Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin (Pugsley’s Signature Series)

Brewed by Shipyard Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Portland, Maine USA

Serve in Lager glass, Shaker, Tumbler

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November 16th, 2011 - My operationalization of pumpkin beers is a unidimensional line. On the left are those that taste like a raw pumpkin, vegetable and almost bitter. On the other are brews who aim for or land at something a little more processed, like a pumpkin pie. These tend to be sweeter and more complex, but prone to excesses, and can quickly becoming cloying. The Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin, however, levitates magically above this line, adding a new axis and a second dimension to my pumpkin beer assessment measurements. This is because it adds a third pole of fruitiness, a nice and clean citrus that I’ve never seen so pronounced in a pumpkin beer. To return to the beginning, the Shipyard glows with an appropriate deep orange color, with a clarity and column of fizz that suggests easy drinking and sipping. The nose opens with a touch of tang and acidity, a hint of white grape dryness, and there in the center is a rich, deep pumpkin flavor. At second glance, there’s a sweet fruitiness wrapping itself around the column of pumpkin, a kind of bright, sweet and smile-inducing ripeness that is sweet but distinct from the deep sugars of the pumpkin. I lean back for a moment to return to the aroma, and now catch bits of juniper and orange marmalade in the aroma. Back to the taste and the flavor of ripe orange is even stronger, playing well with the pumpkin sugars. A fine beer by itself, Shipyard’s Smashed Pumpkin earns bonus points for expanding the space a pumpkin beer can travel, and teaching my old palate new tricks.

Foil-capped screwtop bomber. You don’t see many of those, and with good reason.

Pours hazy orange with a creamy but descending white head. Sweet nutmeg aroma, maybe a little cinnamon in there somewhere? Sweet full body, spicy pumpkin pie taste, not too sweet, but sneaking up on it.

Bottled. Semi-sweet, medium bodied. Very spicy taste, malt, caramel, cinnamon, quite fruity, reasonably well balabced. (2009-09-25)

Pours an orange color with a off white head with good lacing. Smells of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and pumpkin. Tastes of all the spices I mentioned plus the pumpkin presence is pretty evident. Mouthfeel is medium and creamy with great carbonation and a semi dry finish. Overall this is one of the best pumpkin beers I had this year. Can’t wait to try next years.

Bottle, pours a dark copper, aroma is spicey, I get a lot of cinnimon and nutmeg out of the flavour, overall, it was pretty smooth and drinkable, not bad

Pumpkin spice and yeast comes through on the aroma. Deep golden in color with a small foam. Very strong pumpkin seed/pumpkin pie overtones with spices, herbs and hops behind it. Finish leaves a very pleasant lingering pumpkin taste behind on the palate. Overall, this is a delectable pumpkin ale. Relatively basic but it gets the job done. I’d give this an A- rating.

22 ounce bottle into tulip glass; no bottle dating, but likely to be from this years batch. Pours slightly hazy golden orange color with a 1 finger dense off white head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty foamy lacing clings to the glass. Aromas of big pumpkin, clove, caramel, nutmeg, toast, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and light pepper. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity. Taste of pumpkin, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, toast, ginger, allspice, biscuit, caramel, and light herbal. Light spice bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, ginger, toast, biscuit, allspice, caramel, and light herbal on the finish for a good bit. Very nice balance of flavors with good malt/spice complexity; zero cloying sweetness present after the finish. This wasn’t as robust in flavor as I was expecting for a 9% beer, but it was good enough. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a fairly slick and lightly syrupy mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a small warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a very nice imperial pumpkin ale. Nice spice and malt flavor complexity and balance; and very smooth to sip on. Really enjoyed this one.

Amber with a thin white layer of head. Aroma is a large bit of spiced pumpkin, very similar to pie. Flavor is very sweet and spicy, definitely tastes like a liquid pumpkin pie. Not a bad thing necessarily, but it could be a little toned down and balanced.

A nice amber-orange body with a slightly off white had that had good retention and lace. Strong nutmeg upfront with hints of brown sugar pumpkin and some mild all spice. Flavor was nice and sweet, nutmeg waved back and forth between both sweet and spicy flavors. Finish was smooth and the alcohol was well hidden.

Pumpkin spice. Really tasty specialty beer. One of the better one I have tried. Would pair well with numerous foods