Considering adding Pumpkin to an Amber

[Jablestein]

Hey guys,

I have an Amber Ale that I boiled over the weekend and currently sitting in primary. It's a kit beer that I picked up from my local home brew shop. I was hoping to get a pumpkin ale kit from them, but they had run out of kits by the time I got there.

I was walking around a local pumpkin patch with my wife this weekend as well, and I thought "well hell...maybe I could just add it in secondary anyways!". So I'm curious what the consensus on making a good pumpkin ale even is. I've read a few threads on the forums that mention several different ways to go about it so I thought I'd pose a few questions for you all...

1. Is an Amber Ale a good base brew match for a Pumpkin Ale? I'm not entirely sure if the definition of a pumpkin ale is just some basic ale with pumpkin flavoring or if there's more specific ingredients (or process) to it other than that.

2. Can a good pumpkin ale be achieved by simply racking the beer on top of some pumpkins in secondary? I've read some people add hulled pumpkin seeds to their initial grain boil. Not sure if that's necessary or not.

3. Is there a certain type of pumpkin you'd suggest for adding to secondary? Canned vs. Fresh picked pumpkins from a patch? A certain amount that you should have?

4. Any other suggestions for adding the pumpkin flavor? (Again, I've read cutting them up and roasting the pieces at 375 before adding to the secondary is the way to go.

Thanks a lot in advance!

 

[IffyG]

Most people would carmelize some pumpkin in the oven and then either steep it or mash it. I've steep carmelized pumpkin before doing the boil and I wouldn't do it again. If you want a pumpkin beer, I'd recommend adding pumpkin pie spices to the beer, especially if you have already brewed it. I really don't think adding real pumpkin to the secondary would give you want you want (and at worst might add vegetal notes to your beer).

 

[Jablestein]

Gotcha, so it's something that usually gets done in the boil portion of the brew? Ya, I'm well beyond that now. I was thinking that maybe adding pumpkin to the secondary would give it some of the flavor I was looking for, but I thought I'd ask. I'll stay away from a fresh pumpkin for sure then.