Alpine Beer Company Ichabod Ale (2007)

Formerly brewed at Alpine Beer Company (CA)
Style: Sour Ale
Alpine, California USA

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle. Rich chestnut-toffee brown pour with a milky coating around the edges. Punchy vinegar and balsamic aroma with the salt of pumpkin flesh and hints of minted chocolate beneath. Dry brown spices present themselves in sweet carrot cake form. Unique, and intriguing aromas. Flavor would seem to be muddled, but pulls its disparate elements together nicely; the dark, drying tone of cinnamon is most apparent, playing nicely over the top with the pungent pumpkin vegetal qualities and biting wild sourness that fill in the middle. Sweet vanilla and oaky tartness, definitely with a touch of tannin and fruit juice. Light, and almost thin in the mouth, leaving a waxy, tart coating of apple skin; it certainly isn’t anything especially sour or puckering. Finishes with a swift, somewhat sweet almond flourish. Unique, well-behaved, exhibiting pleasantly integrated flavors and sophisticated general tone. Thanks for sharing, Ryan!

22oz bottle, courtesy of artusory. Thanks, Ryan! Pours a hazy, bright orange-brown color; light tannish head with decent lacing. Really interesting aroma: tart cherries, brown sugar, and vinous red-wine notes; a nice pumpkin ale character sits behind this, with a good amount of spicy cinnamon. Medium mouthfeel: tart citrus / cherries upfront with a warming presence of cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar; slightly flat at the core, with mostly spice and tartness taking over; there’s a bit of candy sugar / maple syrup in there, along with the red wine notes (very minimally tannic), but I can’t help but feel this is lacking a bit of body at the core; could use slightly more chewiness, but excellent otherwise with very well-integrated spicing. A tart pumpkin ale is a nice change of pace. Medium, cinnamon and red-wine-tinged oak in the finish; a bit of dough.

Bottle from Dirty_Martini. Cloudy dark amber body with some large yeast chunks and a small beige head. The nose is lightly sweet and moderately tart with cherries, very light horseblanket, toffee and light spice. The flavor is lightly sweet and moderately tart with caramel, cola, cherry, black berry, cinnamon and a touch of squash. Medium body is sparkling with high carbonation. Very interesting, glad to have tried it.

On tap at the pizza port strong ale fest 2007. Sweet, tart, tangy, citrusy. Very tasty indeed. Great beer

bottle.....pours a reddish amber-brown with a white head....aroma dominated by tart cherries with underlying scents of spice, mainly pumpkin and cinammon......flavors was of more tart cherries but the acidity and sour factor succumbed early before leaving a lasting impression. i wished the tartness lasted much longer than it did. along with that are some pumpkin and nutmeg notes but in the end, it ends up being a little thin and lacking a sense of robustness.....all that being said though, it is still pretty good and worth a try.

22 oz. bottle. Pours an almost clear reddish brown with a thin off-white head that lasted through about two-thirds of the glass. Lots of tiny carbonation bubbles. Very pleasant aroma with red wine, oak, sour cherry and a bit of brown sugar all noted. Complex flavor begins with some caramel and is quickly washed over with tart cherries, red wine, and oak flavors. At the finish, a mild pumpkin flavor rises to the surface and lingers for a bit. I did not detect any of the spice flavors. Effervescent and a bit light on the palate. A very different and enjoyable brew.

Definitely my favorite pumpkin beer to date, and a very pleasant surprise from Alpine. Pours a filtered reddish brown with a thin, diminishing, off-white head. Aroma is of tart fruits with a lot of cinnamon and pumpkin coming through. Palate is thin and well carbonated as I’d expect, with a dry, tart finish. Flavor is very balanced and a bit musty, but doesn’t come across as spicy or complex as the aroma. This is a fabulous effort and I’m really glad I bought a few extra bottles.

Bomber. Wow, this is really sour from what I expected. I thought it would be on the sweeter belgian side with a mild pumpkin tinge, but it’s far more sour. I don’t know if I can even finish this bomber as I’m puckering at each sip.