Imperial Pumpkin Ale - Weyerbacher Brewing Co.

BuckSpin

Maine

4.03/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Presentation: 22oz bottle in a Duvel tulip glass

Poured steady, true, strong. Sharp, lively nose, warm with crisp cinnamon (think Red Hots candies), nutmeg, faint alcohol. Aspects of the nose remind me of the wooded quality of an Insanity I enjoyed, and that quality carries thru as it breathes. Malts are deep & thick, sweet and caramelized, hops have a candied orange bite to them...very nice. With some bloom clove emerges as well as some dried fruit. Head was a solid 2 fingers of tight, creamy ivory foam that slowly settled to a pencil's worth with sheet like lacing. Subsequent re-pours easily restored this pumpkin's creamy crown of foam to its 2 finger's splendor. Color is stunning - crystal clear, the most intense sunset cherry amber, radiant with brassy warmth, glowing, just beautiful. A slow parade of bubbles trick or treats thru it. So far a treat for eyes & nose.

Crisp, light, creamy, warm with spice & alcohol right up front. The cinnamon (along with other spices that are more subdued) comes thru nicely in taste, in bite as well as some warmth in mouth-feel. I can see where this would be a welcome feeling on a brisk Autumn eve. Malts are sweet with a strong dried stone fruit quality (currant, cherry) as well as some faint (and I'm trying to) pumpkin sweetness. But this is more about mouth-feel & spice than gourds.

Barely any dryness, what is there is distant and only appears on the far back of the palate as a damp, muted crunch. Hops are dully bitter & playing a supporting, secondary role that along with that Weyerbacher wood quality creates a nice floor for the spices to dance upon.

It disappears into the darkness that is the throat with a overripe fruit sweetness, the hops rising up more, the mouth-feel growing thicker, more syrupy, the alcohol (very nicely hidden and/or paralleled by the spices up to now) finally igniting, The combination of cinnamon spiced warmth & alcohol infused glow is most warming, a great mouth-feel for the genre. The aftertaste is warm, spiced, laced with cinnamon, a bit filmy but surprisingly clean.

A most enjoyable beer regardless of genre. It seems like a number of Pumpkin Ales actually have little to do with pumpkin and are more about warmth, spice vs sweet malts, and mouth-feel over taste. I'm not complaining, just something I've noticed. This was very nice and would be great with spicy fare, especially cuisine that embraces tradition holiday spices as everyday in their recipes, as well as with some really sharp, dry cheddar or go completely 180 degrees with some rich, soft, creamy Bleu. Definitely one of the best autumn beers I've tried. I'd love to enjoy this outside to see just how god those warming qualities are. Definitely recommended.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2007 00:57:31 | More by BuckSpin

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4.45/5  rDev +13.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

My personal favorite of all of the pumpkin beers. This one has a great malt base as a baseline to the pumpkin and spices that go into every pumpkin beer. Imperial Pumpkin would seemingly be a great porter or stout if not for the added pumpkin and spice. This beer is what a pumpkin spice ale should be. The spice and pumpkin are just icing on the cake.

Serving type: bottle

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