The Ultimate Pumpkin Beer Tasting (Part 2)

Last year I conducted a blind tasting to determine my favorite pumpkin beer on the market.  Wolaver's Will Stevens' Pumpkin Ale finished in first, followed by Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale, Saranac Pumpkin Ale, and Brooklyn Brewery Post Road.  The tasting was such a hit that this year we decided to do it again, but increased the number of pumpkin beers from four to seven and divided them into two categories.

The first flight in this year's tasting consisted of Southampton's Pumpkin Ale, Michelob's Jack's Pumpkin's Spice, Blue Moon's Harvest Moon, and Smuttynose's Pumpkin Ale.

The second flight was dedicated to "Imperial" Pumpkin Ales with Dogfish Head's Punkin, Southern Tier's Pumpking, and Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin Ale.

Flight 1

Michelob Jack's Pumpkin Spice (4th)
Jack's Pumpskin Spice poured a clear, very light amber color with a finger width, off white head.  The nose is light, with faint aromas of malt and not much pumpkin.  The body is thin and watery, with more vanilla notes tham pumpkin notes. The finish is prolonged and sweet.  Overall, this is a below average seasonal beer. There is hardly any pumpkin and is just a mindless drinking beer. 

  Blue Moon Harvest Moon (3rd)

Harvest Moon poured a clear, amber color with a finger width, off white head.  The aroma is strong, with lots of malt but faint pumpkin notes if any.  The body is nice, decent depth with malt notes, big spices, and perfumy pumpkin.  The finish has a light dryness.  Overall, this is a decent beer from Blue Moon.  While, The pumpkin flavoring was a little too artificial for me, this is something that I would have no problem drinking.

Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale (2nd)

Smuttynose' Pumpkin Ale poured a clear, very light, amber color with a finger width off white head.  The nose is light, with some malty notes and a fragrant perfumy pumpkin aroma.  The body is lighter, with a more organic pumpkin flavor than found on the nose.  The finish has a nice dryness to it.  Overall, this is a nice pumpkin beer.  While the pumpkin notes on the nose were a little off, the flavor in the body made up for it.    

Southampton Pumpkin Ale (1st)

Southampton's Pumpkin Ale poured a clear, amber color, with a finger width, off white head.  The nose is strong, with spices and fresh pumpkins.  The body is malty, with more spices and pumpkin flavors.  The finish offers up a nice light dryness that compliments the body well.  Overall, a very nice beer and our clear cut winner.  The beer has some depth to it and clearly married the pumpkin flavors and spices the best. 






Flight 2

Southern Tier pumking (3rd)

pumking poured a clear, amber color with a thumb width, off white head.  The nose is huge, with a wildly different vanilla aroma dominating.  The body starts off ok, but then thins out and more vanilla appears and runs wild.  The beer finishes with an off putting taste.  Overall, this is a bad beer that is very different from what I expected.  There is no pumpkin at all, and it was not enjoyable.  It was by far, the worst of the three "imperial" pumpkin beers.

Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale (2nd)

Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin Ale poured a clear, copper color with a finger width, off white head.  The aroma is malty, earthy, and has lots of spices.  The body is big up front, with malt base, and big spices on the backend.  The finish lacks, and is a little watery.  Overall, it is nice up front and tails off. 

Dogfish Head Punkin Ale (1st)

Punkin poured a clear, light amber color with a finger width white head.  The aroma has lots of malt and spices.  The body is r malt base, and lots of pumpkin.  The finish has lots of spices and and a light dryness.  Overall, this is the best.  Solid throughout, the earthiness is nice, and the pumpkin shows through the most.  Lots of flavor, and refined, we love this.

    

Smuttynose Big A IPA - Quadrupel Dry Hopped

Smuttynose's Big A Double IPA is widely regarded as a great beer. With great reviews on websites such as RateBeer and BeerAdvocate, as well as multiple awards including CAMRA's Michael Jackson Award it is apparent that the beer drinking masses enjoy this beer. After hosting a Smuttynose Beer Dinner at Aroma Thyme Bistro in Ellenville, NY, I was fortunate to try a special quadrupel dry hopped cask version of the Big A.

This cask beer poured a cloudy, orange color with a paper thin, white head. The nose is a little sweet and packed with huge amounts of hops. The body has a thick malt base, smooth with medium depth and a little carbonation. It is sweet up front, with peach notes. The finish offers up a monster hop bitterness and a prolonged lingering dryness. Overall, this is a great beer. A sipping beer no doubt, it is pretty well balanced for such a big beer.

Dogfish Head Saison du Buff

Saison du Buff is a collaboration Saison by Victory Brewing Company, Stone Brewing Company, and Dogfish Head.

Dogfish's version poured a semi-hazy, straw color with a finger width, white head. The aroma is amazing, with lots of going on. It is dominated by herbs, and has some hints of lemon. The body is short and crisp, earthy, with some acidity, and hops laying underneath on the backend. The finish offers a nice herby dryness, lingering for a bit without being overdone.

Overall, this is just a great beer. It is unique, and incredibly easy drinking for a beer of 6.8% ABV. This is a beer that can stand alone or begs to be paired with any number of dishes. A must try if you can find it.

Smuttynose Short Batch #9 Rogue d'Shire

While Smuttynose is one of the more well known craft brewers in American, you can beer fans if they have never heard of Smuttynose's Rogue s'Shire. The beer is part of Smuttynose's Short Batch Series, an series of beers with extremely limited production. You can find the story behind Rogue d'Shire on the Smuttynose Brewer's Notes blog.

Rogue d'Shire poured a ruby red color with a paper thin, white head. The aroma was juicy, sweet with lots of raspberries. The body is short, with a little hint of sweetness, and raspberries before a super tart finish that puckers the mouth.

Overall, this was a nice sour. The raspberry balance is perfect, sweet up front with the short body transitioning quickly to the tart sour notes left on the palate. On my recent tour of Smuttynose, Director of Brewing Operations David Yarrington explained that some experimental brews were sitting in the wooden barrels I had inquired about. If what was in those barrels was as good as Rogue d'Shire then anyone fortunate to taste them is in for a treat.

'Brew Masters' TV Show To Begin Airing In November

EXPERIENCING THE WORLD ONE PINT AT A TIME DISCOVERY CHANNEL RAISES A GLASS FOR BREW MASTERS

- Premiering Sunday, November 21 at 10 PM E/P on Discovery Channel -

(Silver Spring, Md.) - Its cold, its comforting, its beer....but for Sam Calagione, founder of one of America's leading craft brewers Dogfish Head Brewery, beer is a passion, a business and a personal quest for best, most imaginative brews. Premiering Sunday, November 21 at 10 PM E/P on Discovery Channel, BREW MASTERS follows Sam and his partners in suds as they travel the country and the world sourcing exotic ingredients and discovering ancient techniques to produce beers of astounding originality.

From chocolate to oysters to tomatoes, Sam is constantly pushing his team and himself to innovate and celebrate the amazing world of beer and beer making. The imagination of the Dogfish Head team is matched only by the fun they inject into every facet of their jobs. Beer tasting meetings in the conference room with co-workers, a bocce ball league in the parking lot, filming original rap videos in the brewery plant, its all in a days work for BREW MASTERS.

BREW MASTERS taps more than just kegs and barrels, it unlocks a fascinating history of beer making, showcasing the ingenuity and passion behind our love affair with those alluring suds and how it played a role in building civilizations, said Clark Bunting, President and General Manager of Discovery Channel.

Running a successful business also requires inspiration, so BREW MASTERS hits the road for the ultimate beer tasting road trip. Sam sets out to recreate ancient ales that have been discovered at sites around the world from Egypt to Peru. He travels to Rome to research old world Italian beers as inspiration for a new site in New York with Mario Batali. A visit to New Zealand introduces the idea of making the first tomato based beer. And back home, Sam is tasked to come up with a commemorative beer called Bitches Brew to celebrate the 40th anniversary release of Miles Davis famous recording.

Beer has always been my passion. It is so much more than what you see in the glass. Im excited to share the diligence, daring and creativity that we pour into our work, said Calagione.

BREW MASTERS is produced for Discovery Channel by Zero Point Zero Productions. Chris Collins and Lydia Tenaglia are executive producers. Tim Pastore is executive producer for Discovery Channel.

About Zero Point Zero:

Zero Point Zero is a television and film production company founded in 2003 by Executive Producers Chris Collins and Lydia Tenaglia. Since its inception the company has produced over 300 hours of nationally and internationally airing television programs, including the critically acclaimed and award winning series: Anthony Bourdain No Reservations and Diary of a Foodie. In 2009 Zero Point Zero received five EMMY nominations, including a primetime nomination for Best Non-fiction Series for Anthony Bourdain No Reservations series and a win for Best Cinematography. Other recent productions include the 2009 EMMY-winning Diary of a Foodie and 2010 EMMY nominated, Adventures with Ruth for PBS; the 2010 series, Brewed, for Discovery and Frontierman for History Channel. This year the company will produce a landmark 100th episode of No Reservations, which features celebrity chef and New York Times best-selling author Anthony Bourdain's travels and explorations of food and culture around the world. Specializing in distinct storytelling with a handcrafted look and feel Zero Point Zero has produced television shows in over 100 countries around the world.

About Discovery Channel:

Discovery Channel is dedicated to creating the highest quality non-fiction content that informs and entertains its consumers about the world in all its wonder, diversity and amazement. The network, which is distributed to 100.1 million U.S. homes, can be seen in over 180 countries, offering a signature mix of compelling, high-end production values and vivid cinematography across genres including, science and technology, exploration, adventure, history and in-depth, behind-the-scenes glimpses at the people, places and organizations that shape and share our world. For more information, please visit www.discovery.com.

About Discovery Communications:

Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISAD, DISBD, DISCK) is the worlds number one nonfiction media company reaching more than 1.5 billion cumulative subscribers in over 170 countries. Discovery empowers people to explore their world and satisfy their curiosity through 100-plus worldwide networks, led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Planet Green, Investigation Discovery and HD Theater, as well as leading consumer and educational products and services, and a diversified portfolio of digital media services including HowStuffWorks.com. For more information, please visit www.discoverycommunications.com.