Screamin' Pumpkin
Griffin Claw Brewing Company

This was the first beer that I picked up while away from home recently, as I got it at a Meijer in Michigan. Never had anything from Griffin Claw before and this was not a bad take on the style since the spice was relatively subdued. Nothing outstanding or noteworthy about this as it held up nicely over the last few months!

I really enjoyed the dark copper hue that was present here as it was full of fine bubbles and topped off with plenty of bread in the foam. A good amount of lacing remained as a majority of it was concentrated along the bottom half of my pint glass. Not a strong aroma as there was some subdued pumpkin with nutmeg and assorted spices on top of it. The cinnamon and hint of pie emerged in the taste with some allspice and gourd underneath that. A lively mouthfeel and full body rounded this out as this didn't last in my glass for long and was an easy sipper from start to finish.

Much of that had to due with the lack of overt alcohol as it would have been easy to down another of these, had I not finished off the others while on the road. Dated 7/28 on the bottom of the can with a bunch of numbers written below it, I loved the label because of the art, the image of Michigan, and the relevant quotes. This was good and one of the nicer examples of the style that I've gotten my hands on, but fell a bit short of winning me over to the style. On a way day full of football, this fit the bill nicely and had me wishing I was away from home again!

 

 

This is a seasonal beer that I have every year, the beer I'm having this evening is at the tail end of the run.
Poured from a sixteen oz can, not much head, slight bit of lace, copper color, pretty good smell.
It's got a full flavor, good mouth feel, spices, pumpkin, sweat on the front and a little bitter on the back.
It has always been my favorite of the season until I found a local brewpub pumpkin ale this year.

Griffin Screamin' Pumkin Ale.. I poured most of a 16 oz. can into a pint glass. A fiery dark orange ale with a two finger white head fills the glass. There is a slight haze from pumpkin mash, and the beer provides more lacing than most pumpkin ales. The nose is as expected for a reasonably priced 5% pumpkin.. cinnamon and nutmeg up front, with lesser notes of caramel and malt. The taste is good. Cinnamon and ginger front and center, nutmeg, cloves, caramel sweetness, pumpkin, and a slight sourness of hops barely piercing through. The spice mix is key here in elevating a beer brewed to a mass market price to something better than the sum of its' parts. The mouthfeel is also better than expected, solidly neither thin or sticky. This is the best everyday pumpkin available in Michigan, in the opinion of the majority of restaurant owners, storekeepers, and friends I have spoken to. I see no reason to argue. Roak Pumkpin Pie Milkshake IPA is very good, but is higher in both ABV and price. I will definitely be making Griffin Claw Screamin' Pumpkin an annual tradition here in my Michigan years.

This is my favorite fall beer. I love the spices. Not too sweet.

 

 

 

Not southern tier pumpking , taste was marginal good at first with a note of fingernail polish remover at the end .

 

 

Dark copper to amber in color with a fingernail of off white. Light lacing. The aroma is cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin. I’m tasting nutmeg, cinnamon, and pumpkin. The mouth offers a hint of heat from the judicious amount of spices.

 

This is an excellent pumpkin ale with a real pumpkin pie flavor. Allspice, cinnamon, vanilla, and pumpkin all mingle together nicely to make a sweet but not too sweet real pumpkin pie flavor. I’ll drink this every fall.

Just like pumpkin pie, it tastes so gourdgeous.

I divided the circumference of taste by the diameter of the smell, and it had a hint of awesomeness with pure pumpkin pi.

And I'll say that at 5% abv, it's stronger than other fall beers... probably from pumpkin iron.

***rating weighted for pumpkin beers***

For pumpkin beer, this is world class. For beer in general, is is still a solid 4 overall.

The smell is great and hits you right away upon opening. It is best poured, but this is one of the few beers I have had that was great right out of the can....(fall back woods bonfire).

It has a heavier body than most pumpkin beers with a richer head than most as well. Sweeter than most of the pumpkin beers, there is a strong pumpkin pie taste. If you are strong willed enough I would suggest holding on to a few for Thanksgiving.

The after taste is great as well unlike most pumpkin beers. The alcohol taste is almost non existent and it remains on the pallet for quite some time after drinking.

In all, this is a solid choice and I would advise picking some up if you can. I put my traditional ontoberfest beers aside this year for this one to mix it up. Not disappointed in the least bit.

 

Our autumn seasonal. An Amber Ale brewed with roasted pumpkin in the mash then spiced with ginger, allspice, nutmeg and cloves. Spicy and refreshing. A great tail gating beer.

Pours a hazy, reddish brown color with a foamy tan that disappears quickly. Spicy aromas of pumpkin spice , clove and cinnamon. Tastes of cinnamon and clove with sweetness coming from brown sugar. Medium body. Good mouth feel.

 

Can. Pours golden red with a decent beige head. Aroma of pumpkin pie spices, pumpkin, caramel, fruit, and malt. Taste is similar. I do not enjoy pumpkin beers at all. This one is better than most.

Appearance - Pours deep copper color with nice off white head. Spotty lacing.

Aroma - lots of pumpkin spice, cinnamon, clove, and allspice.

Taste - Really balanced pumpkin flavors, pumpkin spice, vanilla, cinnamon. Natural flavors not artificial at all.

Feel - Medium bodied soft carbonation smooth.

Overall - A really well done pumpkin ale, well balanced and light.

 

Serving: 16 oz. can poured into a Founder's Harvest Party pint glass. No canning date, but likely over 2 months old at this point.

A: Almost a tapered amber color, lighter at the bottom. Small amount of off-white head.

S: Soft notes of pumpkin pie, cinnamon, allspice. Very warm and inviting.

T: Very nice and balanced pumpkin flavor. Not too sweet or overpowering. Hits of nutmeg, cinnamon. Not overly spiced either.

M: Medium body, good carbonation. Aftertaste has a surprising touch of bitterness.

O: First time I had this beer was when it was brewed by Michigan Brewing Company, who has since closed. Since picking up the recipe, Griffin Claw has done a really nice job with this. This beer was always the most pumpkin pie-forward of the pumpkin beers. Lots of graham crust, rich pumpkin. Definitely not overly sweet or spicy like some pumpkin beers can succumb to. Along with Ichabod, this is easily one of my favorite pumpkin beers.

Recommendation: One of the better pumpkin beers, this should be a Fall staple for many.

 

Picked up a can of this to try when my wife went on a mini vacation to Michigan about 2 weeks ago. Poured out of a 16 oz. can into one of my pint glasses, this beer pours a clear, light to medium amber/copper color with a fluffy looking white head that's over half an inch thick when poured that settles to 1/2 an inch a few minutes after being poured. Has good retention. Strong aromas of pumpkin, ginger, clove and nutmeg are all present with some toasted malts as well. Flavorwise, this starts off with some nice, roasted, bready caramel malt sweetness along with flavors of pumpkin, ginger, clove, nutmeg and a bit of all spice. Nicely balanced flavor profile, and the use of real pumpkin really comes through nicely tastewise. Has a somewhat crisp, also smooth and frothy, medium bodied mouthfel with light to moderate carbonation. Very easy to drink in the way good beer ought to be. Has a very clean finish with a slightly dry aftertaste.

Eric

 

 

 

 

One of the better pumpkin beers I've had. A lot of pumpkin flavor nice smell and not overly sweet at only 5 %.

 

 

 

A - Honey color with a slightly off-white head

S - Big, spicy notes of cinnamon with an earthy undertone...sort of like pumpkin pie

T - The spice and cinnamon come through on the palate and are consistent with the taste. There was also some bitterness that I didn't expect. Not a lot, but enough to be noticeable.

M - Light and medium carbonation.

O - This was just so-so. The spice notes and body somewhat reminded me of a tripel. In general I think pumpkin beers are becoming unnecessarily numerous and I for one would be happy to see this fad die. Every fall it seems there are more and more pumpkin beers on the shelf and they arrive much earlier in the season. They way they multiply reminds me of bacteria in a Petri dish. And what's so good about pumpkin? I understand why beers flavored with chocolate, citrus or bourbon are popular; those things are delicious. But pumpkin? Other than a piece or two of pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, I'd wager most people don't consume too much it.

Excellent Pumpkin Ale with all of the great spices you would expect. Probably the best Pumpkin beer in Michigan.

Cheers!

 

One of the best pumpkin brews I've had. Slightly sweet pumpkin pie spice, a slight twinge of bitter. Like Budweiser mixed with pumpkin pie. A little heavy on the belly.