Pumpkin Beer #18: North Peak Hooligan Hoppy Pumpkin Ale
Who knew Traverse City's North Peak Brewery had a pumpkin beer--an IPA, no less! I think this is the first pumpkin IPA I've been able to find, which is kind of strange, considering the increasing attention both pumpkin ales and IPAs are experiencing these days! I found a bottle of this in a basket of hodge-podge seasonals at the local grocery store and did a double-take. I was hoping for a six pack, but alas, all I could find was the lone bottle. Just as the name indicates, Hooligan is super hoppy. It's delicious, no doubt, but my one complaint would be that they didn't brew this with enough pumpkin. There's subtle, and then there's "wait, is this really a pumpkin beer?"
Beer Bitch Grade: B
Method of Intake: 12oz
ABV: 6.5%
Pumpkin Beer #19: Chatoe Rogue First Growth Pumpkin Patch Ale
I have to hand it to Rogue this year for releasing this seasonal in a bright pumpkin orange bottle! I've never had their GYO (Grow Your Own) Pumpkin Patch Ale. According to Rogue, the pumpkins brewed in this beer are organically grown in their very own pumpkin patch! Impressive indeed. Appropriately, this ale has an earthy smell, similar to root vegetables roasting in the oven. The texture is thick and almost creamy. The spicing is very subtle to make way for the rich pumpkin flavor. A delicious, unique pumpkin offering that I will be more than pleased to support and guzzle each season!
Beer Bitch Grade: A-
Method of Intake: 22oz
ABV: 5.6%
Pumpkin Beer #20: Post Road Pumpkin Ale
Brooklyn Brewery's take on pumpkin pours a lovely amber that you cannot see from the blurry photo above because I suck at even taking phone photos (blame it on the DTs). It has a light body and almost tastes weak. Nutmeg and cinnamon combine with a strong clove presence to give a bit of a bite. Nice pumpkin flavoring with just about the right amount of carbonation. It's decent, but there's nothing about it to make it stand-out from the rest of the pumpkin beer crowd.
Beer Bitch Grade: C+
Method of Intake: 6pk
ABV: 5%
Pumpkin (Controversially So!) Beer #21: Arcadia Ales JAW-JACKER
Arcadia Ale's Jaw-Jacker is controversial among pumpkin beer connoisseurs. Why? The artwork and name suggests it is a pumpkin beer; however, pumpkin is not actually one of the ingredients. While this is understandably a total fail for most drinkers, Jaw-Jacker has been a fall staple for me over the past few years. An amber-wheat that's really heavy on the allspice (making it taste like pumpkin pie), cinnamon, and nutmeg, Jaw-Jacker is super tasty and extremely drinkable. This brew just looks, smells, tastes, and feels like Fall. Another common criticism is that the spices are added to the beer instead of brewed with the beer, but I think it's important to point out that Arcadia is up-front about this (and the lack of pumpkin) on the packaging. Don't like that? Don't drink it.
There's new artwork for Jaw-Jacker this year. It's less creepy than the previous art, but it's still spirited and seasonal.
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