Dogfish Head's try at my seasonal favorite - pumpkin ale.
Dogfish Head’s Pumpkin Ale Just Won’t Cut It For This Frustrated American
File Date: 10.8.2011
File Name: The struggles of being underwater.
The Beer: Pumpkin Ale
Type: Pumpkin Ale
Serving: Bottle
Stats: 7.0% ABV
Brewer: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Web Site: www.dogfish.com
State/Country of Origin: DE, USA
Brewer Info: The story of Dogfish Head began in June of 1995 when we opened Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats, the first state’s first brewpub opened in the resort beach community of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. The plan was to bring original beer, original food, and original music to the area. With the popularity of the pub growing, it was quickly apparent that the 12–gallon brewery would not keep up with demand. We built a new brewery and underwent a thirty-fold expansion of the brew house! We outgrew our distributing brewery in a couple years and in the summer of 2002; we moved our entire production brewery up the road to Milton, Delaware into a 100,000 square foot converted cannery. Around the same time (just to keep thing interesting), we built a distillery on the second floor of our Rehoboth Beach brewpub, so we could make vodka, rum and gin.
Brewer Brand Hype: A full-bodied brown ale with smooth hints of pumpkin and brown sugar. We brew our Punkin Ale with pumpkin meat, organic brown sugar and spices. This is the perfect beer to warm-up with, as the season cools. Punkin Ale is named after a locally-famous and seriously off-centered event here in southern Delaware - Punkin Chunkin (check out some of these Discovery Channel videos of Punkin Chunkin, you gotta see it to believe it!). In fact, Punkin Ale made it’s debut as it claimed First Prize in the 1994 Punkin Chunkin Recipe Conest - yes, that was a full 6 months before we even opened our doors for business. Punkin Chunkin has grown in size and scale with pumpkins now being hurled more than 4,000 feet through the air! If you come down to see if for yourself - come by and visit us. Since then, we’ve brewed Punkin Ale each and every fall. It is released right around September first each year. When you find it, grab some extra because it’s usually gone by Thanksgiving.
Label: A full bodied brown ale brewed with real pumpkin, brown suger, allspice, cinnamon & nutmeg.
The Brewski Review: I’m not ranking this pumpkin ale high on my list of favorite pumpkin ales. It has a gorgeous copper color and pours with a sumptuous head but it doesn’t have that pumpkin pie flavor I’m looking for. Others may not care for the pumpkin pie flavor but, to me, that’s what these beers are all about. This one just didn’t do it for me. The allspice, cinnamon and nutmeg weren’t as bold as I would have liked them to be. But then, of course, there are many things that aren’t as good as I’d want them to be. Take, for example, my finances: I don’t have nearly as much as I’d like. In reality, it’s less than ‘nearly as much’ and closer to ‘I drive a 15 year old car and can’t afford to upgrade because I’m under water on my mortgage’. But wait, it’s even worse than that! This taxpayer could save thousands if we refinanced our house, which we can’t do, because as you may have guessed, we’re under water on our mortgage! So, like so many of you out there, we struggle to get buy each and every day. Drinking an occasional beer is just a small reward that keeps me hanging on - day in and day out. And, by golly, if I want pumpkin pie flavor, dang it, I won’t settle for anything less!
Drinkability: Probably not. Would seek out another pumpkin ale.
Appearance: Visually appealing.
The Buds: Not very pumpkin pie-ish.
TBR Cap Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
Brewer Brand Hype: Like a pyramid for a pharaoh, we set out to make a bold monument for The King of the Pumpkins! This 8.0% ABV pumpkin ale is the mother of all pumpkin ales. It is heartier, spicier, and more “caramelly” and “pumpkiny” than its faint brethren! We have added lots of pumpkin along with Cinnamon, Nutmeg and a touch of cardamom and clove giving this beer a spicy, full-bodied flavor. This truly is an Imperial Pumpkin Ale. Perfect finisher on a cool autumn night, or match it up with a slice of pumpkin pie and fresh whipped cream. It is available August through November.
Brewer Brand Hype: Buffalo Bill’s Pumpkin Ale is the most sought after seasonal beer. It is believed that George Washington brewed beer using this bright orange squash. In modern times, Buffalo Bill’s ‘Pumpkin Ale’ is a true original microbrew that uses baked and roasted pumpkins. Cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg are added to create what has been described as, “pumpkin pie in a bottle”.