Southern Tier Pumking

Bomber. Clear orange-amber with a light beige head, barely-there, and soon-gone. Nose of dark, earthy pumpkin and huge spice. Grainy, sort of reminds of a cross between malt extract syrup and the host of scents wafting around a homebrew store. Taste is overly sweet (underattenuated?), though the resolve to a dry finish reveals tons of vanilla and whip cream notes, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Yams? I was skeptical at first, but the alcohol is very well hidden, and the lasting after-effect is resoundingly of Thanksgiving! Rosi says it tastes like Lebkuchen. Man, delicious!

I had this beer on tap at Buster’s on 28th after I ordered and hated a Liftbridge Farmgirl Saison. The Pumking had a small head that was mostly gone by the time my glass got to my table, but the sweet and spicy pumpkin aroma was still there. Al the stuff you would expect in a pumpkin pie is in this beer and the sweetness doesn’t overpower. This was a completely satisfying beer that didn’t taste much like a beer or ale. It probably isn’t the beer I would have ordered to go with my buffalo burger, but the sweetness was moderated and the spice was not overpowering. I made several calls around town when I got home that evening and it was gone from the shelves in stores. Bummer. I’m going to be watching for this one next year, though.

2009 Bottle - Thanks corey70! - Pours clear orange and still, no head to speak of....aroma is pie crust, vanilla cream, cinnamon and some pumpkin...flavour is similar, initially sweet and malt centric, some mint and dough, but shifts to bitter, astringent pumpkin spice and diacetyl, had some prickly carb to it also which suprised me ...glad to have tried it...

Bottle thanks to Cavie. Right off the bat there’s a fantastic dry spice aroma. Taste of pumpkin, lots of spice, and malts. Dry feel. Aftertaste goes on forever.

bottle thanks to corey70. pours a rich orange/amber with off white head. aroma is insane with pumpkin pie and spice. drinks extremely easy at 9% and is just a flood of liquid pumpkin pie. the flavor makes you think back to your youth when you get that first piece of pie for the season. finishes with nice cinnamon and nutmeg and just begs to be chugged. absolutly the best pumpkin beer i’ve had to date.

Bottle via trade thanks to truehumand on BA. Pours clear pumpkin orange with a dissipating off-white head. Aroma is pumpkin, pumpkin spices, gingerbread, corn, and biscuit. Flavor is sweet and very pumpkin pie like with loads of pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, butternut squash, and some bready pale malt. Palate is smooth and creamy and slightly warming. Finish is long. Nice pumpkin beer overall, but maybe not quite the king of pumps (or pums I guess - what happened to the other P?).

Bottle courtesy of Shyam and the Bang-Golly Beer Club. They have a VARIETY of beers. Had waited for this a long time so I am happy it could be my 900th rating. Nose is very full with clove, nutmeg, sugar, cinnamon, maybe a hazelnut, and then very authentic pumpkin. A but on the vegetable side rather than pie, but very good. Full notes of pie crust as well. Color is rather transparent and a standard orange gold. Flavor is much like the aroma, with the soft, sweet pumpkin notes kind of subdued by the spice, which I would take or leave. Texture is not nearly as thick as I would like (yeah, my standard is Big Black Pumpkin) but this is still good, if not comforting. Really good - glad I had it, may even seek out again. PS, barrel age this beer.

Bottle courtesy of Cletus. Clear orange appearance. Aroma is dry spices and a large element of kettle corn. Quite the autumn smell. Kettle corn and candy corn dominate the taste. Taste is way too dry though and the spices stand unbalanced. Few flavors stand with you past the finish and they are not outstanding flavors.