Rhoobarb
Well-Known Member
My girlfriend and I sampled Pumbaa's beers this weekend. Nice labels, BTW! Here's what we thought of them:
St. Fuad Imperial Hellfire Ale
Pour/Appearance:
Nice pffft sound. Poured a nice head which soon dissipated. Nicely carbonated. Hazy amber color.
Aroma:
Resiny, oak aroma. So far, this version is just like the one I brewed!
Taste:
The first taste is the oak up front, then a heavy malt flavor comes through. Oak taste is less pronounced than my version, which is good. Mine was too overpowering, IMHO. This is closer to the mark! Very robust with a nice, heavy mouthfeel. Warm, slightly buttery finish – not thinking this is diacetyl, but more the mixture of the heavy malt and oak playing off of each other. We both enjoyed the finish, so there ya go!
Overall:
This is a nice ‘sipping ale’. Perfect for watching the sunset on a cool Spring or Autumn evening (which is what we did!). I wished the version I brewed had more of the flavor profile your's had. Well done, indeed.
St. Fuad Flaming Pumpkin Ale
I’ll preface this by saying that I have avoided Pumpkin beers ever since getting a Buffalo Bill’s Pumpkin Ale when I subscribed to Beer Across America over ten years ago. Had one and gave the rest away. It was just too overpowering and definitely not my cup of tea. I hadn't had one since. So…
Pour/Appearance:
Nice pffft sound. Poured a nice 1/2” head which eventually dissipated to a thin, off-white profile. Perfectly carbonated. Amber color with very slight haze.
Aroma:
The malt aroma dominates, but there is definitely a spicy aroma coming through in the background – ginger, allspice, pumpkin pie spice?
Taste:
Very low hop flavor, the malt is the predominant flavor. Medium mouthfeel. The bitterness that is there comes through in mid-taste and sort of dances on the tongue nicely. The pumpkin comes in the finish. It doesn’t overpower, but it is there as a background player and that makes for a very satisfying finish.
Overall:
We were both quite impressed and could have easily gone for another of these! You successfully changed my mind about pumpkin beers. I’ll give them another try in the future – and hope they are as good as this one. In fact, I'd like to brew this so that it would be ready this October. Yummy! Very well done. If you could post the recipe, I'd be grateful.
St. Fuad Imperial Hellfire Ale
Pour/Appearance:
Nice pffft sound. Poured a nice head which soon dissipated. Nicely carbonated. Hazy amber color.
Aroma:
Resiny, oak aroma. So far, this version is just like the one I brewed!
Taste:
The first taste is the oak up front, then a heavy malt flavor comes through. Oak taste is less pronounced than my version, which is good. Mine was too overpowering, IMHO. This is closer to the mark! Very robust with a nice, heavy mouthfeel. Warm, slightly buttery finish – not thinking this is diacetyl, but more the mixture of the heavy malt and oak playing off of each other. We both enjoyed the finish, so there ya go!
Overall:
This is a nice ‘sipping ale’. Perfect for watching the sunset on a cool Spring or Autumn evening (which is what we did!). I wished the version I brewed had more of the flavor profile your's had. Well done, indeed.
St. Fuad Flaming Pumpkin Ale
I’ll preface this by saying that I have avoided Pumpkin beers ever since getting a Buffalo Bill’s Pumpkin Ale when I subscribed to Beer Across America over ten years ago. Had one and gave the rest away. It was just too overpowering and definitely not my cup of tea. I hadn't had one since. So…
Pour/Appearance:
Nice pffft sound. Poured a nice 1/2” head which eventually dissipated to a thin, off-white profile. Perfectly carbonated. Amber color with very slight haze.
Aroma:
The malt aroma dominates, but there is definitely a spicy aroma coming through in the background – ginger, allspice, pumpkin pie spice?
Taste:
Very low hop flavor, the malt is the predominant flavor. Medium mouthfeel. The bitterness that is there comes through in mid-taste and sort of dances on the tongue nicely. The pumpkin comes in the finish. It doesn’t overpower, but it is there as a background player and that makes for a very satisfying finish.
Overall:
We were both quite impressed and could have easily gone for another of these! You successfully changed my mind about pumpkin beers. I’ll give them another try in the future – and hope they are as good as this one. In fact, I'd like to brew this so that it would be ready this October. Yummy! Very well done. If you could post the recipe, I'd be grateful.