Good Gourd Imperial Pumpkin Ale - Cigar City Brewing

bernardus1212

Florida

4.33/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The ever so controversial pumpkin ales. What to do with them? Had the "IPA" at the tasting room. Pumpkin ales are very up and down and are ususally very pricey. Well this guy was way up!. Poured a very nice fall brown color. With a medium density white head. For me CCB does the best job balancing beers flavors. This pumpkin was balnced in the hops, spice, and pumpkin flavors. My favorite pumpkin. Dont try to convince me otherwise.

Serving type: on-tap

10-12-2010 16:19:09 | More by bernardus1212

beerwolf77

Wisconsin

4.47/5  rDev +4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Growler courtesy of my CCB hook up fogdog. Thanks again Kevin.

Poured into my duvel tulip.

A: Dark orange brown, about one finger of light beige head, tiny soapy lace ring

S: The aroma is rather sweet pumpkin pie with subtle spices come through as well. Cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and vanilla. The abv gives off a touch of heat reminding you it's present.

T: The malt is a bit more agressive in the flavor. Smooth pumpkin pie with hints of pie crust and tiny bit of black pepper in the finish. No bitterness that tends to ruin most Pumpkin ales. Huge bonus points for that. Nothing but a trace of the high abv can be picked out in the taste.

M: velvety creamy body that seems to slowly slide off the tongue. Modest to low carbonation.

D: This is an absolute winner of a pumpkin ale. Finally a pumpkin beer that rivals pumpking. I hope they end up bottling this one. I would love to stock up every fall.

Serving type: growler

10-08-2010 23:47:35 | More by beerwolf77

Mora2000

Texas

4/5  rDev -7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to ericandersnavy for sharing this growler.

The beer pours an orange-amber color with white bubbles. There is not much, if any, real head on the beer.

The aroma is pumpkin, nutmeg and cinnamon. Very nice smelling.

The flavor is reminiscent of pumpkin pie. I get a lot of sweet pumpkin, as well as some allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon and caramel malt.

Medium body with low carbonation. A very nice pumpkin ale.

Serving type: growler

09-29-2010 01:20:26 | More by Mora2000

MasterSki

Illinois

3.83/5  rDev -10.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

32oz growler courtesy of tpd975. Thanks Greg! Served in a pint glass, and shared at the Flossmoor Beelzebeer release.

A - Pours with two fingers of light orange foam that slowly dissipates to a thick, chunky cap, leaving behind glass-coating lace. Slightly hazed pumpkin orange color. Impressive considering the ABV, and reference for the "style".

S - Traditional pumpkin spices - nutmeg, cinnamon, etc. as well as some authentic pumpkin aroma. The nose is somewhat understated, but it hides the 9% incredibly well without being overbearingly sweet.

T - Some pumpkin pie complete with the sweet pie crust. Light spicing is appreciated, as is actual pumpkin flavor. Again, the alcohol is well-hidden, but there's just something a bit muted and drab about this beer.

M - Medium creamy body, medium-low carbonation, no alcohol heat.

D - Considering my many other experiences with Cigar City, this is a surprisingly subtle and understated brew. It was quite enjoyable, but it was quickly forgotten after moving on to the next few brews. I heard the test batch was quite different, but I gotta review the beer I try! In any case, it's definitely one of the better pumpkin beer offerings, but I think I prefer Pumking a little bit (and Flossmoor's extinct Big Black Pumpkin, of course).

Serving type: growler

09-27-2010 02:04:14 | More by MasterSki

womencantsail

California

3.98/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Mike for this beer.

A: The pour is a dark amber color with some brown and copper hues in there as well. A short lived off-white head is there as well.

S: A nice blend of spices, but not overdone. I get some nutmeg, all spice, and a hint of cinnamon. Some pumpkin aroma, more than I usually get in pumpkin beers. Some light vanilla, too.

T: Fairly well balanced in terms of all the different flavors going on. The cinnamon flavor seems to be more pronounced with the other spices sort of falling into the background. A decent amount of sweetness, mild pumpkin, and a hint of bitterness.

M: The body is medium, as is the carbonation.

D: Pumpkin ales are sort of hard to do, since the spicing can really mess them up. I'm happy that CCB has managed to keep things within reason and make for an enjoyable beer.

Serving type: growler

09-25-2010 06:24:26 | More by womencantsail

Patrick

Massachusetts

3.85/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Todes for this one.

The beer pours a hazy ruby/orange color with not a whole lot of head or lacing. The smell is very subtle. Notes of earthy pumpkin and subtle spice, for some reason I expected more though when it comes to pumpkin ales, less is more. The flavor is similar to the aroma in that the spices are subtle. Cinnamon is the most dominant one, but some nutmeg is in there too. Something is spicy, maybe some clove, though it could be the cinnamon. There is also a sweet and bready backbone to the beer. The mouthfeel is pretty creamy though the spiciness in the back of my throat kind of detracts from it a bit. There is a bit of stickiness and astringency as well. Overall the beer is very drinkable and doesn't taste like 9% at all. Nice beer.

Serving type: growler

09-16-2010 22:51:21 | More by Patrick

Kiefdog

Florida

4.97/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Bottle courtesy of JRedner. Pours a golden caramel color with thin white head. Aroma is pumpkin, spice, nutmeg, cream. Flavor is much of the same with some stronger pumpkin and spice notes, heavy cream flavors, slightly boozey. Generally medium body with a pleasing herb/spice finish. This was an amazing pumpkin beer and likely the best that I have had.

Serving type: bottle

01-18-2009 22:55:53 | More by Kiefdog

tpd975

Florida

4.5/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Enjoyed on draft at Cigar City

A: Pours a nice clear brillant punkin' orange hue with a nice tall creamy head. The retention is very good with spotty lace noted.

S: In the aroma department this one is hard to beat, it is neck and neck with Southern Tier Pumpking here. Huge real pumpkin aromas with a wonderful mix of spices. There is a real buttery crust element in here as well that I have never picked up in another beer. Even after the beer was gone from the glass the aroma still wafted from the empty glass. This one smells better than those $20 candles the wife brings home.

T: The flavors are wonderful as well. Real pumpkin, a perfect mix of pie spices, and oooh that gooey butter I detected. The pumpkin stands out without the spice overpowering. This one is a perfect mix between the pumpkin beers of DogFish Head and Southern Tier. I will quickly become a favorite of the pumpkin beer lovers.

M: Medium in body, smooth and creamy.

D: I tasted this one when it was first finished and the booze could really be detected. Since it has aged a bit, the alcohol flavors have died and the pumpkin, spice, and buttery goodness have come together to create one wonderful brew.

Serving type: on-tap

01-03-2009 15:52:11 | More by tpd975