Beerswap with Voodoo

I received two bottles from Voodoo today: Maple Pumpkin Ale and Gingerbread Spice.

I'm trying the Maple-Pumpkin right now. It's got a great color, nice pumpkin-spice scent and good carbonation. There's a thin head that leads to nice lacing that sinks quickly. IN wine terms, I'd say it has "Decent legs". The taste is smoothe and subtle. Not bold or overwhelming, just slightly sweet with a hoppy finish. The pumpkin and maple flavors are hard to find, but they are there: the maple hits just before the hops.

As mentioned in his thread, there is still mucho sediment that churns around in the beer but it doesn't distract from the flavor or enjoyment of the beverage as a whole. I think this pumpkin taste better than mine, mostly due to the extra hops and maple.

Report on the Ginger to follow.

Envious....

I'm sampling voodoo's Gingerbread Stout right now.

First thing I noticed was the color. It's a nice, deep amber-brown, opaque except for the glow of firey amber at the bottom of the glass. This beer has very little head, but good carbonation. It looks like a glass of Coke or Pepsi from afar.

The texture is smooth and silky, with a great mouthfeel and tremendous body. The molasses and spices marry perfectly for a unique flavor that reminds me in part of a good oatmeal cookie. It finishes with the ginger and hops flavor.

I really like this beer, and I could easily drink 3-4 in a row on a cold night like tonight. This is some good Monday NIght Football beer, or the kind of beer you could drink while enjoying a cigar out in the garage. The smoothness of the sugars and the acceptable level of hoppy bitterness blend together perfectly for a very enjoyable sipping experience. I'd drink this at a temp of 40 degrees as a nice compliment to a hearty steak or chili dinner.

I'm going to give the Maple a grade of B.

Pros: Nice maple scent, good color and sweetness.
Cons:The sediment, insufficient carbonation and lack of truly bold flavors.

I'm going to give the Stout a A-
Pros: Great molasses and spice flavor with a chocolate-cinnamon kick. Great texture and mouthfeel.

Cons: Like my marriage, there's a lack of head.

Thanks for the critique. I don't like the lack of head on the stout either but it is tastey. Those were my second and third batches of brew so I can't wait till I get good at this and know what even more of what I'm doing. If they are turning out fairly good now imagine after a few hundred batches. Eagerly awaiting the Caramel Vanilla and Pumpkinweizen.

voodoochild7 said:

Thanks for the critique. I don't like the lack of head on the stout either but it is tastey. Those were my second and third batches of brew so I can't wait till I get good at this and know what even more of what I'm doing. If they are turning out fairly good now imagine after a few hundred batches. Eagerly awaiting the Caramel Vanilla and Pumpkinweizen.

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That's how I feel about mine, bro. The stout was really good and as soon as I was done I wanted another. I'm just about out of Vanilla and my Kolsch has gone medicinal. I'm digging on the pumpkin, but want some variety and my Wit definitely needs a few weeks to settle (I've already sampled 3 bottles).