The Skinny: same aisle, same trip, not the same results
The Backstory: Actually noticed as a last-minute grab during the same trip that discovered these muffins, I picked up these intriguing cookies thinking that they might be good for a little late-night sustenance after a long day of running around Disney’s theme parks.  Besides, I’d already gathered selections to cover both the chip and cracker categories – all that was left was something to cover the cookie option and my snacking varieties would be good to go!
Except…: Except for the fact that these little puppies taste absolutely nothing like pumpkin.  I even double-checked the ingredients list afterwards to be sure and although “Pumpkin Spice Powder” is specifically listed, to me these were nothing more than gingersnaps with orange sprinkles on top … which for snacking purposes still ended up being perfectly fine and I most certainly managed to finish the whole container in roughly a week’s time, but all in the same, you may have noticed that I kind of have a thing for pumpkin and in that regard, these autumn cookies were nonetheless not up to par.

Location Discovered: the baked-goods section of our local Sweetbay Supermarket
Subtle Note: I’m not certain, but I’m fairly sure that these are the kind of muffins that are prepared at a central bakery somewhere and shipped to the various stores – not ones that were baked on-site.
Importance?: I honestly wouldn’t expect pre-packaged muffins to stack up to the likes of Dunkin or Panera anyways, so these served their purpose … mainly in providing a quick and filling, pre-theme park breakfast while I was on vacation over the last week!
Fulfillment?: All in all, these little treats rose to the challenge nicely – a lot better than I had been expecting, in fact.  They remained moist up until the last one was eaten several days after purchasing and cracking open the package; the pumpkin flavor was at least enough to justify calling them pumpkin muffins, which sometimes can be a bigger deal than one would think!  And while the pumpkin punch wasn’t as rich and flavorful than the other varieties listed above, those also would’ve likely cost me three times as much and not endured the tests of time very well, so in a pinch Sweetbay’s pre-made pumpkin muffins provided on-demand breakfast for a week … and sometimes that’s good enough!

Appropriate Tagline: “Not just for coffee anymore!”
Back Story: I’ve actually been passing this stuff on the shelves for the last two months, but always passed it by because except for a few rare exceptions, I really don’t drink coffee.  Nonetheless, I do enjoy a nice hot chocolate on the occasional chilly winter day here in Florida and have had my eye out unsuccessfully for some type of pumpkin hot chocolate mix all season.  It actually wasn’t until seeing some of the Christmas holiday varieties (candy cane, gingerbread, etc…) that I thought maybe it might be worth a try as a way to spruce up my hot chocolate after all…
Mission: Accomplished!: Seriously, I should’ve picked up a bottle of this stuff two months ago – wow!  A seemingly perfect blend of pumpkin and the associated spices, and I think it worked even better simply because I wasn’t having to taste around the coffee flavor that I’m not particularly fond of.  If this stuff didn’t have an expiration date on it, I’d pick up an extra bottle to hide away for a rainy day.
Final Recommendation: Hurry to your local grocer’s dairy section and try to pick up a bottle while you still can!  Granted, the gingerbread flavor sounds interesting, too, but then again, this website isn’t exactly called Love Me Some Gingerbread, now is it???

Mental Note: website idea for when I finally run out of pumpkin options…

Found At: your local grocer’s baking section (Sweetbay Supermarkets here in Florida)
Ease of Use: Two cups of 2% milk and less than five minutes later, I had fresh pumpkin pudding firming up in the fridge … and technically according to the instructions said refrigeration wasn’t even necessary, but since I was a little kid that’s just always how I’ve made pudding and why mess with a good system now?!
Presentation: Definitely a nice and creamy appearance, especially when compared to that humdrum yogurt from a few days ago, but I still thought that adding a bit of whipped cream, nutmeg, and even a Newman’s ginger cookie to garnish made it even better!
Flavor: Not perfect, but most certainly decent when compared to other wanna-be pumpkin flavorings. Has a nice sweet flavor without being overbearing, and the spice level seems to be just about right … at least as far as a pudding would be concerned.
Final Verdict: In addition to the standard pudding recipe, the box also featured a recipe for a Pumpkin Mousse that also sounded interesting, so with any luck I hope to be able to hunt down another box of pudding mix before these disappear from the shelves and give that a try as well! I definitely recommend the pudding as a means of adding a pumpkin dessert to one’s meal without bringing home an entire pie – stay tuned to find out if the pumpkin mousse is just as commendable!

Surprise: Who knew they made pumpkin-flavored booze?!
Reality: Actually, accordingly to these guys there are a whole bunch!
Disappointment: Too bad I couldn’t find one of those other ones on their list to sample instead because in my eyes, this one barely even earned the C+ that the fine folks of BeerAdvocate.com awarded it.
The Skinny: I’ve never really been much of a beer drinker – these days when you do happen to find a drink in my hand, it’ll most likely be one of those fruity drinks that this area and further south are famous for – but when I did drink beer, I was a Corona guy through and through. And mind you I’m obviously not much of a beer connoisseur so I haven’t really sampled a lot of beers, but needless to say compared to Corona pretty much everything else tasted like nasty to me.

So fast forward to November 2nd, 2008 and two bottles into Jack’s Pumpkin Spice Ale, it saddens me to admit that this stuff tastes like nothing more than maybe slightly spiced Corona to me. As far as pumpkin resemblance is concerned, in my book the pumpkin-headed scarecrow on the outside of the bottle is about as close as this beer (or ale, or whatever…) gets to being pumpkin-flavored. And although I’m no beer snob, I even did a little experimentation and poured my second bottle into a glass to see if any magical sensations might somehow be released in such a manner … but nothing.
Final Verdict: It’s kind of orange-ish colored, and it’s got a pumpkin on the label, but that doesn’t make it pumpkin-flavored ale…

Possible Tag Line: “Almost as good as apple butter … almost.”
Medium for Sampling: Martin’s Potato Bread
Burnt Toast to Blame? not likely
Buttery Thoughts: This stuff basically has the consistency of pumpkin pie filling before it’s baked and whatnot, and has roughly the same general taste, minus the sugar (not that pumpkin pie has a lot of sugary content, but still – this is raw veggie). And given the arsenal of pumpkin-related goodies that I’ve sampled over the last few weeks, it’s still up there in terms of accurate pumpkin portrayal, but there was just something missing.
Verdict: Undecided – didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. May need to try it on some other mediums (bagels, english muffins, pumpkin bread) before a final verdict can be announced. Stay tuned for future updates…