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The Great Pumpkin Beer Tasteoff

We generally don't love fruit beers here at DCB, but there's one notable exception...pumpkin beer. Rich, earthy and spicy, these beers offer something very unique that you just don't get from other types of beer. For 2008 we wanted to do something big. We gathered all the pumpkin beers in our area that we could get our hand on, invited 11 of our friends for what was to be the great pumpkin beer tasteoff! What we ended up with was 13 people tasting 9 different pumpkin beers. Pumpkin beers are also great with food so see the bottom of the article for an awesome pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe.

One thing we learned early on in this taste test is that there isn't a clear winner here. There are certainly some favorites but the flavor profiles of pumpkin beer lends itself to personal preference more than your typical beer does. We had a blast tasting all of these beers and encourage you to gather up your friends to do the same. Special thanks to John, Earl, Kate, Brian, Amie, Ryan, Jess, Sarah, Andrew, Janice and Kevin for helping us taste all these, we know it was a really tough job, and by tough we mean delicious.

Rather than try to rate these we're just going to give you our impressions in the order we tried them.

Saranac Pumpkin Ale
Appearance: Murky brown. Tan head... taupe...looks dirty.

Smell: Smells like pumpkin spice, sweet pumpkin pie and a little earthy.

Taste: Crisp but not much flavor to it; not much pumpkin and just a little bit of spice. The beer finishes with little aftertaste, just a little spice and tartness. People didn't love this one, it was ok at the beginning, but nobody wanted to finish it. It feels like it leaves a film on your tongue. It's drinkable, but not our top recommendation.

Shipyard Pumpkinhead

Appearance: Quite light almost like a pale ale.

Smell: The aroma is filled with spices but not much hops, malt or pumpkin. There's a strong note of cinnamon.

Taste: This beer has a distinct and pleasant pumpkin flavor up front. Crisp at first, but a little thicker on the finish. Finishes clean, with decent pumpkin flavor, but not overwhelming. Pretty light for a pumpkin beer and quite drinkable. People liked this one. Tastes nutmeggy and spicy.

Brooklyn Brewing Post Road Pumpkin Ale

Appearance: Clear copper with an off-white head.

Smell: Nutmeggy hops. Spice.

Taste: Hoppy and spicy with a very strong aftertaste of spice. While this may be a bit hard to explain without trying it the beer seems to foam up as you drink it. Tastes fresh, but maybe a little overdone with spices. As you drink it, the spices mellow and it gets more drinkable. Body is light. You can smell spicy hops after drinking it.

Southampton Pumpkin Ale

Appearace: Red amber-ish with brown/tan head. A little hazy.

Smell: Pumpkin...yeah, lots of pumpkin.

Taste: Indian summer beer, sorry, indigenous native American summer beer. Tastes like eating pumpkin but in a really good way. Our test panel was torn on this beer, though, people seemed to love it or hate it. Kevin says "chalky pumpkin." People are split, half like it, half don't. Ryan thinks it's "a little sour..." Earl and Kevin agree. Devon drank it the quickest of all so far... and not because we had the least volume. As it went on, though, a lot of people liked it less. The sourness got more and more evident as it went on. Good carbonation. People are definitely split. Some think it's very drinkable, others didn't like it as much. We say this beer is worth a try though. Devon loved it.

Cambridge Brewing Company Great Pumpkin Ale

Appearance: Light golden with a white head.

Smell: Pretty light smell, a little malt, but not much. Can't really smell the pumpkin or anything.

Taste: Light... pumpkiny...Kevin and Ryan say that it tastes a little like a wheat beer with pumpkin. Very smooth. In the growler it tastes different. Make sure you taste it around your whole mouth to taste the beer completely, that definitely helps. It's better on tap at CBC than in the growler, though part of that is making sure you let the beer breathe. We found after swirling it around in our glasses it really opened up the flavors. We also got one of the first growlers of this beer so the beer is very young. Definitely real pumpkin taste in here... you can taste that! After taste is really mild... Smooth beer, very much tastes like pumpkin. If you live near Boston, definitely check out Cambridge Brewing Company for this beer, it's on tap now... Growlers on sale October 1st we're told. This beer is best a little warmer than most people would serve beer at. Take it out of the refridgerator and let it warm up for about 10 minutes if you have a growler. At the brewpub, they'll serve it at the correct temperature.

Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale

Appearance: Hazy golden, white head.

Smell: Pumpkin and a little spice. Gentle spice.

Taste: Wow, hoppy for a pumpkin beer! Definitely some pumpkin in here too... but the hoppiest so far, by a bit. People like it. Complex. Nice carbonation... Brian's favorite after CBC. Super easy to drink compared to the others, smooth and crisp, despite the aggressive hops. But, like most pumpkin beer, nobody thinks you could drink too many (please ignore the fact the the 13 of us are drinking 9 different pumpkin ales today...we're just getting through it to tell you all what we recommend). This beer goes very well with the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies that Amie made. Devon is the only one who says too hoppy... but only slightly. Jeff likes it, partially because of the hops. He likes hops a lot.

Dogfish Head Punkin' Ale
Appearance: Dark orange with a white head.

Smell: Warming spice, a little alcohol.

Taste: Full bodied brown ale. Amie says it tastes soapy and it does a little bit, we think but it's a product of the hops. Kate says it tastes like Cambridge Brewing Company Amber and this goes well with the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies as well. Definitely the most full bodied so far. A little mollases. Really a distinct taste... pumpkin up front but an aftertaste takes over. Excellent for after dinner. Some people like the hops, some don't. But it's not always the normal people who like hoppy beer.

Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale

App: Deep amber to red. Off white head.

Smell: Cinnamon, pumpkin and alcohol. It's 8% abv, the alcohol comes through a little. Great for after dinner. Some brown sugar.

Taste: Smooth. The group's favorite so far. Cinnamon. Really smooth. Thick. Nutmeg. Definitely a serious beer! Kevin notes that, "As it warms the alcohol comes through a lot more. Makes it much less pleasant." This beer when cold is very impressive. Imperial pumpkin can easily turn into something way overdone, but this beer uses restraint and the result is quite amazing. This is a must try for any fan of pumpkin beer.

Southern Tier Pumking

Appearance: Clear, bold gold...white head.

Smell: Soooooooooooo much pumpkin! Gingerbread... also just bread. Hazelnut... nutty.

Taste: "Tastes a little sour," Jan says. Thick and intense! Hazelnut. Pumpkin spice earthiness. This is a big beer! We wouldn't recommend you have more than just a little. There's a lot of alcohol and a lot of flavor. Great to split a bomber with... oh about 6 friends. We split 2 bombers among 13 people. Many thought the beer was dominated by hazelnut flavors. We don't think there's actually any hazelnut in here, that flavor just comes through.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies: Click for Recipe

Publick House Provisions in Brookline Gets Alcohol License

After 5 months of legal wrangling, Publick House Provisions, the food/beer store that is an offshoot of The Publick House (both in Brookline, MA), received it's license to sell beer on Thursday, September 11 2008. The store had been open, but with reduced hours and coolers empty, since spring of 2008. But now, with their ability to finally execute their goal of selling all the bottled beer that Publick House carries, they've expanded to full hours:

Monday-Sat Noon-10:45PM
Sun Noon-6PM

They are taking delivery of the first beer this morning at 8am (Friday, September 12, 2008). On top of that, they have a great selection of cheeses, chocolate and other high-end food. It's definitely worth checking out... especially since it's directly next to the newest venture from the founders of The Publick House... Roadhouse Craft Beer & Barbecue! So amble your way over, get some delicious smoked meat and American Craft Beer, then check out Publick House Provisions right next door and pick up some delicious Belgian beer, the glass it goes in and some cheese or chocolate to accompany your libation.

Beer of the Month Clubs

One of the best (and worst) things about craft beer is that there are so many different breweries throughout the country, many of which you can't sample unless you live close by. So how do you get a chance to sample some brews not available in your area? Well, you could do like Devon and I did in Devon and Jeff Drink the East Coast and drive a few thousand miles... But a better, and much easier, alternative may just be to join a beer of the month club!

There's quite a few out there to choose from, which is why we've put together Beer of the Month Club Comparison, Which Should You Join? Check it out and determine which is right for you!

I received my first Beer of the Month Club membership from my then roommate as a birthday present. It was Clubs of America's Beer of the Month Club. I got quite a few delicious brews which I had never tried before... one was even Sweetwater Brewing's 420 IPA, which I didn't get to try again until Devon and I drove down to Atlanta. It was a little easier to have it shipped to me. I would definitely recommend a beer of the month club, such as this one, so check it out! Go to our Beer of the Month Club Comparison, figure out which is right for you and then wait for the craft beer to come to you!

Cambridge Brewing Company: The Great Pumpkin Festival!

We have some great news for anyone within driving distance of Boston... Cambridge Brewing Company is having their first annual Great Pumpkin Festival on Halloween this year! For those not within driving distance, we caution you against reading further as it will most likely just make you very very jealous of those who are.

Will Myers, brewer for CBC sent us over this info yesterday and we had to share it.

The Great Pumpkin Festival! or "How we learned to stop worrying & love the pumpkin"

Event Details:
This Halloween, CBC goes a little nutty with our first ever Pumpkin Festival.
The preliminary details:
*4 different CBC-brewed Pumpkin Ales, including our famous Great Pumpkin Ale, a pumpkin saison, Spinal Pumpkin (11% Imperial pumpkin with 11 different heirloom pumpkin varietals), and a pumpkin ale cask-conditioned in and served from a giant pumpkin.
*4 guest pumpkin beers! Expect some unique offerings from breweries otherwise unavailable in these parts. More info to come.
*A special pumpkin-themed beer-friendly menu from Executive Chef David Drew!
*Fun stuff like a costume contest, pumpkin smash, pumpkin baseball, whatever other wierdness we can dream up.

We're super-lucky to be expecting pumpkin beers from Dick Cantwell at Elysian Brewing Company in Seattle, and Ron Jeffries with Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales in Michigan! And to keep it local,
our friend Tod Mott from Portsmouth Brewing Company in NH will be sending a little pumpkin love, PLUS John Kimmich of the Alchemist in Waterbury, VT is threatening to make his first ever pumpkin beer, just to taunt us.

Sierra Nevada Releases Chico Estate Harvest Ale

For the first time ever, Sierra Nevada's Estate Harvest Ale - a wet hop (fresh hop) ale made from hops grown on Sierra Nevada'a hop farm - has been bottled and released outside the brewery. It hits store shelves starting today in Chico, CA and should soon be in limited spots around the country. There will be 1400 cases and a few dozen kegs sent around the country, which is not much at all. To put it in perspective, the brewery got 95 cases and sold about 50 in six hours according to the brewers there. The good news? With their hop yard growing, they hope to possibly triple production next year. Personally, I'm going to be on the lookout for this beer THIS year!

The Sierra Nevada Chico Estate Harvest Ale comes in at:

- 6.7% abv
- 68 IBUs of freshness
- Contains locally grown and harvested Cascade (of course), Centennial and Chinook (my favorite!)
- Is finished with Cascade

Fresh hop ales are great! By not drying the hops, you get more of the natural oils and essence from the hops, giving you a much more complex hop profile. Plus, they can usually only be produced around late summer/early fall (Sierra Nevada did a fresh hop ale using southern hemisphere hops, so they were able to do one off season, but that's pretty much the only way that can happen). We highly recommend you check a few of these fresh hop ales out for yourself this season!

For more info from Sierra Nevada and to see a video of it's production, check out the official website here.

Syracuse Beer Week

For all our NY readers we just got word of a group of events going on this November

Syracuse beer Week will kick off with a private gala hosted at the Landmark Theatre,
the Clydesdales will be present to greet guests, on Sunday, 11/2, 6-9 PM. Each day
of the week will feature 3-5 events. They have already schedule tastings and dinners,
as well as a pub crawl in one of our suburbs. Rich Doyle will do a University
series, and our local beer expert, Don Cazentre will do a night about Syracuse's
rich brewing history. Please visit the calendar at www.syracusebeerweek.com to see
our specific listings. The calendar is changing every week.

Oktoberfest Recipes Courtesy of Iron Hill

Iron Hill is planning it's Oktoberfest celebration this year and was nice enough to share their recipes! For those in the area check the event out in person, but for those who can't make it scroll down for their recipes so you can recreate this feast at home.

WILMINGTON, DE – This autumn, ever-popular beer and dining destination Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant is offering guests a hearty, two-course Oktoberfest Menu at all seven of its award-winning locations. This special meal will be available from September 15 until October 31, and costs $19.95. Each course pairs with one of Iron Hill’s handcrafted beers, available in 10 oz. draughts for $2.50 each.

“For brewers, Oktoberfest is one of the highlights of our year, an age-old tradition that began in Germany and is now one of the most exciting beer events in the world,” says Director of Brewing Operations Mark Edelson. “We love all aspects of beer culture, and this is such a natural way to celebrate by combining our two favorite things: great food and great beer.”

The first course of the Oktoberfest Menu is a Grilled Sausage Platter, with bratwurst, knockwurst, braised lentils, watercress and a stone-ground mustard drizzle. Iron Hill suggests their Vienna Red Lager, an amber Austrian lager with bread-y malt aroma and flavor and a crisp, clean finish as an ideal complement to the flavorful sausages. The entrée is a Pan Roasted Pork Tenderloin, with Yukon gold smashed potatoes, beer braised cabbage, house-made apple sauce and gingersnap gravy, paired with Oktoberfest, a seasonal, full-bodied amber lager with firm malt flavor, balanced with mild bitterness and a clean, dry finish.

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant has seven locations, in Newark, DE; Wilmington, DE; Media, PA; West Chester, PA; North Wales, PA; Phoenixville, PA and Lancaster, PA. All seven locations are open seven days a week for lunch and dinner. For more information about Iron Hill, or to make a reservation at any of their locations, please visit their website at www.ironhillbrewery.com .