Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale

Brewed By: Miller Brewing Company (MillerCoors) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin   

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2014 

Style/ABV: Pumpkin Ale (Spice/Herb/Vegetable), 5.7%

Reported IBUs: 16

Blue Moon. Huuwhhhuuuuttt? Yeah, I know, right. I really wanted to give this one a fair shake because it's not a terrible beer. I also have nostalgia tied to this one. Back when I was 18, dumb, and a freshman in college, snagging beer was a bit more challenging than it is today. That's the amazing thing about having an ID and being of the legal drinking age. Oh, and having a beard helps. Anyway, on a chilly Autumn evening, my friend and I departed from the dorms on a quest for beer. We met up with a third party, a friend of my friend's, climbed into his jeep, and headed to Dominicks. Being the classy mofos that we were back then, we loaded up on fancy beer. Said fancy beer included the Harvest Pumpkin. I'm not gonna lie. I enjoyed the Harvest Pumpkin way back when, when I was 18 and dumb. I can't emphasize the dumb part enough. This was one of those gateway beers for me...and again, it's not a terrible beer. But yeah, MillerCoors and Blue Moon:

Blue Moon was first brewed in 1995 at one of MillerCoor's R&D arms; in a sandlot, in Denver, Colorado, by Keith Villa. Keith Villa is an OG player these days. He's off judging beer, and talking about his PhD in brewing from the University of Brussels. There's a PhD for everything these days. Seriously though, it's Blue Moon. Read the Wiki. 

The Harvest Pumpkin Ale supposedly dates back to 1995. Blue Moon also states that this was the first nationally available pumpkin ale. I dunno. This one is brewed with Munich and Caramel malts, Hallertau hops, and Pumpkin, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Clove, and Allspice. 

Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale

The appearance is very much typical of the style, with a dark caramel-orange body in the realm of an Oktoberfest or Brown Ale. This produces a finger of short-lived, orange/brown-tinged head. In bright light, the beer takes on an orange color, and this beer is very clearly transparent. There's good carbonation at work here, and faint head retention. It's not a bad looking beer, all things considered.

I like the aroma on this one a lot. It's simple, overly sweet, and straightforward...very much like the standard Blue Moon Belgian White. Even with my lingering head cold, I'm getting overt pumpkin, pumpkin cookies, ginger, gingersnap cookies, nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, sweet potato pie, pumpkin pie, and crackling pie crust. Really, this beer packs a ton of flavor on the nose. It has a club soda vibe on the aroma at times...so it's missing some malt depth you would otherwise find in stronger pumpkin beers, but this is way less soda-like than Shipyard's fuck-tastic and truly awful Pumpkinhead.

The taste delivers a solid continuation of the aroma, with big pumpkin pie sweetness, clove, ginger spice, pie crust, and even some malt depth. I'm getting some nice bread, pie crust, and cakey Munich malt kick in here. You get a little gingersnap, a little nutmeg, sweat potato pie, and some ginger soda. This does veer very close to club soda and ginger soda, but the malts pull things back and round this out into a real beer. It's like making a sandcastle. You want some moisture, but too much and the whole palace comes crashing down.

This is ridiculously drinkable at 5.7%, with a light to medium-light body, tons of carbonation, and a clean and attenuated finish. The finish here is impressive and clean. Really impressive compared to swill like Shock Top. Palate depth is straightforward but good, and complexity is average if not above average. I shit you not, there's good stuff going on here. From the sweet pie notes and pumpkin pastries up front, to the ginger and gingersnap spice in the middle, to the ginger soda finish that is grounded with bready Munich malts. This is a good pumpkin beer. Say it with me, even if you hate to.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

This is a Light Above-Average. I'm not just drinking the nostalgia Kool-Aid. This is a legit beer, and definitely one of the better Blue Moon variations. This may be the best Blue Moon variant after the original. In a lot of ways, this beer functions well as a Marzen or Oktoberfest...I suggest pairing this beer with football, cooling weather, and tailgating. Really, this is fantastic at around $8 a 6-pack. You don't even have to go to Binny's or whatever to snag it. Seasoned beer drinkers owe it to themselves to revisit this one every once in a while.

Random Thought: I'm so ready for football....

Spiteful Jackass O' Lantern

Brewed By: Spiteful Brewing in Chicago, IL  

Purchased: 22oz bottle (Batch #63) bought at Binny's in IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Spice/Herb/Vegetable (Pumpkin Ale), 6.66%
Reported IBUs: ?

Happy Halloween! I wish I had more time to celebrate, but I've been busy. Tonight's beer seems completely appropriate for the occasion, so without further adieu, let's crack into this mother. About Spiteful: 

Spiteful Brewing was founded in January 2010 by Brad Shaffer and Jason Klein. Like many brewers, the duo started out homebrewing. As of today, the brewery houses a 2.5 BBL Brewhouse and 5 BBL Fermenters. Currently, as a nanobrewery, Spiteful Brewing is hand delivering to stores and bars. For more info, check out Spiteful's website, or their Facebook or Twitter. 

With a big donkey on the bottle, and a quoted ABV of 6.66%, the bottle reads:

"Halloween, the one day out of the entire year when you are encouraged to dress up like a jackass. Want to dress up like a gorilla? Go ahead. A slutty nurse? No one will mind. This pumpkin ale was made with real pumpkins, home roasted to a caramelized goodness, then added to the mash. Enjoy this pumpkin ale while letting your inner jackass shine!"

Spiteful Jackass O' Lantern

This one pours into a surprisingly dark orange/brown body in lower light, and kicks up two fingers of thick, bready, sustaining, brown/caramel/tan head. In bright light, this beer takes on a hazy, super orange color. It's quite the looker. The head is soaking up the orange tones, and more than a finger is sustaining with authority. There is some lacing, and the beer has lots of carbonation in the form of tiny bubbles rising upwards.

The aroma on this beer is....rich chocolate and caramel malt. Wuuuut. There's some toast and coffee creamer as well. This beer smells a lot like a super malty Brown Ale or a Dunkler Bock. I'm getting a hint of roast on the nose as well, with lots of caramelized sugars...there's a dash of spice, and a dash of hops on the aroma as well.

This beer is very intriguing, in that I'm pretty sure they didn't use a ton of spices. Or any. There's deep layers of chocolaty, toasty, and roasted malts. I'm picking up a hint of floral/lemon hop bitterness in the mix, and there's some tannin kick to the body which suggested the addition of a fruit of vegetable. I do get lots of roast, and hints of sweet potato or cooked pumpkin, but it's not something I'd place in a blind tasting.

I'm a sucker for malty beers like this. True...this beer has zero spice, but there's a subtle roasted pumpkin/sweet potato thing going on, and I like it. The mouthfeel is bready and dense, and medium to medium-full. Palate depth is outstanding, while complexity is low. You get a dash of hops, followed by lots of malt sweetness, caramel, toast/roast, and chocolate; that rolls into more toast, some floral/lemon hop bitterness; the back end dials up more roast, hops, and hints of cooked sweet potato/pumpkin.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'll toss this a Light Above-Average. This is more of a malt bomb than it is a Pumpkin Beer, but you know what? It kind of works out, if you ignore some of the hangups and expectations for this particular style of beer. Solid stuff here, and at around 8 or 9 bucks a bottle, I would pick this up to pair with a cold Autumn night, a nice hearty soup/stew, rich chocolate desserts, or even with some pumpkin pie.

Random Thought: I have never been more ready for the weekend.

Milwaukee Brewing Sasquash

Brewed By: Milwaukee Brewing Company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Binny's in IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Porter / Spice/Herb/Vegetable, 5.6% 

Reported IBUs: 12.5

The story behind tonight's beer is that I put a big dent into my Autumn beer supply. I went to the liquor store to replenish said drained supply, and spent a few minutes contemplating which 6-pack of Pumpkin/Spice beer to roll the dice on. There are too many pumpkin beers out there, and most of them come in the 6-pack format. I'm not hating, I love having options. But I'm riding the line between Fall and Winter. I ended up grabbing a 6-pack of tonight's beer, which is from the Milwaukee Brewing Company. About the Milwaukee Brewing Company:                             

The Milwaukee Brewing Company was started as a brewpub with a 15bbl brewery. Founded by Jim McCable, the brewery produced its first beer in October, 1997. Due to increased demand and popularity, the company kegged their first beer in 2007 at the 2nd Street Brewery in, a 50bbl packaging facility. For more info, check out the brewery's website.

The Sasquash deviates from the standard pumpkin beer a bit, in that it is a Porter. Punching in at 5.6% ABV and 12.5 IBUs, the beer is brewed with Tettnang hops, a Pale/Special Roast/Honey/Chocolate malt base, and features pumpkin and sweet potatoes. In fact, the beer uses an impressive 700 pounds of pumpkin and sweet potato, straight to the wort. The beer also features some cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. 

Milwaukee Brewing Sasquash

The beer pours a dark brown, almost-black color in low light, and kicks up a finger of dark tan/khaki head. The head is creamy, and departs with some nice lacing, and settles into a nice hazy, cauldron effect. Bright light betrays the beer's ruby red body, but you can see brown tones even in lower lighting. The beer is hazy and features some floating sediment (yay, bottle conditioning!), and you can see some nice carbonation. Nothing looks amiss...onto the aroma.

Whew. This has a nice, sweet, malty aroma. I'm getting a lot of toast, some roast, sweet molasses and sugars, and malty sweetness typical to a Brown Ale, Porter, or malty Bock. I'm also getting some nice pie crust, with some cereal graininess. Actually...the aroma on this beer channels the same aromas you get on the Pumking or Warlock. I'm getting pie crust, meaty pie filling, meaty sweet potato, some cinnamon and nutmeg, graham cracker, and some slight canned corn. The aroma on this beer is really solid, here's to hoping it carries over into the taste. 

This is a nice, subtle beer. You get a lot of roast, toast, and hints of coffee and dark malts. In fact, the roasted flavors have quite a bit of depth. There's hints of cinnamon and pumpkin spice in the taste, with some subtle pumpkin pie, and hints of pumpkin pie/sweet potato towards the back of the beer. For the most part, the pumpkin and spice in this beer is very subtle compared to the roast.

If you want a pumpkin beer that isn't overly assertive with the pumpkin and spice, this beer might do the trick. At 5.6%, this beer is super quaffable, with a nice medium-light to medium-full body, and good palate depth. Complexity could definitely reach a bit further, but there is nice depth with the roasted flavors. You get a blast of pumpkin spice up front, followed by coffee, roast, toast; the middle rolls into more roast, with some earth, more coffee, some pumpkin spice and cinnamon; the back end has subtle hints of sweet potato and pumpkin, and more roast. It tastes like a Porter with a hint of that Pumpkin/Sweet Potato twist.

Rating: Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Average on this. I commend this beer for the depth of the roast. And for 5.6%, this beer packs a lot of flavor and punch. It's a good Porter...just not a mind blowing Pumpkin Beer. So, you're gonna love this beer if you hate overly assertive pumpkin brews. It also is a nice dark beer twist to the somewhat cliched Pumpkin Ale style. You can pair this beer with hearty pumpkin dishes, pumpkin soup, sweet potatoes, any Autumn pie (apple, pumpkin, sweet potato, etc.), or just drink it with a burger. It's light enough at 5.6% to pair well with a wide range of foods. Good stuff from Milwaukee.

Random Thought: Deep Ellum became the subject of controversy with their "Dallas Blonde Ale." It goes down easy. The controversy is a bit convoluted, but word on the street is that Deep Ellum was participating in the drama. Not cool. Even worse is the "Apology-that-is-NOT-an-apology" issued by the brewery, basically saying they're not sorry for offending people. It's a whole lotta bullshit, but the non-apology is a classless move on the same level as douche nuggets like Daniel Tosh. When will people learn.

Timmermans Pumpkin Lambicus

Brewed By: Timmermans/Brouwerij John Martin in Dilbeek-Itterbeek, Belgium

Purchased: 1 Pint, 9.36 Fl. Oz (750ml) bottle bought at Binny's in IL; 2013 (Bottled On: 07/24/2013)

Style/ABV: Fruit Lambic, 4.0% 

Reported IBUs: ?

I was very hesitant to pick up tonight's beer, which is a pumpkin "Lambic" brewed with natural flavors. We'll see how this one stacks up. About John Martin and Timmermans:                                                                

Timmermans brewery/Anthony Martin was founded in 1909 by British brew master, John Martin. Since then, Timmermans has been making a variety of beers. However, it also appears that the Timmermans Brewery dates back to 1702 (over 300 years), when the Timmermans started brewing Gueuze Lambics under the brewery name of "Brasserie de la Taupe." You can read more about the history of the brewery here.  

Tonight's beer is so OG there isn't even a webpage for it. Punching in at 4.0%, this "Lamic" is brewed with natural flavors, and spices (I'm assuming). 

In lower light, this beer pours into a nice dark brown/orange body, and kicks up two to three fingers of off-white head. The head wastes no time settling into a nice centimeter size, but the beer has tons of violent carbonation. Surprisingly, the beer looks about the same in bright light...ever so hazy, with a vibrant dark orange body that has some hints of brown/amber. The head soaks up the orange, and is leaving nice lacing. Head retention is nice, with tons of effervescent carbonation.

Timmermans Pumpkin Lambicus

On the aroma: lots of sweet, sweet pumpkin spice and pumpkin soda. I'm reminded of Shipyard's Pumpkinhead. I'm getting sweet cinnamon, pumpkin spice, pumpkins, and apples. There is some lemony straw and grass on the nose as well, with a hint of cereal grains and grain-funk ala a Saison or Wild Ale. There's some damp funk on the aroma...just tons of "damp." 

Not shockingly, the taste follows through with the nose...you get a lot of sweet, pumpkin spice/cinnamon soda, with big blasts of apples, apple pie, and cinnamon. This beer tastes a lot like apple pie. There is a slight oaky/woody edge to this, with some hints of tartness on the edges, and a little of that patented Sour Brown/Oud Bruin dark malt. And the sweet pie/apple/cinnamon flavors are actually held together quite nicely. This reminds me of a pumpkin wine or mulled wine. I'm going to let this warm up and add a few more tasting notes...as this warms, you get a whole lot more damp, slightly tart, pumpkin soda meets apple pie. The tart edge remains, and there's a hint of underlying wood/oak.

At 4.0%, this is very drinkable. I was worried that this was going to be watery, but this works out. Palate depth and complexity are alright. The mouthfeel is light-bodied, with good carbonation. Everything is mild. You get mild tart/oak that immediately gives way to sweet apples, apple pie, pumpkin spice, cinnamon; that rolls into apples, sweet spice; the back end is lingering sweetness, apples, and a finish that is damp and not dry.  

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Average on this. This isn't bad...in fact, it's very drinkable for what it is, and if you're looking for apple pie soda you'll be in business. I would pair this beer with light cheeses/hors d'oeuvres, a light pumpkin soup, or pumpkin desserts. This one was kind of pricey...around 16 or 17 a bottle, I believe. For those reasons, you definitely want to pair this with food. This is by no means a must-have Pumpkin Beer, but it's a fun twist for a fruited/sugared "Lambic" thing.

Random Thought: I can't believe it's only Tuesday night.

Southern Tier Warlock

Brewed By: Southern Tier Brewing Company in Lakewood, New York
Purchased: 22oz bottle bought at Binny's in IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Stout - Spice/Herb/Vegetable, 8.6%

Reported IBUs: ?

Tonight I'm taking a stab at Southern Tier's new Autumn release, their Warlock. This beer is supposed to be the Stout counterpoint to their delicious Pumking, so hopefully things work out. About Southern Tier:

Southern Tier Warlock

Southern Tier Brewing Company is based out of Lakewood, New York. The brewery was founded in 2002 by Phineas DeMink and Allen "Skip" Yahn. Using equipment purchased from the old Saddleback Brewing Co., the company began production with the vision of reviving traditional small batch brewing to the region. By 2003, the brewery was distributing their small batch ales, and by 2005 their sales covered New York and Pennsylvania. Before the brewery had any seasonal beers, it produced a Pilsner, Mild Ale, and IPA. Due to popularity, in 2009 a 20,000 square foot facility was built to allow for the brewing of large-scale beers. Since then, Southern Tier has continued to expand, and continued to invest in better equipment to keep up with the increasing demand for their beer. You can read more about Southern Tier's history on their history page.

The Southern Tier Warlock is part of Southern Tier's Blackwater Series of beers. The bottle states: "Warlock is brewed to enchant your palate on its own & also to counterpoint our Imperial Ale, Pumking. Make your own black magic by carefully pouring this imperial stout into a goblet." Described as having a black body and medium bitterness, this beer is brewed with a 2-row pale malt, caramel malt, black malt, and munich malt base; it uses puréed pumpkin; and magnum and sterling hops. Described as having aromas of pumpkin pie, spice, and roasted malts, the flavor should feature pumpkin pie with a coffee and dark chocolate twist. This beer is obviously a Fall/Autumn seasonal.

The beer pours into a dark black body that has brown/ruby red tones. The tones. The beer also kicks up one or two fingers of light tan/khaki head. Head retention is nice, and there's some lacing and alcohol legs when you swirl the beer in the glass. Shining light through the beer confirms just how light this beer is, as the beer clearly has a ruby red/brown body. You can see some carbonation in this, and the beer looks good and gravy. 

This is a twist...the aroma on this beer smells nearly identical to Pumking. I'm pulling out huge pumpkin, pie crust, graham cracker, creamed corn, corn, steamed corn, and some nutmeg and clove spice. There's a hint of roast and malt depth on the nose, but it is very faint and subtle compared to all that pumpkin. 

Huzzah. The taste deviates quite a bit from Pumking, with notable flavors of roast and coffee on the back end. You get a blast of malt-drenched pumpkin, pumpkin pie, pie crust, graham cracker, creamed corn, candy corn, and nutmeg/clove up front. The initial blast is drenched with bitter dark malts, roast, coffee, and hop bite. This beer is surprisingly hoppy and bitter, with aggressive hops and coffee flavors popping up. After the initial battle of roast vs. pumpkin, you're left with some chocolate and coffee, and then the beer finishes with deep roast and coffee notes, and lingering pumpkin on the finish. 

I don't know if this is better than Pumking, but it certainly adds another layer of complexity. It's a welcomed twist on the ol' October standby. The mouthfeel here is dense and full-bodied, with light carbonation moving things along. Like many of Southern Tier's beers, this one is formidable and sweet. On the other hand, the roast and bitter elements don't have a huge Stout base to work with, and as a result the beer feels less dense than it could. Palate depth is good and complexity is very high. As noted earlier: you get tons of pumpkin and spice up front, juxtaposed with coffee, roast, and bitter hops; the middle rolls into roast, coffee, vanilla/creamer, and chocolate; the back end is lingering roast/coffee and pumpkin spice. At 8.6% I'm not picking up any noticeable booze, and this is pleasantly drinkable for what it is. 

Rating: Divine Brew (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm going to go with a Light Divine Brew for this, which is actually a notch below the Southern Tier Pumking! We're in Stout land, baby, so my expectations are ratcheted up a bit. Having said that, the addition of roast/coffee/chocolate adds a nice layer of complexity to this beer. The addition of bitter hops and coffee helps curb some of the sweetness that many people find cloying or obnoxious in Pumking. The addition of dark malts also means this beer will work well on a cold, October night. This beer is decadent like dessert, and lives up to its mysterious hype. You could pair this beer with a chocolate cake, pie, pumpkin desserts, Thanksgiving trimmings, or just drink it by itself for dessert. Bottles were going for 7 or 8 bucks, which is a good deal.

Random Thought: I'm all for Kickstarter and I think it's cool that some breweries have been funded by using Kickstarter...but when do we reach the saturation point for soliciting donations? I'm glad you want to start a nano-brewery in your hometown, but if you aren't distributing your beer nationally I'm less inclined to care. I suppose nano-breweries are similar to restaurants. As someone who knows fuck all about starting a business, I have to wonder how restaurants do it. Do you take out a loan? Go to investors? In the end, I'm charitable and I love beer...but yeah. 

Doc’s Draft Hard Pumpkin Cider

Brewed By: Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery in Warwick, NY 

Purchased: 22oz bottle bought at Binny's in IL; 2013 

Style/ABV: Cider, 6.0%

Reported IBUs: ?

Bro, do you even cider? Apparently Ratebeer doesn't, because there are no ratings for this cider. That means this review is more indie than vinyl, right, Mr. Paul? About the Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery: 

Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery was founded in 1989 when they purchased an orchard and began to grow fruit. After experimenting with hard cider, they purchased a cider license in 1993, and opened their doors to the public in the Fall of 1994. In 2001, Warwick pourchased a grant to develop New York's first fruit micro-distillery. In addition to making ciders, wine, and gin, Warwick is also host to weddings and other events. For more info, check out their history page or website. 

"Grow the football." 

The Doc's Draft Hard Pumpkin Cider is a seasonal release, "made from pressed NY state apples and fresh pumpkins, fermented with champagne yeast and malic acid to excite the action." I don't know what they mean when they say that this cider is going to "excite the action," but it sounds like a Mark Trestman-ism. This cider features roasted pumpkins, cinnamon, allspice, fresh ginger and nutmeg.

Man, cider reviews are so easy compared to beer reviews. This pours into a golden/apple juice body, with a finger of white head that rapidly dissolved before I could even capture it on camera. The cider's body is mostly transparent with good clarity, and features a storm of rising carbonation. In bright light, the cider takes on that white wine appearance. I'm impressed with the numerous streams of carbonation still rocketing upwards.

Doc’s Draft Hard Pumpkin Cider

I'm shocked at how much pumpkin I'm getting on the aroma. If you were handed this blind, you would say: cinnamon apples, apple, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon. That's pretty much the gist of this cider's aroma. Just...huge cinnamon apple and pumpkin spice. There's a weird grape/honey/rubber sweetness on the aroma as well, along with nuances of ginger and nutmeg, and a hint of sulfur[?]; but mostly cinnamon apple and pumpkin spice. 

This is bubbly, effervescent, and refreshing. I'm getting a lot of apple cider up front, and this definitely dials the sweetness up and keeps the dryness at bay. The apples up front are complimented with ginger and nutmeg kisses, and then you get blasted with cinnamon, pumpkin spice, honey/grape sweetness, and more pumpkin. I pretty much get every flavor this advertises in the taste, and this stays true to its cider base.

This is light-bodied, effervescent, bubbly like champagne, and really refreshing. You don't feel or taste the 6.0%, and palate depth and complexity are both on point. This is just tasty stuff. There's no false advertising here: you get lots of apple cider and nutmeg/ginger zing up front; that rolls into cinnamon, pumpkin spice, honey/grape sweetness, and hints of pumpkin; the back end features pumpkin, more pumpkin spice and cinnamon, and the finish is light and not dry at all. 

Rating: Divine Brew (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm gonna toss this a Light Divine Brew. You know...this could be a notch better if it had a bit more complexity, but this is pretty much perfect for what it is. This is a cider with some pumpkin punch backing the apples up. Now, I'm no cider expert, so take my thoughts with a grain of salt...but this is a pleasant libation that would be right at home during the Fall/Autumn months. This is also priced well at around 6 or 7 bucks for a 22oz bottle. I'm about to pair this cider with a BBQ-pulled pork sandwich, which is the perfect cider pairing. I would pair this with lighter foods the benefit from the apple sweetness and high levels of carbonation. I'm not picky with my ciders; this hit the spot.

Random Thought: I should drink more ciders and meads, I really should.

Hoppin' Frog Barrel Aged Frog's Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale

Brewed By: Hoppin' Frog Brewery in Akron, Ohio  

Purchased: 22oz bomber bought at Binny's in IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Spice/Herb/Vegetable (Imperial Pumpkin Ale), 8.4%

Reported IBUs: 7.3

It's been a while since I've had anything from Hoppin' Frog, but tonight's beer should hit that spot. About Hoppin' Frog:

Hoppin' Frog is a "small, hands-on brewery making very flavorful beers in the most flavorful beer styles." The brewery was founded by owner Fred Karm in 2006. The dude looks like he means serious business, and he has been brewing specialty beers since 1994. Karm came up with the concept of Hoppin' Frog, and has designed and produced 21 award winning beers at the Great American Beer Festival and World Cup.

The Barrel Aged Frog's Hollow isn't actually on Hoppin' Frog's website, so I'm going to link to their regular Frog Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale page. Punching in at 8.4%, the back of the bottle states: "Barrel Aged Frog's Hollow: The smooth and spicy character of Frog's Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale is perfectly complimented by aging in used whiskey barrels. The result is a complex, super tasty combination of flavors that is both satisfying and memorable. We hope you enjoy this very special Frog's delight!"

BA Frog's Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale

In lower light, the beer pours into a hazy orange body, and kicks up a finger of tan head. The head doesn't hang around for long, but swirling the beer kicks up a ring of carbonation on the side of the glass, along with some lacing, and glossy alcohol legs. In bright light the beer is a light, golden-orange color, with lazy mid-sized bubbles rising upwards, and a body that is mostly transparent with a slight haze. This one is bottle conditioned.

The aroma on this beer is incredible. You get blasted with huge waves of whiskey and pumpkin, in equal amounts. I'm getting big whiskey, barrel, and vanilla character...that is balanced with big pumpkin, pumpkin seed, pumpkin pulp, and lots of nutmeg/ginger and pumpkin spice. There is some brown sugar and molasses in the mix as well. Dang.

Hoppin' Frog knows how to barrel age a beer with subtlety and a deft hand, and this beer is no exception. There's a ton of caramel and malt sugar in this beer, with hints of fruits and whiskey that rolls into huge pumpkin, pumpkin spice, and sweet whiskey. The whiskey has nice bourbon/vanilla notes, and the beer is never hot or boozy, despite the barrel. In fact, you get lots of malt kick up front, and some pie crust, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice show up. The spices play off the barrel, and the whole thing has a candy sweetness to it. You get lingering pumpkin and whiskey, and the finish is dry and slightly sticky/dense.

If you're going to fault this beer for anything, it's that the sweetness might be a tad one-dimensional. But would you rather have a boozy or hot mess? This beer is super drinkable, thanks to lots of carbonation and non-existent heat. Palate depth is outstanding, and I might go as far as to say that this is fairly complex despite the one-dimensional sweetness. The body is medium-full to full-bodied, with pumpkin, toffee, caramel, and pie crust malts up front; that rolls into pumpkin spice and other spices, pumpkin, and big whiskey; you get whiskey, oak, wood, vanilla, bourbon, and then it trails off into whiskey/pumpkin with a dry finish. Super rad. 

Rating: Divine Brew (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm going to go with a Light Divine Brew, which is what I rated the original as. This is really stellar stuff, and the addition of the whiskey/barrel only adds another layer of complexity. That said, this beer's candy-like sweetness might be a tad one-dimensional, but the beer is complex in other regards. It also finds a wonderful balance between the whiskey and the pumpkin. I'm about to pair this beer with some broccoli cheddar soup, but you could pair this beer with turkey, Thanksgiving trimmings, pumpkin pie, a stew, hearty Autumn meals, or anything that would go well with a Pumpkin Beer. You could also mull over this by the fire pit on a chilly Autumn evening, or drink this beer as dessert during a football game. This beer is a tad pricey, but fuck it, this is some classy shit. Hoppin' Frog has yet to disappoint me, pick this up.

Random Thought: Today felt like the first real day of Fall. I woke up this morning and it was CHILLY out. When I stepped outside there was a cold mist sprinkling down, and I could smell the wet Autumn air. Even at around 4pm, I stepped outside and it felt like Fall. For these reasons, the Pumpkin beers are finally starting to really hit the spot.

Rogue Farms Pumpkin Patch Ale

Brewed By: Rogue Ales in Newport, Oregon  

Purchased: 750ml (1 pint, 9.4oz) bottle bought at Binny's in IL; 2013 

Style/ABV: Pumpkin Ale, 5.6%

Reported IBUs: 25

For all the reasons to have scorn and wrath and hell fire for Rogue, they do occasionally do good things. Tonight's beer is brewed using fresh pumpkins grown at Rogue's 42 acre hop yard. The pumpkins are picked, taken to Rogue's brewery in Newport, roasted, and pitched into the brew kettle to make this very beer. Even a douche canoe clock is right twice a day. About Rogue:

Rogue has been around forever, and if their beer was more widely available, and not so damn expensive, I'd probably drink more of their stuff. The brewery was founded in 1988 in Ashland, Oregon by Jack Joyce, Bob Woodell, Rob Strasser, and home brewer Jeff Schultz. Due to increasing space and distribution limitations, Jack Joyce went searching in Newport for a location for the new Rogue pub. It was at this time that he met Mohave Niem, founder of Mo's Clam Chowder. She offered Jack space to brew in her building, and in 1989 the Bay Front Brew Pub was built. Rogue's headquarters currently reside in Newport to this day. In May 1989, current head brewmaster, John Maier, joined Rogue after a brief sting brewing with Alask Brewing. John was a former Senior Technician with Hughes Aircraft Co, and a graduate of the Seibel Institute. To learn more about Rogue, check out their website HERE.

As previously noted, this beer is brewed using fresh roasted pumpkins from the brewery's pumpkin patch. In addition to the fresh pumpkin, the Pumpkin Patch Ale (formerly the Chatoe Rogue Pumpkin Patch Ale) is brewed using a list of 13 ingredients, including Rogue Farms Dream Pumpkins; Rogue Farms Dare, Risk, Carafa II & Crystal Wheat Malts; Rogue Farm Independent Hops; Orange Peel, Cinnamon, Cloves, Cardamom, Vanilla, Ginger & Nutmeg; and Rogue's infamous Free Range Coastal Water & Pacman Yeast. Punching in at 25 IBUs and 5.6% ABV, this beer is modest in its execution like many of Rogue's ales, despite the huge grocery list of ingredients. 

Rogue Farms Pumpkin Patch Ale

This beer pours with a fizzy, effervescent, and rapidly dissolving sand/tan-colored head. The head starts out with two fingers that rapidly drop off, leaving some lacing on the edges of the glass when you swirl the beer. The body of this beer is a darker amber/brown/orange in low light. In bright light this beer is a vibrant dark orange, has a semi-transparent appearance, and features lots of carbonation rising upwards with mid-to-large sized bubbles. Good times.

The aroma on this beer is really awesome...I'm getting lots of ginger and cardamom, some nondescript sweetness (maybe from the yeast?), and lots of vanilla. Swirling the beer and stirring it up brings pumpkin spice, vanilla, nutmeg, and cinnamon to the forefront. The aroma is too mild to point in the direction of a mulled wine or Winter/Spice beer, but I'm not really getting tons of pumpkin spice or pumpkin seed or pumpkin. 

You do get more pumpkin in the taste...I'm picking up soda-like carbonation and spices working in tandem with lots of cinnamon, nutmeg, spritzy ginger, and some pumpkin spice. There are actual notes of baked pumpkin and pumpkin puree in the taste, though subtle they are (/yoda). There's also mild malt sweetness, with toffee/vanilla and some breadiness. It's not overwhelmingly spicy like many Pumpkin beers are.

This is an easy-going, well-made Pumpkin beer. As the beer warms up, you pick up more and more of the pumpkin and vanilla in the taste, which is awesome. The beer has good palate depth and complexity for the style, and the drinkability is super high (especially at 5.6%). The mouthfeel is medium-light, with lots of carbonation and spritzy spices helping things along. You get blasted with malt sweetness, vanilla, and pumpkin up front; that rolls into baked pumpkin and spices; the back end is trailing spices and malts. It's actually a really nice, well-balanced, Pumpkin beer. Especially at the ABV.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

This is a Strong Above-Average, and jives well as far as Pumpkin beers are concerned. The subtle use of spices coupled with the big vanilla and pumpkin that starts to pop as this beer warms up is what makes this beer work. Additionally, this beer isn't overly boozy, so you get a lot of flavor in a reasonable package. 750ml bottles of this go for around 10 or 11 dollars, which is more or less a good deal. I'm about to pair this beer with some potato and leek soup, but this beer would pair well with any pumpkin foods, Thanksgiving foods, or Fall trimmings. I rarely say it about Rogue, but this beer comes highly recommended. 

Random Thought: Or for you folks in Chicago, highly Wreck "O" Mended. 

Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale

Brewed By: Smuttynose Brewing Company in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Binny's in IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Pumpkin Ale, 6.3%

Reported IBUs: 35

I'm hoarding beers like...well, I had something for this. Hence tonight's twofer. About Smuttynose:

Smuttynose is a brewery based out of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The brewery was founded in 1994 by the same folks who started the Norhampton and Portsmouth Breweries. To be a bit more exact, the brewery was founded by Peter Egelston. In 1987, Peter and his sister, Janet, founded the Northampton Brewery, which Peter worked as a head brewer until 1991. In 1991, they opened the Portsmouth Brewery, New Hampshire's first brewpub. In 1993, Peter attended the auction of the bankrupt Frank Jones Brewing Company, and purchased what is now Smuttynose. Currently, Peter and his partner Joanne Francis own Smuttynose and Portsmouth, and Janet owns Northampton Brewery. For more info, check out the Smuttynose website, their FAQ, Wikipedia, or Peter Egelston's blurb. 

The Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale is a classic homage to the traditional American Pumpkin Ale. This beer features the addition of natural pumpkin puree in the mash, along with spices to give the beer some pumpkin kick. Using a malt base of North American 2-Row, Carastan, and C-60; this beer is hopped using Cascade and Liberty hops. In addition to the malts and hops, this beer features Natural Pumpkin Puree, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Cloves. My bottle says this is punching in at 6.3%, and the website quotes 35 IBUs. 

Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale

The beer pours a radiant, golden-orange color, with a finger of nicely formed white head. The head has a Belgian look, with sustaining sea foam, placid bubbles, and a fantastic cauldron effect. The head also left some really nice lacing on my snifter. In bright light the beer is clearly orange, and the head is white/off-white. This beer is actively carbonated, with tiny bubbles streaming upwards.

The aroma on this beer is unique because there's a floral and lemon/grass hop character that is very distinct and noticeable. There's also a nice blast of refreshing and tart pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, nutmeg, and vegetal pumpkin. You get cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg on the aroma, with some hints of lemony-bready-pie crust.

The taste is a nice follow through, with some refreshing grass/lemon and tart pumpkin and pumpkin seed up front, followed up with some grain. That rolls into big nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, and spice, and then you get malty-thick pumpkin, pumpkin pie crust, and pumpkin spice. The back end hits you with some more lemon and grass, and the whole thing is creamy, smooth, and well-carbonated. The finish is a touch dry, with lingering vegetal pumpkin and pumpkins seeds.

This isn't the most assertive or flavorful pumpkin beer out there, but it's a really well executed beer. If this really is 6.3%, it is stupid drinkable. The beer has a medium-light mouthfeel, with good palate depth and nice layers of complexity. The carbonation is on point, and the appearance (which I rarely have fucks to give about) is fantastic. You get pumpkin-to-grass/grain up front; spices and malts in the middle; pumpkins and floral grass in the back, with a dry pumpkin finish. 

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

This is a Strong Above-Average, and one of the best Pumpkin Beers out there. This beer is highly functional, and quite quaffable. I'm biased because I love the style, but this is a beer I would pick up every Fall, and stock in my fridge. This beer would pair well with football games, Autumn weather, changing leaves, early October, and anything with pumpkin, sweat potatoes/yams, chili, or strong spices. This was also priced very reasonably at around 10 dollars a 6-pack. Good job, Smuttynose. 

Random Thought: And now for a hoppy Brown Ale...