Gonna make my first pumpkin - recipe check needed

[Rev2010]

First post on here for months - took a brewing break due to summer household temps and now getting ready to brew full on again. So I'm going to make a pumpkin and below is the recipe I formulated. Beersmith says the SRM is 16.5, is that a bit too dark? Does it even matter if I'm not entering any comps or anything? I like a bit fuller anyway for this style and the thinner more watery pumpkin ales just don't do it for me. Anyway so here it is and some additional comments below:

5 Gallon batch - pretty much full boil
6.00 lbs Amber LME
1.00 lb Caramel 40
1.00 lb Caramunich
1oz Mt Hood hops (60 min)
45-60oz (haven't decided which amount yet) of Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin 30 min boil after 1 hour bake
2.00 lbs Brown Sugar added to the Pumpkin Puree and baked prior to boil
1.5 tsp Ground Cinnamon (2 min)
1tsp Ground Nutmeg (2min)
1tsp Ground Cloves (2min)
Wyeast 1056

OK, so the brown sugar is for a little extra flavor and to mostly bump up the alcohol percentage. Beersmith says the brew will be 6.52%. That's perfect for what I'm going for - not too uber heavy. My only real concern is the color, but again should I even care about that?? My favorite pumpkin so far is Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin and it's a bit darker than most of the other one's I've had. Also, is the Caramunich overkill or will it be a pretty good addition? It seems the Caramunich is what really darkens the brew the most, but I care more about taste than color honestly.


Rev.

 

[dwarven_stout]

Definitely dial back those spices. I did a pumpkin ale for thanksgiving two years ago with 1/2 tsp cloves at 5 minutes. It's still acrid and undrinkable- it tastes like licking powdered clove.

 

[Rev2010]

Really? A lot of recipes I've seen have the same levels of spices. I've also read many people using a little less than this amount and regretting it. As mentioned, my favorite is Weyerbacher and one thing everyone seems to agree with in reviews is the spices are very prominent. I am open to suggestion though so if more chime in on this I will certainly take it to heart.


Rev.

 

[sweaterman]

Cloves are a particularly pungent spice. I think you could dial them back a little bit, but you are in the ballpark.

 

[lumpher]

i did a pumpkin ale 2 weeks ago. i used the same spices, but dialed them back 1/2 tsp each and added at 15 instead of 2. wort tasted right

 

[Rev2010]

Any last suggestions? Gonna be brewing this pretty soon. For the record, I'm thinking this falls under Dark Pumpkin Ale which I've found the style terming Google searching. Most of those are more porter like with some dark roasted malts and such but either way I think I'm doing it this way first and will then base future attempts off my findings. I went with this maltier type recipe cause I really like a heavier feel for a pumpkin ale and I think the spices need to be a bit more than usual to stay a bit prominent among the maltiness. Anyhow, I'm excited either way and am still open to any personal experiences here


Rev.

 

[JoeyChopps]

Just my .2 I would and do use whole nutmegs and whole cloves imo it gives the beer a much "fresher" smell and taste

 

[Rev2010]

Just my .2 I would and do use whole nutmegs and whole cloves imo it gives the beer a much "fresher" smell and taste

Ya know... when I went to the supermarket I couldn't find any ground cloves or ground nutmeg for a while, I was taking a lot of time and getting annoyed and finally found the one brand they had available (it's a crappy supermarket). So when you use whole cloves and whole nutmeg what do you do? Do you grind it up yourself or boil it whole? Thanks for your info by the way. I typically like doing most things as fresh as possible but simply didn't know what I would need to do with the whole versions.


Rev.

 

[JoeyChopps]

I just put the fresh spices in a bag and beat them with a meat hammer works for me