Happy post Halloween beer nerds! I am going to keep this one short and simple since many of us are well hung on this lovely Tuesday in November. I sampled the Heavy Seas Greater Pumpkin ale over the weekend. Why? Because I have an affinity to try anything seasonal and anything bourbon aged. This happens to hit both check boxes. xx If you want the background on pumpkin beers check my previous review here - http://itsomfg.blogspot.com/2010/10/omfg-beer-review-series-southern-tier.html and the “why bourbon” review here - http://itsomfg.blogspot.com/2010/09/omfg-beer-review-series-founders_28.html .
This beer pours a misty orange with literally no head. (This could be the result of low hops or lack of thickness in the beer to promote head retention.) The Greater Pumpkin has just a slight swirl of white bubbles drifting across the top of the glass: Very interesting.
The nose has some balanced notes of bourbon, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, coriander, allspice and squash. It smells like pumpkin pie…if you poured 8 ounces of aged whiskey on your pumpkin pie.
First sip uncovered much less bourbon than the nose. Primary flavor is heavy cracker malt mixed with pie spices from the nose. It reminds me of the Marzen style, which I enjoy quite a bit. It has some nice warmth from the 9% abv and the bourbon rears its head on the swallow.
Mouthfeel is thinner than I would like, but the carbonation is huge. This is consistent with the lack of head retention on the pour. I expect more with the barrel aged beers in this category.
End result: Super drinkable beer…”what was the ABV again,” this is the question I found myself asking as I pop open the second bomber. It grew on me as I consumed the 3rd glass. I really found it to be interesting and something I would share with friends in the Fall. I highly recommend picking one up for the experience. Thank you Heavy Seas for the hookup, and for the opportunity to sample this one-off brew.
Cheers!
Ryan
