The fourth day has finally come and with it the fourth pumpkin beer and the end of this short series of posts. If you are at all confused, where have you been these last few days?! Go ahead and check out the entries from Blueprint Brewing, Smuttynose Brewing, and Weyerbacher Brewing to get yourself caught up with the whole pumpkin beers in March thing.
We first heard of this creation when The Wife and I were vacationing with family up in Maine and visited Shipyard Brewing last fall. At the time the beer was not even available at the brewery because it sold out so fast. We knew that Shipyard brews were available here in Florida so there was at least a small chance that we would see some on the shelves when arrived back home. Obviously we got lucky and found a bottle one day without even looking for it.
Be sure to read all the way to the bottom as the long awaited judgment on the flight from The Wife is revealed!
Now to wrap things up . . .
Brewery: Shipyard Brewing Co. (Portland, ME)
Name: Smashed Pumpkin Ale (Signature Series)
Style: Vegetable Beer
ABV: 9.0%
Tasting Notes: Stored in the wine fridge (51 degrees +/-) and served in a pint glass. $8.99 for 1pt. 6oz.
Aroma: Low, but prominent pumpkin spice aroma (mostly nutmeg to me) and a clean aroma overall.
Appearance: Amber in color with a slight orange/copper hue. Slight dark(er) cream head that quickly dissipates with no trail. Crystal clear with few rising bubbles visible.
Flavor: The pumpkin spice flavors are prominent with a sugary sweetness underneath. The spiciness carries through to the finish and lingers slightly. Really full flavor overall that is like liquid pumpkin pie.
Mouthfeel: Medium body with low(ish) carbonation. A low amount of warmth is noticeable.
Overall Impressions: Most pumpkiny pumpkin ale that I have tried (to date) and is definitely at the top of the Shipyard family for me. The aroma really carries through to the flavor. Fitting/appropriate for the holidays (Thanksgiving or Christmas).
Grade: A
Her final decisions have been made . . . read below.
As for the final rankings from The Wife and her blind tasting:
- Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin Ale (very close 1st and 2nd)
- Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale (very close 1st and 2nd)
- Blueprint Gourdeous One
- Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale (distant 4th)
She fell right in line with the final grades that I had when drinking the four of them side by side. I don’t know that it means we are correct, but I now know what to look for on the shelves and what to brew at home next fall.
Cheers!
All of these reviews for pumpkin beers are making me thirsty for them again. Unfortunately there are none (or at least very few) on the store shelves, but I do have a few of my Gourdeous One’s left to help satisfy that craving. If you are not sure what I am talking about check out the first beer and the second beer in this ongoing series of four pumpkin beer reviews.
Today we are continuing on up the gravity ladder by going to an imperial version of a pumpkin ale from Weyerbacher. I think that is one of the first adjustments that I would like to make to my own version. Though it has a low enough ABV right now to be extremely drinkable, I would like to bring that up quite a bit to add a warmth to it that would be more appropriate to the season. I guess I need to start planning my triumphant return to pumpkin beer brewing, as I know the time will be here again before I know it.
Now to continue . . .
Brewery: Weyerbacher Brewing Co. (Easton, PA)
Name: Imperial Pumpkin Ale
Style: Vegetable Beer
ABV: 8.0%
Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pint glass. $2.99 per 12oz.
Aroma: A more complex, spicy pumpkin pie-like aroma (cinnamon, cloves, etc.) with molasses-like sweetness underneath.
Appearance: Deep amber to caramel color. Slight off-white head that quickly dissipates with no trail. Clear with few rising bubbles visible.
Flavor: Malty sweetness that is dark brown sugar/molasses-like. Low spiciness (carried through/similar to aroma) with very low bitterness. Clean, but slightly lingering finish (good though).
Mouthfeel: Medium body with low(er) carbonation. Really smooth and somewhat creamy with some slight warmth.
Overall Impressions: Quality ale flavors underneath pumpkin spices. The warmth is well balanced in to the whole. Nice overall flavor profile(s).
Grade: A-
Two days later and she is still working through the flight!
If you are curious why I am posting a review for a pumpkin beer in the middle of March, please check out yesterday’s entry. Today I shall continue on with the flight that we started with my home brewed pumpkin ale (Blueprint Brewing Gourdeous One).
That means moving along to the pumpkin offering from Smuttynose Brewing Company as the second of the four. It is not too surprising that aside from my own version, the remaining three are from breweries in the northeast. Having grown up in Northern New York, I think pumpkins are more appropriate for that kind of climate anyway.
As much as I don’t really enjoy many fruit beers (though I am slowly coming around a bit to them), I do love a good pumpkin beer for some reason, especially when the weather is a bit brisk. Maybe that is why I waited until the days were colder here in Florida (December) until cracking these open?
Enough rambling, let us continue . . .
Brewery: Smuttynose Brewing Co. (Portsmouth, NH)
Name: Pumpkin Ale
Style: Vegetable Beer
ABV: 6.0%
Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pint glass. $1.99 per 12oz.
Aroma: Light, clean pumpkin spices (mostly nutmeg and cinnamon?) with malty undertones that are pumpkin bread-like.
Appearance: Light amber to golden color. One finger cream color head that is frothy with good retention and some trail. Very clear with many bubbles visible.
Flavor: Moderate maltiness with some hop bitterness. No pumpkin flavor noticed. Some harshness at finish that is almost metallic.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light body with moderate carbonation. Creamy and smooth.
Overall Impressions: The finish definitely hurts the overall. Really no need to drink again, mostly because there are many other quality pumpkin ales out there.
Grade: C
The Wife still enjoying the flight of pumpkin beers.
To start off this post I must let you know that I realize that it is not exactly pumpkin beer time of year anymore. Over the holiday season The Wife and I did a flight of four pumpkin beers and I am just now getting around to passing along the results. All of this will still be useful (at least for me) since three of the four beers will be brewed again this year and the fourth is my home brew, which I will want to make again later this year.
With that out of the way I can let you know that today will be the first of four consecutive days that I will post the reviews for the pumpkin beer flight that we did. I can also let you know that all but one of the images from the occasion was lost in a hard drive crash so you will see that single image over and over. Take that as a warning for those who don’t back up their photos, I know we learned our lesson.
I reviewed each beer individually, but I gave The Wife a blind flight of the four to see where she would put my home brewed version of pumpkin ale (Blueprint Brewing) among the others. I will reveal her final rankings in the last of these four entries.
Let’s get started . . .
Brewery: Blueprint Brewing (Winter Park, FL)
Name: Gourdeous One
Style: Vegetable Beer
ABV: 4.13% (+/-)
Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pint glass.
Aroma: Smooth pumpkin spices noticeable (mostly nutmeg) with some slight sweetness underneath (brown sugar?).
Appearance: Deep amber to brown color. Two finger (plus) cream color head that is thick with good retention and laced trail. Clear with tons of bubbles visible.
Flavor: Low maltiness with a hint of sweetness. The flavors of real pumpkin are noticeable. No real bitterness and a clean finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium body with high carbonation that leaves some bite. Crisp and slightly creamy.
Overall Impressions: Pretty darn good, though other bottles from the batch have been a bit tastier. Will make again with some slight tweaks to the recipe. Definitely good enough for a revisit.
Grade: B+
The Wife enjoy her pumpkin flight.
“Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Month” has officially leaked into December with this evaluation and will do so even more with another to come this Friday. It was not intentional, but I was left with a few of the more interesting beers for this week, including this one based on an ancient Turkish recipe discovered in the tomb of King Midas. Being brewed without hops gives this one a very unique flavor profile (that The Wife enjoyed a lot) and is certainly worth a try if you have the opportunity.
Brewery: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (Milton, Delaware)
Name: Midas Touch
Style: Spice/Herb Beer
ABV: 9.0%
Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a white wine glass. $3.99 for 12oz.
Aroma: Sweet aroma of grapes (prominent). Clean and crisp sauvignon blanc/riesling-like nose.
Appearance: Golden color with strong orange tint (honey-like, probably influenced by the saffron). Slight, off-white head that quickly dissipates with no trail and very slight legs. Very clear with a few bubbles rising.
Flavor: Moderate grape flavor on a background of light maltiness and a slight bit of honey sweetness. Some dryness at the finish that stays on the palate a bit.
Mouthfeel: Light body and pretty high carbonation with some bite (champagne-like). Smooth and crisp with a slight warmth at finish (enough to let you know it is 9%).
Overall Impressions: Drinks like a light bodied beer, but with a lot of flavor. Seemingly a direct midpoint between beer and champagne. Very pleased to have tried and quite different than anything I have tasted to date (that I can recall).
Grade: B+
Point of entry
Dogfish Head - Midas Touch
Dogfish Head - Midas Touch
The attempt to make a video of the bottling process for my pumpkin ale did not turn out as I envisioned, so a written update will have to do this time. I had very good reactions to the video for racking the pumpkin ale, but my editing skills were not up to the task of turning the long bottling footage into something of reasonable length. No worries though as I will figure out what to do for next time. Refining my video making skills will run right along with refining my brewing skills, which I am more than OK with.
So my pumpkin ale has been in bottles for about a week and a half now. If you are curious about the bottling process check out what I did with the honey porter a few months ago. The procedure was exactly the same except I was using all recycled bottles this time rather than brand new. I ended up with fifty 12-ounce bottles even after spilling at least one bottle worth on the floor.
A few days ago marked one week, so I opened a bottle for sampling to see how things were coming along. It has carbonated very well and the flavor is pretty damn good, if I do say so myself. I wished the aroma was a little more prominent, but it seems like it will turn out to be a winner. The Wife enjoyed it very much and we are looking forward to the official “release” in about a week or so.
If you need proof of it being in bottles, just take a look at what the Chief of Sanitation is resting on.
Dedicated to his work
Stay tuned for the review!
Unfortunately most of the fall seasonal beers are long off the shelves before Thanksgiving comes around as the winter beers seem to come out earlier and earlier every year. This one is consistently at the top of the list for me when it is released each year and I held onto a few (along with some other pumpkin beers) to enjoy in November. The Wife even used a Punkin Ale to make (some very good) bread with earlier this month. Be sure to put this on your shopping list for autumn next year.
Brewery: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (Milton, Delaware)
Name: Punkin Ale
Style: Vegetable Beer (based on American Brown Ale)
ABV: 7.0%
Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pint glass. $8.99 for a 4-pack.
Aroma: Pumpkin pie-like spices (definitely nutmeg and some allspice). Full malty sweetness and seems like a real pumpkin aroma is there (in back).
Appearance: Medium brown color with copper tint. Slight cream color head with good retention and no trail. Mostly clear with some haze.
Flavor: Medium maltiness with slight toasted and caramel notes. Very slight hint of pumpkin spice flavors. Extremely low hop flavor and bitterness with a hint of dryness at the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium body with fairly high carbonation (has slight bite). Smooth with a very slight warmth.
Overall Impressions: Good beer for those who don’t like pumpkin beers (or think that they don’t). Great balance of pumpkin aroma and maltiness in flavor. Nice beer for the season . . . at the top of pumpkin beers for me (pending further research). Maybe slightly high alcohol for style (4.3-6.2% for Brown Ale).
Grade: A-
The entry point
Dogfish Head - Punkin Ale
Dogfish Head - Punkin Ale
For the second entry regarding my attempt at brewing a pumpkin ale at home I decided to take a break from writing and give you all a break from reading. I wanted to get some more practice with making video content and this was a perfect opportunity for that.
Now that the mixture is back in the friendly confines of the bathtub bubbling away, I present you with how it got there.
It’s possible for me to blame the palate confusion I had with this beer on the fact that it was one of my earliest reviews, but I don’t believe I would fare any better today. Spice, herb or vegetable beers are not that common a beverage choice for me (even since this review), so I don’t have much more experience in those evaluations. Combine that with the fact that I wouldn’t know what heather was if it was growing in my back yard and I really had/have no chance at accurately describing this beer. I have found out that people have been brewing with heather for thousands of years, so they certainly must know what they are doing.
Brewery: Williams Bros. Brewing Company (Scotland)
Name: Fraoch Heather Ale
Style: Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer
ABV: 5.0%
Tasting Notes: Stored in the wine fridge and served in a Mug/Stein
Aroma: Slight yeast(?) aroma and a clear/clean floral background. Light bit of malt.
Appearance: Light honey color. Slight white head that quickly dissipates. A bit cloudy, but clearly visible bubbles along glass.
Flavor: Malty (in a green/not roasted way). Low hops and a floral to grass like undertone. Dry finish with a slight linger.
Mouthfeel: Light body with medium carbonation. Smooth to almost creamy on palate.
Overall Impressions: Flavors are certainly new to me. Drinks easily and not at all harsh. Floral nose is stronger than in flavor. Will need to sample more S-H-V- beers for comparison.
Grade: B (or so)
Williams Bros. Brewing Co. - Fraoch Heather Ale
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