Schlafly Pumpkin Ale

You joined today and went right for a favorite topic here. Next you should ask what's the difference between a stout and a porter.
A lot of pumpkin beers use heavy spice to mimic the pie. I've had a bunch of them and most are way too heavily spiced, it's just how they make them

 

From the Schlafly web site:
"Hailed as one of the best beers of its kind, it’s the reason why fall is your favorite season. Schlafly’s Special Release Pumpkin Ale is well-balanced from start to finish, with notes of caramel and ginger throughout. Fermented in pounds of fresh pumpkin squash and a brewer’s wort and sugar mix before being filtered through a spiced infusion of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg, it turns out exactly how we intend it to taste: like a slice of pie in a bottle."

Probably why it's one of my favorite pumpkin beers.

 

You sure it's this year's vintage, and not stock left over from last year? Some unscrupulous stores will keep leftover seasonal beer until the next season, instead of closing it out or returning it. Also, how many years since you last had one? Maybe the beer is the same, not your memory of it.

 

One of my favorite Pumpkin Ales as well. Haven't picked up any this year, but don't remember it being a spice bomb (which is of course subjective). I'll have to do some first hand research

 

Best pumpkin beer. I'll let you know when I pick some up in a month or so.

 

Real possibility.

Also what you ate or drank earlier in the day could be making a difference. More than once I've bought a six pack of a beer (which should all be from the same bottling of the same batch), spread drinking them over 5-6 nights in a row and noticed some difference in flavors from one night to the next.

 

I have zero shame for my enjoyment of pumpkin beer. Picked up a 4 pack of Southern Tier Pumking Friday.

 

I too am a big fan of pumpkin beers, never had Schlafy but I never am a fan of overly spiced pumpkin ales. The best still from this day has been Rogue Pumpkin Patch Ale and I believe part of that is attributed to the fact they use real pumpkins from their own pumpkin patch. If the beer doesn't use real pumpkin I stay away.

 

Love this time of year, all the Pumpkin! This just hit the shelves here in Cali, will have to give it a try. For science!

 

My entire gripe with pumpkin beers and why I never pick them up. Brewers treat them as a dessert instead of a beer and spice them all to hell. It's why people think pumpkin beer fans are freaks

 

I live in St. Louis and don't get all of the hype for this beer. It's decent, but I don't like ginger in my pumpkin beers. I prefer O'Fallon's Pumpkin Ale.

Of the 65 pumpkin beers I've rated thus far, my favorites are:
1)Elysian Punkuccino
2)Almanac Heirloom Pumpkin Barleywine
3)Avery Pump[KY]n
4)Elysian The Great Pumpkin
5)Almanac Dark Pumpkin Sour
6)O'Fallon Barrel Aged Imperial Pumpkin
7)Central Water Headless Heron
8)Uinta Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin
9)Whole Hog Pumpkin Ale
10)Southern Tier Cold Press Coffee Pumking

 

I've never understood why pumpkin beer gets so much hate - there are so many great examples out there

 

I don't either other than what another poster mentioned about trying to make them out to be dessert. I still like them though and will try as many different types as I can.

 

Real pumpkin has nothing to do with it really. These things are do spiced that's what you taste.

Pumpkin has no real taste.

I would love to try a no spice pumpkin beer. I had a no spice squash saison that at the end you could taste some squash. Very good.

Pretty sure a straight pumpkin with no spice would be a market fail.

Anyone know a zero spiced pumpkin beer?

Enjoy

 

Sure a little spice is needed but shouldn't be over done. And no real pumpkin has everything to do with it. Rogue uses tons of pumpkins in their brewing process and that alone makes a huge difference. I've had a couple other pumpkin beers with real pumpkin that were good too but Rogue was everything I ever looked for in a pumpkin beer. Pumpkin has real flavor, I have had grilled pumpkin many times and has a squash similarity. The same goes with pumpkin pie, pumpkin pie made from can is horrible but when its done using real pumpkin wow what a difference. And for the record don't eat jack-o-lantern pumpkin, needs to be pie pumpkin.

 

To me, they are perfect for the Fall and early Winter - and not all of them are over the top dessert beers. It's crazy that Marzen/oktoberfest beers are more accepted than a pumpkin ale.

 

It seems that people get angry that they actually taste like pumpkin pie instead of real pumpkin. Well no shit. I've never craved the taste of pumpkin, but I sure love me a slice of pumpkin pie! Maybe it's the fact that they aren't just labeled outright as "pumpkin pie" beers?

Full disclosure: I'm not a big fan of pumpkin beers (or whatever you think they should be called) but I have enjoyed Schlafly's offering a few times in the past. It's the best of any that I've tried.