Pumpkin beer tasting
I was walking home from work at the beginning of October and popped into the liquor store for a per-field trip bottle of wine (I was working near Chetwynd, BC for most of the month) and discovered a display of pumpkin beers. I'd never seen them in the store before (only on tap at brew pubs) and was amazed at the variety. Prior to this, I'd only ever had the Steamworks pumpkin beer (which tastes less amazing with each passing year) but had heard of others.
There were 10 different brands in this little store alone! So I bought 6 and on Hallowe'en I invited some folks round for a pumpkin beer tasting. A few people brought some more and we had 9 altogether. I realize it's a little late for this review, since the beers aren't in the store anymore. Next year's batches will all taste differently, so we'll have to re-do our survey then.
I have a friend who's decided to learn some html, so she's practicing on a beer tasting website. I'd link to it if it were up and running because she has a trademark beer grading system that we used for the tasting. It comes with a thumbs up/thumbs down grade so that you can easily take a picture for a record later:
1 (thumb down) - "it was so bad I poured it out"
2 (thumb at 45 degrees below horizontal) - "I managed to finish it but would not drink it again"
3 (thumb horizontal) - "I would drink it again"
4 (thumb 45 degrees above horizontal) - "I would buy it at the store"
5 (thumb up) - "I could drink it for breakfast tomorrow morning"
I don't really like the taste of beer, so it takes a lot for one to make it to 4 in my rankings. I've only had a few that would, one being a grapefruit ale, the other a coffee stout, and maybe an apricot ale (ie, all have something to cover up the taste of beer). I inserted a ranking at 3 1/2 - "I would buy it at a pub because it's a beer drinking kind of event and wine wouldn't feel right"
This confession also serves as notice that my tastes don't always align with those who do like beer. DISCLAIMER!
That said, on with my review!
Post Road - "Pumpkin Ale" - 2 - very subtle in my view but the 2nd favourite of most everyone else
Granville Island - "Pumpkin Ale" - 2 - not at all pumpkin-y but somehow seasonal
Elysian - "Night Owl" - 5 - very clove-y and awesome, everyone's favourite and winner of best label too
St. Ambroise - "Citrouille" - 3.5 - second most pumpkin-y
Iron Plow - "Harvest Marzen" - 3.5 -not technically a pumpkin beer which made it a nice change from the others
Phillips - "Crooked Tooth" - 3 - Very pie-y but with a meh aftertaste
Steamworks - Pumpkin Ale - 3 - apparently nothing noteworthy, since I didn't make any
Red Racer - "Pumpkin Ale" - 3.5 - tasted more like candy corn than pumpkin, most others weren't fans
Tree Brewing - "Pumpkin Jack" - 2 - also apparently un-noteworthy
There were 10 different brands in this little store alone! So I bought 6 and on Hallowe'en I invited some folks round for a pumpkin beer tasting. A few people brought some more and we had 9 altogether. I realize it's a little late for this review, since the beers aren't in the store anymore. Next year's batches will all taste differently, so we'll have to re-do our survey then.
I have a friend who's decided to learn some html, so she's practicing on a beer tasting website. I'd link to it if it were up and running because she has a trademark beer grading system that we used for the tasting. It comes with a thumbs up/thumbs down grade so that you can easily take a picture for a record later:
1 (thumb down) - "it was so bad I poured it out"
2 (thumb at 45 degrees below horizontal) - "I managed to finish it but would not drink it again"
3 (thumb horizontal) - "I would drink it again"
4 (thumb 45 degrees above horizontal) - "I would buy it at the store"
5 (thumb up) - "I could drink it for breakfast tomorrow morning"
I don't really like the taste of beer, so it takes a lot for one to make it to 4 in my rankings. I've only had a few that would, one being a grapefruit ale, the other a coffee stout, and maybe an apricot ale (ie, all have something to cover up the taste of beer). I inserted a ranking at 3 1/2 - "I would buy it at a pub because it's a beer drinking kind of event and wine wouldn't feel right"
This confession also serves as notice that my tastes don't always align with those who do like beer. DISCLAIMER!
That said, on with my review!
Post Road - "Pumpkin Ale" - 2 - very subtle in my view but the 2nd favourite of most everyone else
Granville Island - "Pumpkin Ale" - 2 - not at all pumpkin-y but somehow seasonal
Elysian - "Night Owl" - 5 - very clove-y and awesome, everyone's favourite and winner of best label too
St. Ambroise - "Citrouille" - 3.5 - second most pumpkin-y
Iron Plow - "Harvest Marzen" - 3.5 -not technically a pumpkin beer which made it a nice change from the others
Phillips - "Crooked Tooth" - 3 - Very pie-y but with a meh aftertaste
Steamworks - Pumpkin Ale - 3 - apparently nothing noteworthy, since I didn't make any
Red Racer - "Pumpkin Ale" - 3.5 - tasted more like candy corn than pumpkin, most others weren't fans
Tree Brewing - "Pumpkin Jack" - 2 - also apparently un-noteworthy