The "father of PSL" tells CBS Mornings that pumpkin spice is the flavor that almost wasn't.
After the success of Peppermint Mocha, Peter Dukes and his team were tasked with finding a new flavor for Fall.
They came up with a hundred ideas, then narrowed it down to about 10. They surveyed some customers, who were ok with flavors like chocolate, caramel and cinnamon.
But pumpkin spice wasn't really in the picture. What saved it was the uniqueness. No one else was doing anything like it.
So how to create the flavor?
Believe it or not, the team of Starbucks researchers started by bringing in pumpkin pies and pouring espresso shots on them. (Seriously, where do I apply for this job?!)
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Photo: Getty Images