Critz's Pumpkin Ale
Empire Brewing Company

 

I'm assuming this is the same as "Roasted Pumpkin Ale," which is the only designation Empire gives it (though the pumpkins are from Critz's).

This pumpkin ale is a transparent bright pale orange. On top develops a foamy whitish head, not tall but with fair retention and pretty good lace.
This one has all the characteristics of a good pumpkin beer, and nothing is either underwhelming or overdone. It's earthier than many, particularly in the flavor, though the impression of honey-like sweetness accompanies it. There's a good volume of pumpkin flesh and plenty of spicing, cinnamon and nutmeg particularly, blending well without building harshly. A little bit of smokiness builds in the middle, a pleasant surprise, and it stays at an even level underneath the main aspects.
The body is a crisp medium, a bit of bite with pretty good smoothness beside.

 

 

 

 

consumed at Empire Brewing

A - clear, beautiful red/orange amber; off-white head with short retention

S - spices!

T - nutmeg, coriander?; allspice? also a bit wine-like. No hops? Spices overwhelm beer (hops and malt) flavors.

M - smooth; low carbonation

D - one is enough

A very tasty treat courtesy of number1bum. Thanks Josh!

Appearance: A somewhat rough growler pour into my DFH
glass reveals a very deep, clear, orange-y amber colored
brew with a slight bit of foamy head. Retention isn't
great, but there's plenty of runny lacing going on.

Smell: A mild pumpkin sweetness with some subtle spices in
the background.

Taste: A refreshing bit of sweet pumpkin right off the
bat, followed by some nice autumn spices - cinnamon stands
out, along with maybe a bit of nutmeg.

Mouthfeel: Pretty full bodied for a pumpkin ale, though it
could have used a bit more carbonation.

Drinkability: A top notch pumpkin ale. A nice balance of
pumpkin and spice, easy drinking, and very tasty.
Definitely a brew I would like to have again.

Visited Empire for the 1st time this past Wednesday and I must say it was a fantastic experience.

Saw the pumkin on tap and had a go.

A-orangey-amber color with a slight haze, off-white head was fairly long lasting and left sheeting lace. Very attractive brew.

S-Smelled of raosted pumpkin and light spice. Caramal malt was alos present. There was a carmalized brown sugar quality in the nose. Very promising indeed.

T-Big pumpkin taste (not spice but pumpkin), there was also some pumpkin pie blend of spices but they were only a hint, exactly like I like it. There was a malty sweetness throughout the expereince. This beer might actually be described as sweet but it certainly was not cloying. A slight bitterness from the hops finished it up, nice.

M-medium body with a really nice creamy mouthfeel. The cabonation had a zing but allowed the creaminess to remain the major player in the feel of this one.

D-not too bad. I could have several of these

Overall- The best pumpkin I had this year and I've had several in search of one that was not too light (pumpkin soda), too lihgt and too spiced (ginger beer) or just plain sweet. This is that beer. While it is a little sweet, it is not too sweet. One might need to be careful in food pairing to ensure that the dish does not contrast too much and make the beer cloying. This might go well with a pulled pork sandwich with a sweeter style of BBQ sauce.

Pumpkin aroma is significant. Dark with lace and significant head. Above average carbonation. Cinammon spice. Very pumpkinish, which is not true for many other attempts at this style. New brewmaster Tim Burton's offering. Fresh and one of the better ones I tried.