Pumpkins 2011 - Round 1!

Yep, Halloween passed.  Same as last post, get over it.  Pumpkin beers are amazing any time of the year.  (and I have far too many!!)  So might as well crack into the stash and get all sorts of freaky pumpkiny!  I'm only gonna go over beers I didn't review last year to keep in interesting, but that's not to say I didn't grab some of my favorites from last year and other classics.  First up this year....

Lakefront Brewery - Pumpkin Lager Beer.  They claim to be the world's only pumpkin lager..  maybe?  Maybe not in 2011..so many too choose from!  Same brewery that did the Fuel Cafe Stout I reviewed, which was amazing, so I have slightly high hopes for this one!  6.0% ABV and a rich hazy orange pour.  Some hints of pumpkin on the nose with a little cinnamon and a rather prominent vanilla profile.  Taste-wise, very similar to a Pumpkinhead, but with a great unique feature: orange!  A rather large part of the taste comes from a slightly creamy orange/citrus profile.  A nice amount of the usual cinnamon and nutmeg spices with vanilla contributing to the slight creaminess.  The pumpkin is about as prominent as the Pumpkinhead, so a little lacking.  Overall a really nice pumpkin beer, but nowhere near the stand-outs of last year, but starting to dig this little brewery from Milwaukee.

Cisco - Pumple Drumkin   Seen this guy around a lot this year and was dying to crack into one finally!  6.0% ABV and brewed with Nantucket-grown pumpkins, yummy!  Slightly darker than the usual pumpkin beer with far less of a head.  A great full vanilla and spice nose.  Smooth malts and a bit of earthy notes come through.  Although not billed as one, this fella comes across as a bit of a pumpkin Brown Ale.  A fairly hefty amount of a pure, roasted pumpkin comes through on the taste with a nice spice kick.  A little of the usual suspects, but with a little pepper and maybe some coriander notes.  Malts provide some breads and caramel sweetness.  Fairly effervescent and dry, this one actually had a faint hop profile on the finish...nice!  Definitely more full-bodied than most, and way maltier/earthy.  Well balanced and not pumpkin concentrate tasting.  A nice take on a pumpkin, Cisco.. a nice take indeed.




Last one this round..  the one I've seen on everyone's top pumpkin lists...  Buffalo Bill's Brewery - "America's Original" Pumpkin Ale.  Been dying to try this and finally got my hands on one..  5.2% ABV.  And finally a nice head on a pumpkin!  A bubbly malty nose with a lot of cinnamon, some brown sugar, some clove.  Smells a little artificial.  The taste/body is hugely fizzy, awkwardly sweet.  Kinda like a generic malt beverage with a lot of similarities to an Irish Cider.  Definite spice in the taste, all the pumpkin pie attributes minus the pumpkin.  It only seems to come through in bursts on the finish with the faintest of hoppy bitterness.  Honestly..really disappointed.  Blindfolded, I would've easily called this the Woodchuck Pumpkin or maybe a new Smirnoff Ice Pumpkin.  Original..maybe.  Best..far far from it. =(  giant sad face!!!