Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice
It's that time of year again--pumpkin season. Walking through the store is pumpkin-flavoured everything. The pumpkin patches are officially open for perusing for the perfect specimen to carve, pumpkin air freshener and candles are out in full force, and of course the infamous Pumpkin Spice Latte has returned.But why do we love this iconic gourd so much? What is the science behind the pumpkin craze?
A large aspect of the craze is reactance theory. Basically, pumpkin is a limited time offering, so we react quickly to get as much of it as we can before it's no longer available. Seasonal flavours are sort of hyped up now, in the age of artificial flavouring and taste science. But there was a time when they were seasonal because that was when the food was available after harvest. Hearty gourds, corn, and spices were the spoils of the season. The 'get it while the getting's good' sentiment came from this limited window to eat autumn favourites before they were gone for another year.
Nowadays, people don't gorge themselves on gourds because we absolutely won't find them out of season. But it is trendy! That's the next reason--everybody's doing it. We tend to try what other people are trying. We like sharing opinions, experiences, and memories. For the contrarian, trying it just to say you hate it can also hold some appeal! We don't want to be left out, so we hop on the bandwagon and head out to the pumpkin patch!
And of course, there's a nostalgia factor. Our brain tends to make connections between things, even if we don't consciously mean to. Pumpkin spice has become tied to autumn, and autumn can mean a lot of fun, pleasant experiences for us. Warm scarves and sweaters, crisp air, crunchy leaves under-boot, Halloween, and lit fireplaces. All of these nostalgic, happy things come flooding back to us at the sight of pumpkins or the taste of spice, and that floods our brain with happy endorphins.
Of course, we here at Pinot's happen to love fall and are pumped for pumpkins! We've got a great collection gourd-geous paintings coming up to get into the autumn swing. Check them out here: https://www....vents/october