Are Fall Flavored Sodas the New PSL…?

For many, the onset of autumn means Pumpkin Spice Lattes, warm apple cider, and mulled wines. Many wait eagerly, all year, in anticipation of these fall flavors. But there’s a fall beverage many of us have been sleeping on: soda. Now, truth be told, I’m not much of a soda drinker. I used to be. When I was a toddler, I got really sick, and lived on pretty much nothing but Coca-Cola for months–per doctor’s orders. (The 90s were a wild time, dude.) By then, the bond was formed, and I grew up a Coca-Cola kid. I couldn’t break the habit until my twenties, when I was finally able to kick coke to the curb and replace it with fizzy seltzer water. In my old age, I have developed a soft spot in my heart for really good Root Beer; and I’ll sometimes have one as a treat, especially in float form. But, other than my occasional dabbling with Root Beer, I really have zero relationship with soda. Most days, I drink nothing but water–either flat or fizzy. 

While crisp autumn air doesn’t necessarily scream ‘ice-cold-soda,’ a spritzy, sweet soda may offer many of the same flavors we enjoy in our favorite fall treats: think ‘pumpkin pie’ and ‘caramel apples’ you can drink from a bottle. With Sober October upon us, maybe fall flavored sodas are the sweet treat we never knew we needed. Recently, I had the opportunity to swing by Antiqology in Huntington, Indiana. Part antique store, part ice cream parlor, and part purveyor of craft sodas; Antiqology wears many hats, but wears each beautifully. While I’m personally most likely to go there for a caramel apple milkshake or to buy a vintage typewriter, it seemed a shame not to sample some of their unique soda offerings. Per their website, they are the largest craft soda retailer in the Midwest, and since ‘tis the season, they presently have a selection of fall-flavored sodas on offer. 

I purchased five glass bottles of soda. My understanding is that glass actually offers the most pure flavor experience when it comes to soda. If it comes from a can, it’s extra cold and delicious but slightly tainted with a metallic flavor by aluminum. Plastic bottles may allow small amounts of air to enter the vessel over time, somewhat altering the intended flavor. Fountain soda flavors might vary as the ratio of soda syrup and bubbly water may differ from machine to machine. Glass bottles are where it’s at and I’ve got five of them to try. My intention: to apply the same basic techniques used when tasting wine, but to these sodas. For all the under-twenty-ones and the sober-homies, here’s what’s up: 

Filbert’s Pumpkin Soda: In hue, this soda is similar to your typical orange soda. Almost neon-hued, like an orange highlighter. I poured a bit into a glass to observe the color further. I want to be generous and say that it leans more towards a pumpkin-orange than a typical orange-orange, but I think that’s wishful thinking. The carbonation is light and effervescent. Thousands of petite bubbles lined the glass upon pouring and continued to slowly burst for the next several minutes. No foam head formed upon pouring. The scent is candy-sweet with just a faint suggestion of that vegetal pumpkin smell you might recall from carving jack-o-lanterns as a child. My first sip was unimpressive. My second sip was equally blah. To me, this drinks like sugar-water, with no obviously discernable flavors. I had a friend taste it to ensure I wasn’t being overly critical, but the consensus was a general thumbs down. There’s nothing offensive about the soda–but there’s also nothing at all remarkable about it. Perhaps it’s a nice fall treat for a sugar-craving child, but it lacks any nuance, leaving a refined palate desiring something more.

Filbert’s Pumpkin Cream Soda: Upon gazing at the bottle, I became highly suspicious that Filbert’s Pumpkin Cream Soda might just be Filbert’s Pumpkin Soda with a different label. The coloring is identically highlighter-orange and the soda pours almost exactly the same–almost. I’d say the Pumpkin Cream Soda has slightly more intense carbonation. Small bubbles popped and sparked at my nose and lips like a crisp sea breeze, the scent reminiscent of a typical cream soda with a familiar smooth, vanilla aroma. Perhaps there was a faint hint of pumpkin and baking spices, but my nose was mostly aware of the vanilla. I strongly preferred it to the intense sugar-water scent of Filbert’s Pumpkin Soda; but ultimately, Filbert’s Pumpkin Cream Soda mostly just smells like cream soda. It tastes like cream soda, too. A delicious cream soda, at that. It’s sweet, but rounded with a suggestion of earthy pumpkin on the backend. This soda embodies balance: smooth yet fizzy, sweet yet earthy. At the end of the day, this is more ‘cream soda’ than it is ‘pumpkin soda,’ but I like it for what it is: a delicious cream soda with a subtle nod to fall flavor. 

Filbert’s Pumpkin Root Beer: As said, I have a bit of a crush on root beer. If Filbert’s Pumpkin Root Beer tasted heavenly, that would mean I’d have a new fall beverage to crave. If it tasted horribly, was there a chance it would put me off root beer forever? Probably not; but who’s to say. Filbert’s Pumpkin Root Beer came in an amber-hued glass bottle, as opposed to the clear glass bottles the previous two sodas I had tried were packaged in. I poured the Pumpkin Root Beer. It did not resemble root beer. An orange liquid filled my cup. Not highlighter-orange like the other sodas. This looked more like a wheat-ale hue–a dusky orange, I suppose. The carbonation was substantially more subdued than that of the Pumpkin Cream Soda. Small bubbles dotted the side of the glass, but it was nothing excessive. It smelled like a root beer soda. I’m not sure my nose detected any hint of pumpkin. I sniffed and sniffed and sniffed hoping to detect something. Perhaps there was the faintest whiff of something resembling pumpkin pie, but mostly I just smelled root beer. The taste was…something. Filbert’s is very well regarded for their root beer, so I guess I was really hoping this would be excellent. I can’t say that it was. It certainly wasn’t bad. If I’m being honest, of the three sodas I have tried thus far, Filbert’s Pumpkin Root Beer likely has the most obvious pumpkin flavor. Upon first sip, you’re hit with a suggestion of root beer. It’s the kind of taste that, if you didn’t know you were drinking a root beer, you wouldn’t know you were drinking something marketed as a root beer. It’s enough to make a root-beer-lover wish they had a real root beer to enjoy. But that’s just the initial reaction upon liquid hitting the tongue. From that moment forward, the suggestion of root beer all but vanishes, and the notes of pumpkin and baking spices dance briskly in the mouth. At worst, the flavor is a bit artificial, but at best it’s present, obvious, and discernable. Personally, I wish it was more root beer forward, but I worry that if my wish came true I’d regret it. We’re often told, “Be careful what you wish for.” If this tasted more like root beer, I’m not so sure it would actually be a good or enjoyable thing. As is, this soda is perfectly drinkable, though I suppose I have to admit that it’s not as tasty as I’d hoped it would be. Will I still drink it? Yes. If offered this soda in the future, would I accept it? Yes. Will I go out of my way to hunt down this fall treat and purchase it in the future? Probably not. 

Genuine Hank’s Seasonal Pumpkin Spice Soda: The liquid poured from the amber bottle; burnt orange color of autumn leaves falling from trees, all dusky and bold. Aggressive bubbles quickly subdued to brisk sugary spritzes that tickled my nose. It smelled a bit like sarsaparilla. There wasn’t a single aroma that I could easily identify; just sort of generally vanilla-y, caramel-y, and a bit like anise, with slight hints of cinnamon and clove. I sipped and found the taste to be big and bold with a smooth finish, but it did not necessarily put me in mind of pumpkin spice. Per the label on the back of the bottle, there’s literal pumpkin juice in this soda. It’s listed as the third ingredient. I don’t really taste any pumpkin, but I will say this is a deeply nuanced soda with a lot going on in the flavor department. Nothing about this soda tasted artificial, metallic, or saccharinely sweet. Instead, I would say that it’s herbaceous, with a slight hint of baking spices. I very much like the flavor. This is by far the seasonal soda I’ve most enjoyed trying thus far. I don’t know if children would enjoy this one as much: this soda is so much more than brightly colored sugar water, due in large part to its complexity of flavor. This is a soda I would seek out again for my own personal enjoyment: it’s that good, despite lacking in the pumpkin-flavor department. I don’t know if it can aptly be called a “Pumpkin Spice Soda,” but it can certainly be called “delicious.” Well done, Hank’s! 

Genuine Hank’s Seasonal Caramel Apple Cream Soda: The only soda of the bunch that wasn’t pumpkin flavored; the underdog, the oddball, the dark horse. Its pour was reminiscent of champagne; a cloudy golden hue, with strong bubbles that continued to actively float up through the center of the glass and burst on the liquid’s surface. The aroma of this soda is exactly what you would expect based on its name: strong apple scent, a brown-sugar-caramel note, and the familiar vanilla-forward aroma of cream soda. Of the sodas I tried, this was the first and only to set the drinker’s expectations appropriately and then deliver in full. Hank’s Caramel Apple Cream Soda tastes like a traditional cream soda with additional notes of caramel and apple to dress it up festively for the fall season. It was a little sweet for my personal preference, but for a soda that is described as a “Caramel Apple Cream Soda,” I don’t feel it could be any less sweet while still staying true to its namesake flavors. It is exactly what it claims to be. Though my top pick would be Hank’s Pumpkin Spice Soda, I also highly recommend this Caramel Apple Cream Soda. It’s certainly a unique fall sweet treat!