entertainment, lifestyle, travel, food, shopping and deals, product reviews, money and finance, video games, pets, history, books, technology history, generational studies. Credentials
  • Co-author of two Gen X pop-culture encyclopedia for Penguin Books. Won "Headline Writer of the Year"​ award for 2017, 2014 and 2013 from the American Copy Editors Society. Won first place in headline writing from the 2013 Society for Features Journalism.
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Gael Cooper
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Pumpkin it up, people.

 Starbucks

OK, so it seems a wee bit early to be thinking about the quintessential fall drink in August. But on Monday, Starbucks announced that its pumpkin spice latte will return to the coffeehouse chain on Tuesday, so get out your cozy cardigans and pretend it's October. (Actually, Starbucks regularly releases this most-fall-of-all drinks in August and it seems weird EVERY TIME.)

The iconic pumpkin spice latte isn't the only fall menu item returning on Aug. 24. Starbucks is also bringing back pumpkin spice cold brew, pumpkin cream cheese muffins, and pumpkin scones. (Pumpkin loaf is available year-round.)

Fans of the gourd marked the news on social media, with some dubbing Monday, "Pumpkin Spice Eve!"

Some pointed out that other chains, such as Dunkin and McDonald's, already had pumpkin beverages out, so apparently Aug. 24 is rather late in the pumpkin calendar. And some Starbucks locations reportedly already offered the drink as of Monday.

Happy Halloween, everyone.