Jolly Pumpkin Fuego del Otono (Autumn Fire)

Brewed by Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Style: Belgian Ale
Dexter, Michigan USA

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Thanks to Ron Jeffries for giving this bottle to me upon his most recent visit.

Rating #880
It truly pours a chestnut hued body and a most handsome rocky khaki colored head. From the first quaff, I found an amazing blend of wild yeasts and busty caramel and toffee malts. The wild yeasts are most predominant on my palate; coming across in a particularly vinous manner. I’m noting a wildly tannic and mildly acidic blending of young cabernet grapes and a more mature fruity zinfandel. Rather oaky and peppery upfront and vaguely fruity in the middle, a combination of green and red apple cider. The brett and untamied lacto flavors remind me of a soft Maytag blue folded up into some fresh crusty skinned pumpernickel bread. The wild yeasts are the life of the beer for me; I’m having a hard time seeing past them. I dutiabley find the plethora of nutty malts, some cracked wheat, and sourdough breads. The palate is tremendous, a perfectly balanced weight. There is a yeasty tartness of cumquat and dough lingering with oak chips and Melba-toast in the finish. This is a wonderful beer for all occasions… a bottled triumph of liquid and art. - A new all time favorite!

This beer is pretty well carbonated, it pours with a frothy three-finger thick tan head, that starts to leave a lacing pattern as it slowly, and falls back in a cratered rocky fashion. The beer is a hazy reddish-tinged amber color. The aroma is intoxicating, it is immediate as soon as I start pouring this beer; it is a mix of tart notes and fruit up front. As I go in for a deeper draught of the aroma I get a signature of Brett that is a bit horseblanket, and quite funky (especially if you linger over the aroma. The tartness is still here underneath the Brett character; notes of tamarind and tart plum are quite evident. The aroma is quite complex, and quite nice I could smell these beers for quite some time. Comparable to a Lambic in many ways but there is that balancing sweet note, which contributes to the fruitiness, and is not typically found in a bone dry Lambic. After a bit of time I start to pick up a fruity concentrated note that reminds me of sweet strawberries and kiwis; Interesting.

The beer has some body to it, and an astringent woody/ tannic note that definitely make one think of the barrels that this was fermented in (or perhaps some of it is from the chestnuts). It only has a light sweetness to it, but it is enough to play up fruity notes of apples and plums. The beer is spicy with a nice carbonation note in combination with some spicy oak notes and sharp acidity. It is notable that the acidity is almost subtle here, I am not saying that it is not here, because it is definitely tart, but it is so well integrated with the rest of the flavors. The spices that were used are also quite subtle, in fact I can’t even pick any of them out, which in my mind is about perfect, I like the integrated character that spices add, but don’t like them to be individually noticeable. The Brettanomyces is here in the flavor, but not nearly as noticeable as it was in the aroma. This really works for this beer, because the Brett does not dominate the flavor profile; it contributes an underlying funkiness that sort of wraps around and accentuates the other characteristics found in this beer. As time goes on this beer picks up a wonderful creaminess to it, which really brings the mouthfeel to another level.

My final word on this beer is that it is so well integrated, and so well balanced. The wood character, the tartness, the funky notes, the fruit character and everything else just combines to form a really nice drinking, complex brew. Once again Ron has created a masterful brew, so far he is firing on all cylinders and I still have 5 more of these to go.

UPDATED: DEC 8, 2012 Murky amber with big, foamy, off-white head / Classic, complex Pumpkin nose of orchard fruit, herb & dry spice, caramel, and oak / Light to medium body, acidic and lightly tart, with great balance and dry, bitter finish / Flavors of green apple, unripe pear, lemon, chestnut, chrysanthemum, sage, coriander, caramel, oak, hay, and a mild dose of horseblanket / Great as usual.

750 ml bottle into tulip, bottled 9/28/2010. Pours slightly cloudy orange amber color with a nice 2 finger dense off white head with incredible retention that reduces to a thick cap that lasts forever. Some nice lacing clinging to the glass as well. Aromas of big tart apple, lemon, cherry, caramel, nuttiness, mint, hay, oak, coriander, spices, and funkiness. Nice aromas as I would have expected; a lot going on here and it took a while to figure the aromas out. Taste of caramel, biscuit, chestnuts, coriander, pepper, tart apple, lemon, grass, oak, spices, and funk. Slight tartness on the finish as expected; with lingering notes of lemon, apple, chestnuts, caramel, and spices on the finish for a bit. Incredible balance of flavor and funk in this. Medium-high carbonation and medium bodied; with a slightly creamy and very smooth mouthfeel. Very easy drinking stuff; with no alcohol noticed at all. Overall this is an incredible autumn seasonal offering from Jolly Pumpkin. So much great balance, complexity, and smooth drinking.

Lottle bit of a farmhouse smell with notes of the oak and wild yeast. Hazy golden pour with some lace. Fantastic blend of fruit with a subtle spice and the sourness is not overwhelming but makes the beer brilliant. Great palate and overall awesome beer.

Bottle. Very hazy dark rust orange that’s murky ith a slightly offwhite head. Very squashy and actual pumpkin that moves into a alight earthy sourness for the aroma. Ripe sour yams, white grapes, slight funk JP style, leveled and just beyond my words. Lighter to medium body wih subtle carbonation. Pretty

750 ml bottle. Pours a hazy pale copper with a large, white head of foam. Great retention and lacing. Aroma is peppery and bretty with some ginger and tropical fruit and spices coming through nicely. Taste is sweet initially, but moves to a dry tartness, very reminiscent of an aged Orval. This beer is pretty damn good. I could see me getting a few bottles of this just to see how they do over time. Really good!

Big gracious thanks to schroppfy for the bottle. Ron Jeffries is doing wonderful things up there in the cozy town of Dexter, MI and this autumn seasonal is another testament to that fact. It looks fantabulous in the glass. Lightly murky amber with a lovely stark white head that leaves a great wake of lace as it descends the glass. The nose is funky, spicy fruit up front. As it opens up I get more barnyard and ripe fruits (apricot and chestnut). The flavor exhibits wood and some tannins but the meshing of funk and spice is the standout here. The palate is dry, prickly and fully attentuated. The chestnuts come in after the swallow and waft through my sinuses as an earthy nuttiness. Damn good stuff.

UPDATED: FEB 10, 2006 750 mL bottle. somewhat tart aroma floats above a sponge-cake-like head, and some fruit and spice shine through as well. no chestnut in the aroma, but there is definitely a nutty/woody flavor hidden behind the cinnamon and clove and yeast flavors which dominate. only 6.1%? it’s nice and sticky and warming - easily my favorite jolly pumpkin beer so far. cheers to this new brewery!

KSBF 06. Not sure if this was an 05 or an 06 but it was pretty funky so Id guess the 05? Pours a cloudy yeasty bright orange/light amber with a great fluffy head and nice retention and lace. Aroma is slightly sour and lemony with lots of funky brett, horseblanket, mildewy and musty and lots of phenolicy spiciness. Tart sour cherry and farnhouse funk flavor, leathery, spicy, cloves, woody, oaky, some vanilla. More tartenss and sour in the end with pediococcus or sharp brett cherry pie like flavors. A bit astringency along with the tartness- almond-like or cherry pit harshness with a dry finish. THis was really cool and funky. Great stuff.