How do you feel about Pumpkin Beer?

I'm a fan of pumpkin beer that has genuine tasting pumpkin flavor; they are brewed with actual pumpkin. I'm not a fan of pumpkin spiced lagers and some of them are the worst "pumpkin" beers I've had.
I have had a pumpkin beer every halloween for the last two decades. The Great Pumpkin by Elysian has been my go-to one, brewed with a lot of actual pumpkin, but only available now in mixed 12 packs, so I'm trying others now. I liked Pumpking too, but Southern Tier has disappeared from the NW, alas.
I think the survey will be biased by areas that have no pumpkin beers with real pumpkin in the mash.

 

Pumpkin beers are nice to "get into the fall season," but I only really like a couple enough to buy every year: Pumking (regular) and Heavy Seas Great'ER Pumpkin. I'll buy a few other singles but never enjoy them as much. This year if was Schlafly, Lancaster, and Cigar City. Selin's Grove Brewing also has an awesome pumpkin beer, but it's nitro (only available at the brewery).

 

I've been pretty anti-pumpkin beer over the past decade, as, in my experience, they are often "sweet" and designed to replicate the experience of tasting a real pie. This is abhorrent to me (I hate pastry stouts as well). At the same time, I do like their malty character, their festive vibe, and the spice profile of pumpkin pie, so I've been on the lookout for one I might like.

I recently found Wormtown Brewery's "Fresh Patch," which is a pumpkin beer that has an abv of 4.5%. I thought the lower abv might correlate to a generally less sweet tasting brew (as so many of the pumpkin beers are just becoming imperial pastry browns with abvs north of 7%). And I was right! The taste was not overly sweet and spice level was just fine. It was more like a lower abv brown or mild with some pumpkin pie spices. I enjoy the single I initially tried and then went back and bought a four pack. I'm glad to have found this brew.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/22200/185336/

 

Try Whole Hog's version.

I like pumpkin beers in small doses and this one is the best I have found. They do use pumpkin per their website.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/53213/52279/

 

Pumpkin beer is not for me. I stopped drinking it years ago. Cheers!

 

When I first got into "craft" beer, I was all over the pumpkin beers, grabbing whatever I could get my hands on. Fast forward to current day, and my need for pumpkin beers has dwindled to one or two per season. I'd rather drink Oktoberfest beers through Oct, Nov, and into early Dec. . . at least until SN Celebration comes out.

 

Yummy. 13.1% less ABV, and I'm in!

Or?

 

Love em! Your friend is right Yeah sure some can lean too heavily into the spice realm instead of real pumpkin, but they're generally harmless fun

 

There are a few that did it for me,
1. Wasatch Black O'Lantern
2. Red Rock Chocolate Chip Pumpkin
3. BJ's Pumpkin Ale

I like them well enough to keep trying Pumpkin beers

 

I enjoy pumpkins beers and will enjoy several during the season.

 

Am I late to the party? I’d marry it if I could.

 

I strongly don't like it, but it doesn't bother me that its popular and others enjoy it.

 

I usually go for a few pumpkin beers every year.

Overall, I am a pumpkin fan...I love a good homemade pumpkin pie.

I don't get in to the whole "pumpkin spice everything" though.


Cheers!

 

I'm all in: pumpkin pie, pumpkin bars, pumpkin cake, pumpkin spice Oreos, pumpkin spice latte, pumpkin hummus, pumpkin beer, pumpkin soup. I'm drinking a pumpkin spice cappuccino right now. I hunted down Schlafly Pumpkin Ale when I was traveling earlier this month because they quit distributing it here. I have a bottle of Avery Pump[KY]n (not sure which batch) that I've been hanging onto for a while and that I should be getting to before long. I thought Sam Adams Pumpkin Batch, a saison brewed with pumpkin and fall spices, was particularly well done (and far above any pumpkin beer they've done since). Cinnamon and nutmeg make everything better. I say "Bring it on!"

As always, YMMV.

 

Very slight. Carrot Bucket tastes amazingly close to carrot cake w/ cream cheese icing, but drier, not sweet , as is the case with all of their cream ales. More to the fruity part (of sweet, ripe carrots) , than the spicy part of carrot cake(if it has that) .
Btw, dry bread crust is the basic cream ale flavor.

 

Don't argue about Pumpkin Ale. You and your friend should buy a significant amount in order to help clear out the glut on the shelves and make room for beer I might like.

 

I enjoy pumpkin brews quite a bit - get quite a chuckle out of all the punk'n haters - thinking it is trendy to bash them....their popularity peaked a few years back though, probably late 2009-2010 time-frame. I enjoy Elysian, Schlafly, Cigar City's Good Gourd, and some local Ohio favorite from Masthead and Fatheads.
I have homebrewed with "real pumpkin" and canned puree - no noticable difference to me in the flavor attributes, but the puree route is much easier (and why most brewers use it)....it does offer some additional "fermentables" to the mash, and changes the mouthfeel....need to try to brew up a pumpkin stout!

 

This has nothing to do with pumpkin beer bashing. But I've never been a fan of pumpkin or pumpkin spices. I'll carve a pumpkin and cook the seeds but that's about it. Iv been hesitant to grab any pumpkin beers for that reason.

I'll get around to trying some 1 day eventually.

 

I've literally never seen a pumpkin beer for sale. How do they taste like? Is the pumpkin rather subdued or dominating the (other) flavor(s)?

 

It varies.

For many (most?) of the beers labeled as Pumpkin Ales the dominant flavors tend to be from the use of Pumpkin Pie spices (e.g., a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, all spice, etc.). Some of the beers labeled as Pumpkin Ales do not even include actual pumpkin as an ingredient and just use the spicing.

Pumpkin in general does not provide a lot of flavor to beer. The history of using pumpkin in beers was in Colonial America, barley malt was often expensive and the Colonial American brewers (mostly homebrewing back then) would augment the source of fermentables (starch in the case of pumpkins) of their beers with cheaper, local ingredient sources.

For the modern era Pumpkin beers were 'started' by Buffalo Bill's Brewery with their first Pumpkin Ale in 1986:

https://www.buffalobillsbrewery.com/americas-original-pumpkin-ale/

Cheers!

 

I’m not sure where a pumpkin’s ass is. Does it taste like cinnamon?

 

Isn’t on the bottom – opposite side from the stem?

 

I agree with this

 

Pumpkin ales are training for winter warmers/spicy Xmas beers!

 

I'm pretty picky about the pastry sours I encounter, but Butchertown Brewing's Pumpkin Pie Sour is really good if this style interests you.

This is the first pumpkin beer I've bought in a few years at least.

 

Thank you very much for the explanation!
Cheers!

 

I'm a big fan of most seasonal beers and they help me get into the season and really enjoy it. I'll usually pick up some Pumking and Smuttynost Pumpkin ale. I'll have those polished off by Halloween and then from there it's all Holiday beers. I wouldn't reach for a pumpkin ale after Halloween however since I have Celebration on tap.

 

I stayed away as long as I could.

Pumpkin beer is nasty. It is fit for nothing but pouring down the sink. All right-thinking people know that this is true.

FIFY.

 

I always used to buy a case of Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin. Dan was well ahead of the curve and made a more potent beer than most pumpkin ales. They would last me well past Xmas and one now and the was very pleasant.

 

A pumpkin ice cream hot fudge sundae is da bomb!

I'm an indulger myself . The funny thing is, with beers I'm normally a fan of grace and finesse, but the opposite with pumpkin brews- the bigger and stupider the better (within reason, I suppose ).

 

Yes! This is why I always double (or triple) up on the spices whenever I make pumpkin pie or pumpkin-spice latte. Or pumpkin mousse. Go big or go home!

Edit: And fresh-grated nutmeg. Always.

 

I have had at least fifty different pumpkin beers, per the BA reviews I have written. I regret only that I haven't had the opportunity to try more of them.

 

Generally speaking:
- love the way the look and smell
- meh on taste and feel
- really enjoy the novelty and controversy

The seasonality of them is a big draw, even if I only have a few each year. IMO the season lasts mid Oct. to early Dec.

@BigIronH started an appreciation thread. https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/pumpkin-beer-appreciation-thread-2022.668836/

 

I brew my own, and this year's turned out real nice. By doing this, I can avoid a 'pumpkin pie bomb' -this one is more like a half-amber-ale, half-pumpkin-beer, with subtle spices, rum, and, yes, real pumpkin.

Some Spanish breweries now do one, and they are OK. I would love to get my hands on that Elysian 12 pack.

I can understand some of the hate, as one of the worst beers I've ever had was Flying Monkeys Paranormal imperial pumpkin beer.

 

Other: I only like pumpkin porters and pumpkin stouts, generally the higher the ABV the better. Add coffee and I'm even more on board. For example, Crown Valley Imperial Pumpkin Smash is my favorite pumpkin beer and is an Imp Stout at 10.6%. Had a Casa Cerveseria coffee pumpkin Porter recently that was great too

 

Well, then the beer blend referred to as a Chocolate Pumpkin should be your jam. Select a spicy Pumpkin Ale and mix it with a very chocolatey beer (my first choice would be Young's Double Chocolate Stout but Yuengling Hershey's Chocolate Porter is a good choice as well).

Perfect for Halloween drinking!

Cheers!

 

And you can make your own as well, see above post.

Cheers!