Pumpkin spice season is getting a lot of criticism and… we I kind of get it.. Every year, pumpkin spice products abundance It’s hitting shelves earlier and earlier, and every year there are more things that shouldn’t be confused with pumpkin spice. gets longer. But frankly, there are a lot of people who can’t get enough of this stuff; This is not a conspiracy hatched by the Great Pumpkin.

So what if we could somehow eliminate all but one pumpkin spice product from grocery store shelves and cafe menus? “Pumpkin pie,” you thought, right? Because any other answer is wrong.

Pumpkin pie is the best pumpkin spice-infused food, and it’s not even close. It’s a top-five Thanksgiving meal staple, and if you’re tasked with cake duty this year, you’ll probably want to come to dinner with the best. That’s why — every November — every year we round up all the grocery store pumpkin pies we can find and blind taste test them.

Here they are, the best grocery store pumpkin pies blind taste tested and ranked to help you win Thanksgiving.

Methodology:

To make this blind taste test as useful as possible, we targeted pumpkin pies in multi-state grocery chains. We reached out to Vons, a local So-Cal chain, but Vons’ parent company is Safeway and is distributed in 16 states, offering the same products. So think Vons, Safeway!

This year, Target unfortunately had no baked pumpkin pie available, so we grabbed Marie Calendar’s frozen pie to represent the brand.

Here is the full list of markets we cover:

• took
• costco
• sprouts
• Target (Marie Calendar’s Frozen Cake)
• Trader Joe’s
• vons
• Walmart
• Whole Foods

After collecting all the pies, I randomly asked my girlfriend to serve a slice and a dollop of whipped cream, dipped my fork in, and wrote down my first impressions. I made sure to focus on both the pumpkin custard and the pie crust for each slice.

Here are the results.

Part 1: Grocery Store Pumpkin Pie Blind Taste Test

Taste 1:

A really nice balance of clove and cinnamon with a slightly dry, semi-floury pudding. I really like the bouquet of sweet, spicy and slightly bitter notes, but the pudding really detracts from the experience. The taste of the crust is also somewhat flat and bland. Not exactly a good start for this taste test.

Taste 2:

Okay, things are getting a little better here. The pudding has a nice hint of cinnamon and nutmeg with a soft texture and the crust is flaky but the taste is a bit dull. All in all, this is a good, if not outstanding, cake.

Taste 3:

I’m undecided about this. The pudding is the best I’ve ever had; It has cloves, allspice, cinnamon, some nutmeg and ginger. It’s subtle and full of flavor, but the crust is a disgrace. It is gummy, raw and tasteless. The difference between how good the pudding is and how bad the crust is is so wide.

Taste 4:

This pie has a dark, spicy vibe that really makes it stand out. I’m getting a heavy dose of ginger and cloves here, along with some brown sugar, cinnamon, and cardamom. Both the smell and taste are very pleasant.

The crust is interesting. It tastes incredibly tender and is noticeably thicker than other tarts I’ve tried so far, but the taste is a bit neutral. I would have liked it a lot more if this had a more pronounced crust flavor.

Taste 5:

This pie has so much going for it – the pudding has a perfect texture, silky and smooth, and the crust has a wonderful flaxen texture and buttery flavour. But the spice blend doesn’t surprise me. This cake tastes exactly like pumpkin cake. should do It tastes good, but it does not offer a taste that should be experienced. All in all, a good, not great cake.

Taste 6:

It’s a wonderful blend of spicy cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg with a nice buttery and crumbly crust, but there’s a wonderfully weird lingering aftertaste that ruins this for me.

Taste 7:

Mainly cinnamon and clove, the initial taste gradually turns into spicy ginger and nutmeg. The pudding has a very firm texture and the crust is buttery, slightly browned and completely flaky. It may be too early to tell, but I think we have a winner here!

Taste 8:

This cake is incredibly moist. Just looking at it I can see the shine of the surface and this visual wetness is also reflected in the texture. The pudding is incredibly smooth, almost soupy, with a hint of ginger and cinnamon, and leaves a strange, funky aftertaste.

The crust is spot on, although I found the pudding quite off-putting. Buttery, toasty and flaky.

Taste 9:

This cake is incredibly rich and decadent. It has a strong ginger and coconut character, a firm texture and a rich, toasty crust. It’s a little drier than other pies I tried today, but that’s a minor complaint.

Part 2: Grocery Store Pumpkin Pie Rankings

9. Walmart – No Sugar Added Pumpkin Pie (Taste 6)

Cake:

I hate to be the guy who says the only pie with no added sugar is the weakest, but it is what it is. Now, I will say this about NSA Walmart’s pumpkin pie; no bad. If you’re watching your sugar intake but still want the experience of eating pumpkin pie this holiday season, this will get the job done.

It tastes like regular pumpkin pie, with the only thing making it clear that NSA’s pudding has a weird nutty texture and slightly weird aftertaste.

Summary:

It’s a compromise, but still a far cry from a terrible pumpkin pie.

8. Whole Foods – Pumpkin Pie (Taste 1)

Cake:

To my surprise, the Whole Foods Pumpkin Pie was pretty good. It’s a great balance of spicy flavors, but the floury, sandy custard and soft crust really hold it back.

Therefore we cannot recommend it.

Summary:

This cake is a direct skip. Whole Foods is more expensive than any other market in this taste test, and you don’t get more flavor at the inflated price.

7. Costco – Pumpkin Pie (Taste 8)

Cake:

This is going to piss off all the Costco fans out there, but I didn’t really like this cake. This is due to the strange soupy texture of the pudding and that strange, tangy aftertaste.

That said, for just $5.99 you’re getting a cake twice the size of the competition, so there’s definitely value here, just don’t expect to wow anyone at the dinner table with the taste of this cake. .

Summary:

A perfectly serveable cake that offers real value. But there are definitely better options.

6. Aldi – Baked Pumpkin Pie (Taste 3)

Cake:

As I said in the tasting notes, I really like the spicy, cinnamon and clove-based taste of the pudding and its smooth and silky texture. But all in all, we’re putting this in sixth place due to its bland taste and weird gummy texture of the peel.

The crust should be crumbly or flaky, which unfortunately was gummy and looked a bit raw.

Summary:

If you’re a weirdo who doesn’t like pie crust, you’ll love this pie. But if you’re looking for the whole package, this is a bit lacking.

5. Marie Calendar — Frozen Pumpkin Pie (Taste 9)

Cake:

This was a direct shock to me. I thought this would be seriously lacking since it was a frozen cake, but it wasn’t. The flavor was balanced and wonderfully spicy, and the crust had a wonderful texture and toasty buttery taste.

It was a little drier than the pies we ranked higher. Maybe this is due to a cooking error on my part, but I followed the instructions to a tee, so I doubt it.

Summary:

Better than you expected. Don’t write this down just because you’re frozen. It appears in a flash.

4. Wal-Mart – Pumpkin Pie (Taste 2)

Cake:

In past years, Wal-Mart has performed pretty poorly in our annual pumpkin pie taste test. I don’t know if they changed their recipe or if I got a good recipe this time, but I thought about this cake. It was pretty good.

But this isn’t the kind of cake that will wow anyone, it just gets the job done.

Summary:

If you can find a deal on it, go for it, but if you’re looking for a pie to compete with the best dishes at your Thanksgiving meal, this will probably fall short.

3. Vons (Safeway) — Jessie’s Pumpkin Pie (Taste 5)

Cake:

I feel the same way about Vons’ pumpkin pie as Walmart. This is a good but not a great cake.

But compared to Walmart, I think this one had a better blend of pumpkin spice flavors and a much better buttery crust.

Summary:

A very good pumpkin pie, but not a great one.

2. Trader Joe’s — Pumpkin Pie (Taste 4)

Cake:

Last year we named Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Pie the best grocery store pie, and I’d love to give it the top spot again, but that’s not how this blind taste test turned out.

So what was holding him back? I would say the crust is soft and neutral tasting. It’s a minor annoyance, but we rely on little nuances to separate the good from the great, and while I think this is a delicious pumpkin pie, I don’t think it’s the best thing you can buy this year.

Summary:

Dark, rich and clove forward. Trader Joe’s pumpkin pie is excellent, but there is better pie out there.

1. Sprouts – Pumpkin Pie (Taste 7)

Cake:

There you have it, folks, the best pumpkin pie you can buy in 2024. Pumpkin pie with sprouts wins because it has the perfect blend of pumpkin spice flavors, a perfectly smooth custard, and a wonderfully buttery crust. This is the only cake I tasted today that has no visible flaws.

As soon as I took my first bite of this pie, I had a strong suspicion that this would rise to the top. If you want to win Thanksgiving this year, stop by Sprouts and pick up this pumpkin pie. Damn, take two!

Summary:

The perfect balance of clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger, with perfectly silky custard and a rich, buttery crust.