Atlas / 5 Rabbit Phantasmagourdia
Burnt City Brewing

 

Served in a shaker pint glass at the brewpub.

Another collaborative effort from these relatively new guys, this time with 5 Rabbit, this pumpkin beer was brewed with 100 pounds of pumpkin, cinnamon, coriander, Szechuan peppercorns, and piloncillo. Sounds like fun...

This stuff pours a clear topaz-amber topped by a finger of sandy off-cream foam. The nose comprises light toffee, brown sugar, light pepper, light maple syrup, a vague sense of pumpkin seeds, and a general sense of bread in the background. The taste holds notes of brown sugar, maple syrup, caramel, very light rye bread, light pepper, light cinnamon, light vanilla, some subtle, shell-y bits of pumpkin, and some light spicy heat in the finish. The body is a light-leaning medium, with a very light moderate carbonation and a generally smooth feel. Overall, a damn quality pumpkin beer, but one whose complexity seems to be lost in itself, as though there's almost too much for my tongue to discover in a limited amount of time. Regardless, it's tasty and enjoyable and doesn't overdo the pumpkin spice like so many others do.