Fall is on the way and that means the addition of seasonal coffee concoctions to coffeeshop menus. The one everyone looks forward to is Pumpkin Spice Lattes. The most popular seller of this drink is Starbucks but if you’re vegan that’s not going to work for you. Many vegans have only recently discovered that their candy coffee craving for a Pumpkin Spice Latte has been met with the realization that the syrup used contains milk.

Many Starbucks locations will give you the cold shoulder if you ask for ingredients and it seems corporate isn’t very forthcoming on what makes the drink unvegan.  We sent in convert operatives to bring this dark information to light. It was not a easy task and a very risky one. The image you see above is the result. (Many Bothans died to bring us this information.)  The fact is it contains the syrupy sweet dairy of condensed milk. Not only is condensed milk listed once in the ingredients, it’s listed TWICE. Notice the lack of what should be a main ingredient in that list: Pumpkin. It’s a Pumpkin Spice Latte, where’s the pumpkin OR the spices for that matter? No, natural and especially artificial  flavors doesn’t cut it. More proof that Starbucks is the McDonald’s of coffee.

Still, if you find yourself roaming around and need a sweet coffee fix head over to a Panera Bread as they also have a Pumpkin Spice Latte that can be made with soy and will indeed be vegan.  Be sure to tell them to leave off the caramel syrup topping as more condensed milk can be found in that stuff. Curious about the ingredients of the Panera Bread Pumpkin Spice Syrup? Be curious no more:

sugar, water, pumpkin, corn syrup, molasses, glycerin, natural flavors, spices, sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate as preservatives, citric acid, colored with annatto/turmeric extract

Yes, there’s some chemical-ish preservative in there but that stuff does have to sit around until late-December.  An inquiry to Panera Bread corporate did give me the answer that the syrup is indeed vegan if reading the ingredients wasn’t enough to convince you.

I’ve been questioned as to whether the glycerin in Panera’s syrup is vegan. Upon a second thorough questioning they have stated that there are no animal sourced ingredients in their pumpkin spice syrup.

For those of you who would like to eschew the expensive coffeehouse prices, as well as the preservatives, and make your own at home provided you have an espresso machine, hop on over here and give this recipe a shot. It is delicious if I do say so  myself.

I sometimes go through two pounds of coffee a week at home. That’s alot of coffee and I sometimes drink it with a creamer. When I’m not home finding a vegan creamer at a coffee shop or restaurant isn’t easy and is usually impossible. SoyGo is trying to fix that.

SoyGo Soy Creamer is a soy-based powder coffee creamer in a small, travel-sized packet that’s easy to carry wherever you go. Very welcome to the vegan or health conscious who don’t want the unpronounceable chemicals in most powdered creamers or a non-dairy creamer in their coffee.

A single pack of SoyGo gives enough creamer for an 8 ounce cup of coffee. Much more coffee than that and you’ll need a second pack of SoyGo to get the flavor and proper results. It’s been a couple decades since I used a powdered coffee creamer such as CoffeeMate so I don’t remember how well it dissolves but SoyGo needs a very good stirring before breaking down sufficiently and then it still leaves a powdery swirl in your cup. I stirred for about 30-40 seconds yet the majority of the powder had still not dissolved. The flavor is there, lightly but I would prefer it dissolve better. At the bottom of your cup you will find a sludge of soy powder goo once you drink the coffee.

The ingredients are all-natural and all-vegan. – Soy Powder (non-GMO), Vegan Sugar, Color Added (All-natural whitener), Xantham Gum, Inulin, Natural Flavors (French Vanilla), Natural Flavors (Non-dairy cream flavor), Dipotassium Phosphate, Lecithin, Salt

Overall, SoyGo is a welcome product. I like having the option to get a cup of Sock Juice (brewed coffee) while away from home and have the option to add a vegan creamer. I would like to see it dissolve a bit better and maybe a half-ounce more product per packet so a larger cup or mug of coffee can be fixed up with just one pack. With that said, I’ll be sure to take a few packs with me on road trips. It will come in very handy at those coffee shops where vegans are never taken into consideration at the condiment bar.

SoyGo Soy Creamer is available at most Whole Foods locations including Coolsprings and Green Hills. You can find it in the baking aisle near the cocoa in both of those stores. It is also available directly from SoyGo, Amazon and some other online vegan outlets.

For more information on SoyGo Soy Creamer visit SavingOpusOne.

SoyGo Soy Creamer Review

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I have written in the past about my desire to find a milk other than soy to make coffee with. I would go each time through rice, almond, hazelnut and others only to fall back to the reliable soy after finding each was either too watery or just wouldn’t foam, some even tasted bad. After seeing Silk PureAlmond I thought I should give it a try. I had tried Almond Breeze, both aseptic and refrigerated, but was put off by the strong after-bite. As far as I know Silk PureAlmond is only the second refrigerated almond milk variety.

A good coffee milk should always hold up first to steaming. A nice foam never hurts and this is where most of the milk options I have tried failed. Silk PureAlmond worked very well, surprising actually as I have never managed a good foam with almond milk. The foam was as good as soy milk. The milk is thicker than other almond milks which lends to the foaming ability.

Taste is most important and the flavor held up well to the espresso I use. No overbearing taste to mask the coffee. Most important there is no afterbite like all other almond milks I have tried.

I doubt I will give up soy milk completely for almond milk but finding a new option that tastes good and actually works well for coffee is always welcome.

I admit, I drink way too much coffee even though I drink less now that I once did.  At one time I was putting down 8 cups a day of sock juice (brewed coffee) since it was entirely too convenient. I could fill the french press and drink away and not even realize I was on that sixth cup before I had my eighth. I am also somewhat of an artsy-fartsy coffee connoisseur. I make soy lattes throughout the day, though I cut myself off at about 5pm, and occasionally douse them with this flavoring or that syrup.

There are those days when I’m not home and occasionally feel I like throwing down $4 on a cup of coffee. Those days don’t come often as I am pretty tight with my cash. I have been working on a list of coffee houses around Nashville to get your fix and all of those on the list include soymilk in their milk selections and one, DrinkHaus, also offers rice milk and sometimes almond milk.

I always prefer the local coffee houses. To me it always tastes better and I like not knowing exactly what to expect. I always search out a local coffee house when I travel and usually take home a pound from the places I like. Of course Starbucks is on every street but why go to the corporate bean when you can get your swill from a local coffee joint?

If your favorite coffee isn’t on the list let me know and tell me why it’s your favorite.

UPDATED 4/16/2010

Billy Goat Coffee
401 S. Mt. Juliet Rd., Suite 345
Mt. Juliet, TN
(615) 773-8272

Crema
15 Hermitage Ave.
Nashville, TN
(615) 255-8311

Bongo Java
1812 21st Ave S
Nashville, TN
(615) 777-3436

DrinkHaus Espresso + Tea
500 Madison St.
Nashville, TN
(615) 255-5200

Edgehill Studios Cafe
1201 Villa Place
Nashville, TN
(615) 301-8539

Fido
1812 21st Ave S
Nashville, TN
(615) 777-3436

Frothy Monkey
2509 12th Ave S
Nashville, TN
(615) 292-1808

Portland Brew
3431 Murphy Rd
Nashville, TN
(615) 292-9010

Sam and Zoe’s
525 Heather Place
Nashville, TN
(615) 385-2676

Ugly Mugs
1886 Eastland Ave
Nashville, TN
(615) 915-0675

Cafe Coco
210 Louise  Ave
Nashville, TN
(615) 321-2626