Imperial Pumpkin - Rum Barrel
Alewerks Brewing Company

 

550ml bottle poured into a goblet

A- pours a deep amber with a ruby hue, one-finger creamy off-white head has good retention and leaves some lacing behind

S- compared to the other variants, this one has a very vegetal aroma up front. Plenty of pumpkin flesh, complimented by spice notes of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. Caramel and toffee give way to some barrel aromas of dark fruits, molasses and brown sugar

T- Sweet and malty up front with notes of caramel, toffee and brown sugar, followed by some vegetal pumpkin flesh, cola and cinnamon. Mid-palate brings out the rum barrel, that adds an additional layer of sweetness, as well as notes of molasses, brown sugar, even some tropical fruit notes. The finish gives more spices, with cinnamon and nutmeg sticking around on the linger

M- medium body with moderate carbonation leads to a creamy mouthfeel that continues into a velvety, slightly warming finish

O- another solid variant of this great pumpkin beer. The rum barrel makes this the sweetest version for sure, enhancing those sweet malty caramel notes of the base beer, well done

 

 

Appearance: Pours a clear dark amber color with a modest head that fades to a film and ringlet; spotty lacing

Smell: Pumpkin and pumpkin spice caressed by the Rum barrel

Taste: Pumpkin with cinnamon, ginger and clove flavors; the Rum barrel treatment emerges, after the swallow, with some alcohol burn in the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with low to moderate carbonation; warmth in the gullet

Overall: The pumpkin and spice flavors are well-balanced; an interesting idea to use Rum barrels but I thought that the flavors would coalesce better than they did