DuClaw - Pumpkin Retribution

DuClaw Brewing Co.

Pumpkin Retribution - Pumpkin Stout aged in bourbon barrels

The color of this beer is a dark, rich brown.  The color reminds me of either melted chocolate or and Italian espresso.  No light gets through this beer, it's to dark and has too much body.

The aroma of this beer subtle.  There are hints of chocolate, alcohol, roast malt, vanilla and coffee.  Nothing really jumps out, the overall aroma is very mild and sneaky.  

On the palate this beer is smooooooth.  It coats the tongue nicely with flavor.  You can definitely taste the bourbon in this beer and it leaves a pleasant warming alcohol after taste.  The seasonal spices like nutmeg and cinnamon play well with the chocolate.  There is a slight pumpkin flavor that is just noticeable enough to really make this a nice after dinner treat.

The short answer to whether or not I like this beer is Yes!  I feel this beer is balanced and also has loads of flavor.  I love the backend of this beer, the bourbon aftertaste is wkndeful.  The balance of the flavors was very well done.  A really nice beer.

Stoudts - Oktober Fest

 

Stoudts Brewery

Oktober Fest - Fall seasonal ale

The color of this beer is a crisp, clear amber with some red tones.  It is a nice, traditional color for this style of beer.

The aroma of the brew gives off a nice grassy hop.  There are also notes of caramel and a light sugary sweetness.  The aroma is balanced and pleasant.  

On the palate the roasted malt is the first thing you notice.  It is smooth and inviting.  The backend of the beer gives off a nice floral hop that finishes smoothly down the tongue.  The carbonation is light, not at all prickley on the tongue, which adds nicely to the flavor of the beer.

Overall I find this seasonal beer to be very good and easy to drink.  Definitely a beer worth trying.  The balance of sweetness and bitterness was very nice and there was a nice distinction between the flavors.  A well done beer by Stoudts.

New Holland - Dragon's Milk

New Holland Brewing Co.

Dragon's Milk - Bourbon Barrel Stout

The color of this beer is thick, deep and rich dark brown.  The head of the beer has a brownish tint to it as well.  The beer is barely translucent, almost no light comes through this beer.

The aroma of this brew gives off nice tones of chocolate, booze and vanilla.  The alcohol smell is strong but not overpowering.  The first thing I actually noticed was the chocolate smell.  The backend of the beer's smell has a slight spike to it, and that is where I notice the vanilla.

On the palate this beer has a strong bourbon / alcohol taste.  The The notes of vanilla and chocolate help to smooth the beer out a little bit, but not enough to take the alcohol sting out of the beer.  There is also a decent maltiness to this beer, but again the alcohol heat is the thing that you get the most.

For me this beer is way to much alcohol flavor.  I love, I mean love strong beers, but this one for me gives off to much of that pure alcohol flavor.  The vanilla, chocolate and roasted flavors of this beer are awesome, but they are masked by the alcohol.  I am not crazy about this beer, it's just ok to me.

Thomas Creek - Castaway

Thomas Creek Brewery

Castaway Chocolate Orange IPA

The color of this beer is a deep, clear copper.  It's actually quite wonderful.  It is exactly what I imagined when I read the name of this beer.

The aroma of this brew is strong with a earthy pines, a slight bit of citrus, and on the backend a nice chocolate hit.  As the beer warms, the chocolate really comes out and makes you want to drink this beer all that much more.

On the palate this beer has a lot going on.  The orange flavor combines with the pine hops to make a nice full bodied flavor.  The chocolate flavor is very mild.  It's not as strong as I would like it to be.  I wish there was more of the chocolate flavor in the body of the beer, but at least there is a little bit.

Overall this is a decent beer.  I haven't had a Thomas Creek beer since a 2011 beerfest, so it was nice to get one.  I really like the idea of this beer.  The flavors are nice, and pretty well balanced.  If you are an IPA fan definitely try this beer.

Breckenridge - Regal

Breckenridge Brewery

Regal - Double Pilsner

The color of this brew is a nice slightly hazy golden orange.  The heart of the beer is a nice rich gold that fades out nicely to a yellow/orange.  A very nice color for a pilsner style beer.

The aroma of this beer is a slight fruitiness that gives of a hint of citrus.  The beer also gives off a slight hop aroma.  Overall the aroma is faint without a lot of muscle to it.  You really have to stick your nose in the glass to smell what this beer is like.

On the palate Regal has some needly carbonation that hits the tongue and then gives off a well balanced flavor.  This brew has some notes of grass, lemon and mixes in a nice malty backbone.  The beer then transitions to finish with a slightly bitter backend.  The beer finishes dry and kind of make you smack the mouth.

I am not a pilsner fan normally, but this one isn't too bad.  First of all, the bottle art is freaking awesome, and for the bottle alone I would buy this beer.  This is a pretty good beer, and worth trying if you like Pilsners, especially a Pils with some body to it.  There is some nice flavor, and gives me faint IPA feel.  Go get one.    

Dogfish Head - Raison D'être

Dogfish Head brewery

Raison D'être 

The color of the beer is a rich deep brown.  It is thick and lets just a little bit if light through it.  There is also a slight red to the color that comes out when you look a little closer.

The aroma of this beer gives off scents of hard sugary candy.  It is sweet smelling with a hint of alcohol.  There is also a bready maltiness that has a slight hint of caramel as well.  It is an overpowering smell, but sweet and since I like hard candy I find the smell enjoyable.

On the palate beer is not as sweet as it smells.  There is a bready malt flavor, and a sweetness from dark fruits like cherries.  There is also a quick taste of caramel on the very from part of this beer.  The finish leaves you with a roasted warmth from the malts.  This part of the beer lingers for a while and that's kind of nice, it means you don't have to keep sipping to have the taste of the beer.

Overall this beer is decent.  The flavors are not to clean, they kind of middle together, but it doesn't taste bad.  It just leaves me wanting a little more.  My favorite part of this beer is the smell.  I wish the flavor just had more to it.

Arcadia - Jaw-Jacker

Arcadia Brewing Co.

Jaw-Jacker: Ale brewed with seasonal spices

The color of this brew is a wonderful golden orange.  The beer is translucent with a slight fogginess that adds a wonderful depth to it's appearance.

The aroma of the beer has a nice clean spice to it.  There is also a hint of actual pumpkin, which is nice to find.  The spices are balanced and not one spice jumps out at you.

On the palate the beer is nice and crisp.  The carbonation is crisp on the tongue, without being prickly.  The spices are kind of all muddled together so you can't really distinguish between the cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice that the beer claims to be brewed with.  You can tell that this beer has spice, but again it's hard to tell them all apart.  On the backend of this brew you get a nice meaty pumpkin flavor with a slight bitterness.  A very nice backend to this beer.

Overall this beer is Okay.  The aroma is nice and not overdone.  Jaw-Jacker has a decent flavor, but I think it could be better.  I wish the spices stood out a little more and danced more on the tongue.  The backend of this beer was very enjoyable though.  Again, this beer isn't horrible, but it isn't my favorite of the season.

Draft Mag - 10 Wildly Diverse Pumpkins

Check this list out for all you pumpkin beer lovers.  While pumpkin season is coming to an end, there is still time to enjoy from great brews.  I believe pumpkin season doesn't end until thanks giving, so don't start drinking your Mad Elf yet!

http://draftmag.com/features/10-wildly-diverse-pumpkin-beers/

List courtesy of Draft Magazine