It's The Great Pumpkin (Ale), Charlie Brown!
As we move past the autumnal equinox and our nights get longer, the landscape, even in the city, appears on its deathbed. Leaves falling and plants withering are all signs Halloween is coming. Preparations for parties, Misfits cover bands and costume ideas all must be made, while also making time for decorations and pumpkin carving. Doing my best Jack the Ripper impression on an unsuspecting gourd is one of the joys that doesn't lose its edge (ahem) at any age. But for some reason, as we get older, we're allowed to be a little more creative without being sent to the guidance counselor. Luckily for us, the innards of all those pumpkins don't just get scattered like the bowels of the next zombie walk, but are quite useful and delicious in some of our favorite fermentables.
While we would love to think of the Colonies as having concocted pumpkin beers, this, for the most part, isn't true. While they did use pumpkins (George Washington had his own Pumpkin Porter recipe), squash and other ingredients when barley wasn't available in North America, their use of it was solely for fermentation sugars and not taste. And there has been no documentation of the spices we associate with pumpkin (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves) having ever been regularly used for the style until the creation of the pumpkin beer market in the 1980s. Fast-forward 30 years, and the market that once had two or three sparse offerings is now a large part of American craft seasonal releases. With this increase into the market also came an increase in respect for the style. What was once though of as a bit of marketing trickery fixed on fall nostalgia is now a category in the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) and is produced by some of the country's most-respected brewers.
Love 'em or hate 'em, pumpkin beers are definitely a much anticipated part of the fall beer line-up, ranging from amber-style beers with faint hints of spice and root vegetation to full-on liquefied pumpkin pie teeming with spices. The latter tend to fall on the "one and done" pile for many people, but for others wanting to continually feed their sweet tooth, they can be one of the best combinations of dessert and alcohol ever.
Smuttynose has made a fantastically mild rendition of the style. Light malt with only a faint hint of pumpkin spices (nutmeg mostly) creates a very subtle and drinkable beer. Brooklyn's Post Road is also on the lighter side of the pumpkin spectrum and is similarly easy drinking. For those looking for a beer that simply has a subdued pumpkin profile, Chevy Chase Wine and Spirits and various Whole Foods around the metro area have enough of this beer in stock to keep you satiated until those few last pieces of Halloween candy in your office break room finally go stale.
Moving to less mild interpretations, Schafly Pumpkin has a big sweetness, big spiceload and a big mouthfeel while still not being "too much". It can be found at Galaxy Hut. Dogfish seems to tweak their recipe every year, but their Punkin Ale always has a sturdy pumpkin flavor with a larger hop presence than others. Spices run a little more in the background than others in this "mid-pumpkin" set, but are still very apparent and leave a spicy lingering on the tongue. New Holland's Ichabod Ale is about as middle of the road as one can get in this style: medium in body, spiciness and pumpkin flavors. It can be found at both Black Squirrel and the Big Hunt. Both these bars seem to rotate their selections of pumpkins, so go often to see what they have.
For those looking for more intensity, Southern Tier and Weyerbacher are big versions of boozy pumpkin pie. Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin tastes like oven-baked pumpkins were rolled around in spices and then caramelized. It screams Halloween, and finishes with a warming sensation from an eight percent ABV. However, this year's crown for big pumpkin flavor is reserved for the Southern Tier Pumking. Dripping caramel sweetness and allspice/nutmeg immediately combine with the pumpkin flavor to make you question if you just had a bite of pie as cinnamon comes in to give you a taste of crust. The sweetness lingers and is met with a hop bitterness that balances it out and leaves you wanting more. But be wary, this royalty clocks in at nine percent, so you may reserve this for when you have some time to sip and savor. You can usually find the Weyerbacher and Southern Tier at Schneider's Of Capitol Hill and DeVinos
If you're looking for something more unique, Meridian Pint has the Bruery's Autumn Maple. It's a fantastic interpretation of a pumpkin beer made with yams, nutmeg, allspice, vanilla, molasses, and maple syrup. It won't last too long, so get it while you can.
Many of the beers mentioned will be on tap this Friday at Pizza Paradiso for their Autumn Fest. This is a great way to drink up some fall, but keep in mind the lines differ between locations. Yep, pumpkin beers are autumn in a glass. Bring it on.