Beer Review: Schlafly Pumpkin Ale

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: Eight percent

Appearance: This quite-appealing pumpkin brew poured a very dark, yet reddish copper. The body also glistened some dark and light hues of maroon. This had a lovely color, but one aspect of this beer fell short in my book. There seemed to be a limited amount of carbonation in the body as well as a lack of thickness in the head, which was visible for a matter of seconds before fizzling off and going away for good.

Smell: Sweet and sugary cinnamon dominated the aroma. That was layered with undertones of meaty pumpkin. This is among the closest an aroma of a beer has come to actual pumpkin pie for me. This even beat the buttery scent of Southern Tier's Pumking.

Taste: I got tons of pumpkin flavor on the front. Cinnamon and nutmeg on the way back. Surprisingly, I also picked up what tasted like graham cracker. This certainly puts this beer in my "pie theory" as in graham cracker crust. The pumpkin flavor was just as awesome as it was in the smell. Not quite where you can taste the roof of your mouth and still get the pumpkin, but close enough. Texture of the beer wasn't where I'd hoped it would have been, but the alcohol presence is well hidden with the other wonderful components of this beer.

Overall Rating: 

This was absolutely amazing except for the apparent flatness of the beer's body. Not much carbonation of foamy head. Still, I went into drinking this brew with very high expectations. The word on the street is that this is a strong contender for the best pumpkin ale in the country. It came close to living up to the hype. I've seen photographs of this beer with a much better carbonation level and texture. So, I hope I'm lucky enough to try it again next year. Also, before you ask where I found it read this post from back in August.

A Sufficient Time

It's definitely that time of the year. I wrote last month after Labor Day Weekend that it was an appropriate time to fully take in, consume and enjoy pumpkin beers. It has now got just a tad cooler outdoors and those annoying leaves have been clogging our house gutters and cluttering the sidewalks.

A yummy glass of 2012 Pumking.

With that all said, I now feel that it's time to review some of the interesting pumpkin beers that I've reviewed and snapped nerdy pictures of. The only thing that is holding me back is the fact that I've been too lazy to upload the photographs from my camera and onto the flash drive.

One of the beers I'm extremely excited to review is the elusive Schlafly Pumpkin Ale that I luckily came across a few months ago. It was nearly a perfect beer drinking experience except for just one aspect. For that aspect, you'll have to wait until I get everything typed in and scheduled to post. Other pumpkin beers that I've enjoyed and am ready to review include Ithaca Country Pumpkin Cisco's Pumple Drumkin and Erie Brewing's Johnny Rails Pumpkin Ale.

I'll try to stick to my usual pattern of two beer reviews per-week. That means that tomorrow and Friday will both be pumpkin reviews. Hopefully nothing major happens in the magnificent and eventful world of beer between now and then.

Underwear, Socks and Beer

I know that it was the thing that was in a few Christmas holidays ago, but gift cards are still pretty popular as gifts. Hell, it's pretty much the only thing we ask for nowadays. They're pretty much the only thing my father buys for anyone in my family anymore.

I came across an unused gift card for American Eagle while sifting through one of my old computer bags the other morning. From my own recollection the card was from a previous relationship of mine. If you remember my posts about the Civil War Beer Series in Maryland, the same girl that was responsible for getting me some of that beer is the same reason I have this gift card in my possession. I guess I just saved it from Christmas, put it in the front compartment of this bag and forgot it was there with the magnificent plethora of gift cards I received this past year.

Now it's time for a little too much information. I decided to put this gift card to good use last night and bought some boxers on clearance. I try to do an hour of cardio twice each week and have noticed that everything wants to fall down. Hence, why I need medium everything. I also bought a few sets of socks. For the last three or so years I've worn almost nothing but black socks. So, this time I ordered a few pair that are neon green and turquoise blue. Maybe you can say I'm getting a bit more eccentric in terms of my sock selection?

"When the hell is he getting to the beer?"

You're probably also thinking that it's ironic that I used one of the last gifts from a previous relationship to buy underwear and socks. I know that's what it looks like, but given my current predicament I need anything that will cling to my damn waist.

Remember when you hated getting clothes as a Christmas or birthday gift? My uncle and I went at it every year. I hated getting one of those dreaded clothes boxes stuffed with underwear and socks. He went as far as to root for me to get clothes as I opened my gifts. He then proceeded to stand up and cheer when it was one of the infamous clothes boxes. I find it ironic that both of these clothing items are a clothing necessity as we grow older.

While I was hot in the online shopping department, I decided to acquire an interesting piece of drinkware. I settled on this. I've only ever seen a few of these glasses that are shaped like cans. The one I linked from Anderson Valley Brewing and another in the shop of Schlafly Beer in St. Louis. The Schlafly can glass was apparently taken off of the online store. So, I settled on the one from AVBC. Not that I was actually settling, but I really like the bear with the antlers on its beer labels that's pictured on the glass.

Beer Review: Schlafly Oatmeal Stout

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 5.7 percent

Appearance: This is a dark beer. It highly resembled a glass of cola. Just without the stickiness! The body is mostly black. I wasn't able to distinguish any brown or reddish hues hanging around. There was a ton of beige-colored bubbles and they rushed to the top. The interesting thing about this was the fact that the bubbles held the same color as they rose up from the bottom. The head of the brew was also a beige color and enabled some lacing inside the glass.

Smell: This beer was very dark and roasty, but a surprising creaminess was also present in my nose. The malt in this is also strong and dark in terms of smell. There was also a very prevalent aroma of oats. Not that I didn't expect it, but it's got to be in there, right?

Taste: I was hit with sweet caramel and the oats on the front. On the back was a ton of tasty, yet dark and roasted barley. The barley and hop notes contributed to an interestingly dry finish. There was also some chocolate that peeped through in the flavor as this beer warmed. Another note I took as this brew warmed was the fact that all of the flavors came together like some ice creams do when gets really soft and melts. Everything just gelled.

Overall Rating:  

This was the first time I've had an oatmeal stout that had a really dark and roasty backbone. I'm used to ones that are much lighter in the flavor department. With that said, I really enjoyed this. I think darker is the way to go with oatmeal stouts.  The dark and roasted barley worked well with the hops, too. As I mentioned earlier,  it just got better as it warmed. Just like some good baseball pitchers throw harder as the game goes on, the flavors tasted better with each sip.