Blueprint Brewing – A Gourdeous One Too *

In revisiting some of the home brews that I still have around the house I expected that they would all taste a bit old to me and have a good drop off in grade.  That really has not been the case until this one, but as one of my favorites I guess it had farther to fall.  While still pretty good, it definitely tasted a bit old.  Either way I still plan on brewing it again when the pumpkins are available down here.  My brewing operation actually has to wait until fall to brew a fall seasonal, but has been worth the wait each time so far.

I did purposely rename this beer to the way that it should have been spelled the first time around.  It will probably be easier to just put the year on each going forward.

One game gone and the full Sunday of football ahead . . .

Brewery: Blueprint Brewing (Winter Park, FL)

Name: A Gourdeous One Too

Style: Vegetable Beer (and I suppose Spice Beer)

ABV: 5.70% (+/-)

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and pulled slightly early to warm a bit before being served in a stemmed goblet.

Aroma: A full spicy aroma of cinnamon, nutmeg, etc. with a sugary caramel-like malt profile as a base.  Really quite nice overall.  – 9/12

Appearance: Deep amber in color with strong tones of copper.  One finger tan head that dissipates very quickly without leaving much of a trail.  Mostly clear with some haze and floating particulates (resulting from pouring a bit too quickly) and tons of rising bubbles visible. – 2/3

Flavor: Moderate amount of brown sugary (caramelly) malt sweetness.  The pumpkin pie spices are definitely there and pretty consistent from start to finish.  They are not subtle, but not overwhelming either.  Does have some vegetal quality to it still.  Finishes with a bit of dryness and some lingering spice flavor.  – 13/20

Mouthfeel: Medium body with a high level of carbonation that lends some bite.  There is some crispness up front, but is a bit more smooth toward the finish. – 3.5/5

Overall Impressions: It does taste like it has fallen off a bit over time and the higher level of carbonation that it now has does not help the flavors.  Certainly still drinkable, but I can tell that it is tasting a bit old even more so when it warms up a bit.  Still a recipe to brew again when pumpkins are available.  This beer (and pretty much all pumpkin beers) is one that I only need to drink one or two of as the flavors tend to meld together on the palate and flatten the more you drink. -6.5/10

Grade: B (34/50)

Blueprint Brewing - A Gourdeous One Too