Harvest Spice Ale - Union Station Brewery

beernut7

Massachusetts

1.83/5  rDev -36.9%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Of the many pumpkin ales I have tasted this past autumn, this remains at the bottom of the list. Deep amber color with no head wafts a sharp aroma of cloves and cinnamon, but little hint of malts. The initial flavors also of cloves and cinnamon pair with a moderate hop bite. It seems doubtful any pumpkin had been used to brew this ale. The dry malt character does not help the concoction pop at all and leaves a wanting ale.

Serving type: on-tap

01-01-2004 17:11:19 | More by beernut7

radshoesbro

California

3.53/5  rDev +21.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

pours a light shade of amber with no lace or head. suprisingly this has a pretty complex palate, it just isn't full bodied enough for me to really dig it. it did leave a rather nice aftertaste which is what kept me buying more. this went great with their chicken nachos.

Serving type: on-tap

12-16-2006 22:13:22 | More by radshoesbro

MuddyFeet

North Carolina

3.35/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I stopped by for lunch the other day and spoke with the brewer about the Harvest Spice Ale, it's the latest evolution of last year's pumpkin ale. They realized while pumpkin was used in the brewing process, it may not be the best description because of all the spices. They also pumped up the spices. Lastly, he told me the beer is based on an Oktoberfest brewing recipe before all the extra additions.

Now, moving on to the beer itself...

The beer poured in a dirty amber in color with hardly any head to it. No lace formed on the glass. The aroma was of mild nutmeg and cinnamon. While there was pumpkin in the beer's flavor (still hardly noticeable), the beer actually tasted like I licked my Mom's kitchen table after she finished cooking for Thanksgiving. The potency of the cinnamon and nutmeg was at first surprising, but it kind of grew on me about half way threw. The cinnamon was kind of like chewing on a cinnamon stick directly. Also, the spices outdid the hops in the flavor so much I could not really enjoy them. While it was an interesting beer to try and I would bring a growler of it to share on Turkey Day, it is not something I may necessarily go in pursuit of again.

Serving type: on-tap

11-17-2004 18:29:39 | More by MuddyFeet