It looks like chicken lovers who get the seasonal craving for all things pumpkin, whenever autumn comes around, are in luck. It is a blend of flavors that has stirred up a mix of reactions from consumers on all sides of the annual pumpkin bonanza, but nonetheless may lure the curious from their homes for an evening out at the local Buffalo Wild Wings . BBQ pumpkin ale sauce is the latest craze.
Customers who’ve eaten at the dining and sports bar chain have apparently had the pumpkin ale selection available to them since the start of October. Incorporated into a host of 16 sauces and 5 seasonings, the novel concoction adds to a slate of palate pleasers that includes such popular choices as salt and vinegar, teriyaki, honey bbq, bourbon honey mustard, lemon pepper, and Parmesan garlic. Unless corporate headquarters decides that it’s worth the trouble to keep the sauce on the menu indefinitely, the bbq pumpkin spice flavor will get to enjoy sales for a limited time only.
In thinking towards the future, it wouldn’t be far-fetched for companies to actually begin working a little pumpkin spice variety into their regular supply. According to Nielsen , pumpkin flavored products saw annual sales peak at $488.8 million over the 52-week period that ended on Aug. 25, 2018. That number constitutes for a 15.5 percent growth in the market over that time.
Buffalo Wild Wings releases pumpkin spice wings for fall https://t.co/p3R2oi1eRu #PumpkinSpice #fox5dc
— FOX 5 DC (@fox5dc) October 17, 2018
The popular gourd product has surely been helped along by the age of social media and how ads, apps, and coupons all come together around a universally recognized occasion — especially one that marks a shift from the long run of spring and summer greenery and sun.
Pumpkins have come to signify a natural transition to the thrill of the holidays, and along with the layers and the jackets comes Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts with their pumpkin spice coffee; Trader Joe’s and the pumpkin spice oatmeal, cookies, pastries, and pancake mix on its weekly circulars; and the dozens of pumpkin-spice-flavored beers that alcohol drinkers can browse on this Thrillist article.
So far, the general consensus seems to be that Buffalo Wild Wings is bringing the public this year’s most outlandish addition. Fox News is one of a number of publications that have been aggregating tweets from critics of the idea. But there have also been those who suggest that their peers reserve judgment until they’ve tried their wings with the sauce that the company’s website calls “fall’s favorite flavor.”
Tried the new pumpkin ale bbq sauce at Buffalo Wild Wings. Absolutely insane. pic.twitter.com/PxB3RHD5Np
— Patrick ? (@Phils08champs) October 17, 2018
Wait these are actually amazing… #pumpkinwings @ThadCollins pic.twitter.com/D264q9kSbK
— Michael (@jrdulka) October 17, 2018
