UFO Pumpkin - Harpoon Brewery

VoodooBear

Puerto Rico

3.25/5  rDev -10%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Presentation: 12 oz. brown bottle with "best by" date printed on the neck. Served in a weizen glass.

Appearance: Dark gold, almost orange color, fairly cloudy. Two fingers of head that almost instantly go away. Very little lacing left behind.

Smell: Very subdued, this is not an aromatic beer. Smell is dominated by pumpkin. There's a hint of yeast as well.

Taste: It's quite strong in the spice department. Lots of allspice and ginger with a nice amount of pumpkin in there. It would seem they were aiming for a pumpkin pie kind of taste and they accomplished it. There's yeast and malt in there (albeit very little of them) to remind you that you're drinking a beer.

Mouthfeel: Creamy with almost no carbonation.

Overall: A nice beer but not one I'd drink by itself. It's something nice to have around Thanksgiving. This would go great with some turkey, stuffing, gravy, pumpkin pie, and all the "traditional" foods of that holiday.

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2012 23:41:19 | More by VoodooBear

travisnd

Virginia

3.85/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

With this being an unfiltered pumpkin ale, I found it to be quite tasty! It has got a nice light color to it and is a very drinkable beer with the spices and pumpkin taste complimenting each other nicely. I drank quite a few of these and will be getting more as this is a nicely done pumpkin ale.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2011 19:53:27 | More by travisnd

Skeeter206

Massachusetts

3.83/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Got a 6 pack because this was the first pumpkin beer I've seen this year, and the first Harpoon pumpkin beer I've had the opportunity to try.

A~ Very solid appearance, dark brown body with a fluffy white head, and pretty good lacing throughout.

S~ Pumpkin pie spices, a little bit of nutmeg, a little bit of hops in there as well.

T~ Similar to Pumpkinhead, except a little better. Tastes more like a beer and less like canned pumpkin pie. Taste definitely has a strong pumpkin pie flavor, but also some hops in there and some creamy malts in there as well.

M~ A little weak on the mouthfeel, kind of light and not too full bodied, has a slight watered down feeling to it.

Overall I enjoyed this a lot, better than shipyards offering, and pretty easy to find in my area. But when I go to a good micro brew selection this isn't going to be at the top of my list of fall beers to grab.

If you like the style check it out, nothing eye popping but definitely a solid addition to the UFO/Harpoon lineup.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2011 23:24:39 | More by Skeeter206

bmwfan1987

Connecticut

2.23/5  rDev -38.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

I was excited to get in the fall spirit, and try a newly released pumpkin beer. I should of had my iPhone on me but I Made snap judgement. This beer has an ok aroma. The apearance is the best part about the beer. The Taste is bland pumpkin on the finish. It was hard to detect any spices, if I did they were barely used in this beer. Over all a very, very bland pumpkin beer. My bartender summed it up by saying "it tastes like budweiser mixed with pumpkin." I wouldn't go that far, but it wasn't good. Give it a shot, all I know is this one is not for me. Harpoon is not a bad brewery, they just need to tweak the next batch perhaps.

Serving type: bottle

08-09-2011 17:00:19 | More by bmwfan1987

Drunkelstiltskin

4.35/5  rDev +20.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer is amazing on-tap and really good out of the bottle. Best pumpkin beer out there in my opinion. Prefer it over Shipyard's Pumpkinhead, Long Trail's Pumpkin Ale, Imperial Pumking, and Wolaver's Pumpkin Ale. Enjoy in a warm place on a cold night for best results. Enjoy!

Serving type: on-tap

11-10-2012 23:59:06 | More by Drunkelstiltskin

Leftfield00

Connecticut

3.63/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Harpoon's UFO Pumpkin is the first of the pumpkin beers to arrive this fall. I was really excited for it, because I'm a huge fan of the pumpkin beers like Pumking and Punkin'.

Pours a nice medium-amber color, with a slightly off-white foam. The foam is fairly thick at first, but fades pretty quickly, and leaves behind only a very small amount of lacing. For being part of their "UFO" series, it's pretty clear and not hazy at all really.

It smells exactly like pumpkin pie, if someone were sitting at the other end of the table eating pumpkin pie that is. You can definitely pickup hints of pumpkin and spice, but it's not overwhelming, definitely on the milder side.

It tastes, well, like someone on the other end of the table was eating pumpkin pie. There's definitely a touch of pumpkin, just a hint of cinnamon and spice, but that's about it. It reminds me very much of the Pumpkinhead from Shipyard, but just slightly better.

I don't find anything wrong with this beer, except that it's not impressive really. Great pumpkin beer, if you're not really a big fan of pumpkin beers. Or, if you are a big fan of pumpkin beers, and your favorite pumpkin beer is the Shipyard Pumpkinhead. Because let's face it, the Pumpkinhead smells like pumpkin, but doesn't really taste like much of a pumpkin beer.

If you're really interested in trying some real pumpkin beers, I'd recommend Southern Tier's Pumking, Dogfish Punkin' Ale, Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale, and Shipyard's Smashed Pumpkin. Let me know how it goes...

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2011 23:49:57 | More by Leftfield00

BeerBean

Pennsylvania

3.65/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - bronze and hazy, but not cloudy, like a pumpkin pie. Solid head but minimal retention. Basically what I'm expecting a pumpkin beer to look like.

S - Mix of pumpkin pie and sweet spices: nutmeg, cinnamon, like cider. Got a little alcohol at the end, which was surprising and enjoyable.

T - pumpkin pie and spices, no surprise. Alcohol and bread fill it out. Easy drinking and a pleasant addition to the Harpoon repertoire. It doesn't exactly finish or warm well, losing its spiciness and sweetness and settling into a pumpkin rind blandness.

M - No complaints here. Just the level I'm looking for as the fall season kicks off.

Overall, not a bad beer, and a good first attempt at a pumpkin from Harpoon. Good pumpkin session.

Serving type: growler

09-09-2011 19:56:41 | More by BeerBean

pasurfer114

3.25/5  rDev -10%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Got this when i decided to try a new pumpkin beer. Bought a 6 pack of bottles, poured into a sam adams glass.

A: pours a hazy orange although it is a slightly lighter orange then most pumpkin beers i have tried. A healthy head forms at the top of the glass then quickly fizzles into a very thin lace.

S: the smell is above average, heavier than most on the pumpkin, light on spices. The aroma has notes of allspice, cinnamon,and heavy cloves.

T: the taste is pretty average. lighter than i was expecting though the pumpkin notes do set in pretty well. Light on spices typical of the style.

M: Start is watery and smooth. The spices are light on the tongue but well balanced. Aftertaste is heavier on hops and finishes dry which is a surprise.

O: Overall i would say this is a slightly above average beer. Pretty good but not the kind you run to the store and snag before it runs out. Definitely something i could see myself drinking a few of in a row without being too overwhelming. Not bad for a newcomer to the style.

Serving type: bottle

09-14-2012 02:43:06 | More by pasurfer114

Gonzo4Rangers

4.3/5  rDev +19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Smells like the empty pie tin after I ate all the pumpkin pie. Initial like an amber or dark ale middle has a moderate earthy pumpkin taste but with not a lot of spice. The end is the same subdued with a quick clean finish. No lingering taste. Good session beer do a pumpkin beer!

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2012 19:09:53 | More by Gonzo4Rangers

smitty50385

Massachusetts

4.63/5  rDev +28.3%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I love the fall because that means pumpkin beer. I really enjoy shipyard pumpkin and have a soft spot for harvest moon. When I tasted Harpoon's UFO Pumpkin it blew my mind. It was the first time it really tasted like liquid pumpkin pie. Although it's still well before fall it gives me that feeling every time I enjoy one. Looking forward to having it with cold weather foods!

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2011 18:20:37 | More by smitty50385