Do you enjoy Pumpkin Beer?

[BrooklynTom]

I do not care for pumpkin pie or pumpkin soup etc. But, even if I have to say myself, I do make a very good pumpkin cream ale. Everyone who has had it, likes it. I have 5gals going into bottles this weekend.

secondary- Pumpkin cream ale
primary 1 - oat meal cookie stout
primary 2 - 1st attempt hard apple cider
in fridge - the last 2 bottles of my cherry Irish Red

 

[JoeSpartaNJ]

I buy one pumpkin beer a year to remind myself why I do not like pumpkin beer. Someone mentioned buying the Saranac 32oz bottle and dumping it just to have the bottle to cart homebrew in, I do the exact same thing. Better than filling a bomber, and better than filling a whole growler.

 

[castillo556]

Yes, I love them. The more intense the better. I want to be assaulted by pumpkin pie spice and flavor.

 

[bobeer]

I buy one pumpkin beer a year to remind myself why I do not like pumpkin beer. Someone mentioned buying the Saranac 32oz bottle and dumping it just to have the bottle to cart homebrew in, I do the exact same thing. Better than filling a bomber, and better than filling a whole growler.

Not sure if it was me who mentioned that but I do this every year. I filled 2 last week because I didn't want to waste beer if we didn't go through the whole growler.
Pumpkin beers are really hit and miss with me. They used to be cool back in the day when there weren't that many to choose from. Now, there's too many and they come out in August... Most of the time they're too spicy or too sweet and I usually just want 1 of them. I'd rather drink a marzen but I still brew a pumpkin beer 1 time a year for my friends and family at thanksgiving. I've yet to find that be all end all pumpkin beer but I think that's because I just don't care for them that much.

 

[unionrdr]

Me too Bo. I'm still looking for that one that tastes like pumpkin pie.

 

[djonesax]

I love me some pumpkin pie but cant stand pumpkin spice anything else. I dont mind a pumpkin beer as long as its not loaded up with pumpkin spices. Pumpkin spice coffee has got to be one of the worst things I have ever drank.

I fermented a pumpkin to make pumpkin wine, after Halloween about 6 or 7 years ago. I still have a bottle. It just tasted earthy and very hot, about 16% if I remember. It was drinkable and not terrible tasting but not really something to sit back and enjoy. It kind of tasted like a sweat potato vodka now that I think about it. I ended up dumping it all when I moved but saved one bottle.

David

 

[balrog]

Like the pie, can tolerate the insinuation that anything with cinnamon/nutmeg/clove makes it "pumpkin", but I'm ambivalent about too much flavoring of any kind in coffee/beer. Balance. Please.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

My latest batch of Pumpkin Porter is very nice. That being said, I think I prefer Pumpkin Ales though.

Ummm, last I checked, Porter is ale.

Do not like the pumpkin beers. Not a fan of spiced beer in general. However, I am very fond of many Belgian "styles".

It's a quandry.

 

[j1n]

i loveee pumpkin pie. my fav kinf of pie. My wife makes it from scratch and some whipped cream on top, its awesome.

I brewed a batch of pumpkin ale the other day. i would not have if it was only for myself. i plan on having other people drink most of this batch. i do like pumpkin ale but its not my favorite.

 

[stratslinger]

I used to love the stuff - a few years ago, I made what I felt was darned near the perfect batch of pumpkin ale (this was probably my third or fourth attempt, after a few tweaks to the grainbill and the spice additions). Half of my homebrew club asked for the recipe (and most have brewed it since), and I got halfway through the keg, and just decided I'd had enough. I haven't been able to really enjoy another pumpkin beer since. I bottled and gave away the other half of that keg, and since then I've only had a handful of other pumpkin beers - most have just seemed over-spiced, even if the spice was, in actuality, very subtle. Guess I managed to ruin spiced beers in general for myself...

 

[NTXBrauer]

I am not a hater, and enjoy an occasional pumpkin beer during the season. It does seem that there are more and more breweries putting these pumpkin brews out each year, and in this case more is definitely not better. The limited releases, such as Pumpkinator by St Arnold, are the ones I hold out for.

 

[soccerdad]

Various members of my fam like it so my son and I (he likes it) make 5G in the fall (like this coming Sat) and it is usually gone by Christmas. Our recipe is understated .. a can of pumpkin in the mash to add some sugars and 1 tsp pie spice at flame out. It's not the best beer in the world, but it beats a sharp stick in the eye.

 

[kh54s10]

I have only tried a couple. I do not like a lot of spice so when I brewed mine last year it was only 8 lbs of pumpkin meat.

It had just a hint of pumpkin which was what I was after. This year's will get just a little more. 10 lbs roasted a little longer.

 

[Cyclman]

I made an Imperial Pumpkin a year ago, it is HUGE, 10%+, yet I put only 0.3 oz of clove in a 5 gallon batch. (Enough that it didn't carb until I added champagne yeast this year).

To me, it tastes like a clove bomb. I wonder if I made one with NO clove, if that'd overcome the "overspiced pumpkin" beer objection so many people seem to have.

My IP has wonderful pumpkin flavor, but I think I just don't like cloves.

 

[Hello]

I love pumpkin beers. Pumpking is normally my favorite but I love warlock too. I drink them while wearing sweaters, leggings, and UGG boots. The white girl trifecta.

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

I was going to say that I hate pumpkin beers, but I've actually had 3 that I've quite enjoyed, Jolly Pumpkin's La Parcela, New Belgiums Kick, and this bourbon/vanilla/oak-aged old ale (that's a mouthfull) that a guy in my club brewed. In all cases though these were not really traditional 'pumpkin beers'

 

[ArizonaGoalie]

Two that I love: New Belgium's Pumpkick and Shipyard's Smashed Pumpkin.

I just brewed a pumpkin beer for Thanksgiving. Light on spice, heavy on canned pumpkin in the mash. Turned out fabulous. Tried one bottle last night. Can't wait to get blitzed on Turkey Day on this stuff.

 

[HopSong]

Never taste the pumpkin.. but I do taste the spices. If the spices are mild and it's all balanced.. I like it. But, I've only had a few that were, to me, good.

 

[Cyclman]

Thought I'd give this a bump, see if opinions have changed over time.

 

[d3track]

I don't think my opinion has changed as much as I think I figured out what I don't like about them (come to find out many don't use pumpkin, just the spices) - and that its just such an overpowering pumpkin pie spice nutmeg bomb.

 

[sloanfamilydsm]

I enjoy a pumpkin beer every now and then. Not gonna choke down 5 gallons of it though

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

So far I can take them or leave them... But I'm willing to do more research.

 

[slym2none]

It's not my bag, baby.

 

[EtchyLives]

I'm ambivalent and usually get a couple bottles a year just because. This year I threw a rather large party at my house so I brewed up a batch of Thunderstruck and it's probably my favorite. The 1/2 tsp of spice in a tea post fermentation added the perfect amount of spice (not too much) and having the pumpkin in the mash actually gave a noticeable pumpkin flavor... something missing from too many commercial ales.

So considering this is one I brewed for everyone else I'm quite pleased.

Otherwise I like Flying Dog's "The Fear". Schlafly's makes me want to barf.

Next up: Posts about Holiday beers and how ginger and cherries are committing war crimes against Christmas.

 

[Braumeise]

If so, what type do you prefer.

No.
I prefer to leave it on the shelf and drink real beer.

 

[sloanfamilydsm]

No.

I prefer to leave it on the shelf and drink real beer.

I bet the hood on your sweatshirt messes up your mullet too.

 

[slym2none]

Us Southern rednecks don't wear sweatshirts with hoods. The mullet already keeps our necks warm.

 

[Braumeise]

I bet the hood on your sweatshirt messes up your mullet too.

bawahaaa! LMAO!
you just made my day!

Not that I would attempt to deny having worn or even owned a sweatshirt with a hood at several points in my life... those things come in quite handy in the barn... but a Mullet.... no, Sir! I can assure you by all means of fashion mishaps that I am the Queen of the "I can't afford myself club" after all and a mullet will just be no match for the Canel nail polish I wear to muck the stalls...

nice try, better try next time!

 

[garguy]

Pumpkin Beer is the kitties *******, 4 more weeks and mine will be ready to drink!!

 

[TimKennard]

Every year I buy a 6 pack, every year #6 is thankfully the last one for the year. I like them, just in small doses, never brewed one because I don't know what I'd do with 5 gallons of them. Really just prefer regular styles of beer without the spices and what not. Goes for all beers really not just pumpkin.