Catawba Valley King Dons Pumpkin Ale

Brewed by Catawba Valley Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Glen Alpine, North Carolina USA

Growler. Poured amber orange clear with a small head. Nose is pumpkin, spice, and caramel. Taste is nice and heavy on the pumpkin, with spice and sweetness accompanying nicely. Finish is spiced. Mouth is medium smooth.

(Brewgrass08) Clear amber body with off-white head. Aroma is medium sweet, allspice, light ginger, clove. Taste is medium sweet, pumpkin pie, some allspice. Watery light-medium body.

pint @ Barley’s. Great aroma, Pumpkin pie basically, caramel, nutmeg, cinnamon, and pumpkin. Orangy red color, little to no head or lace. Sweet spiced flavor, like aroma in everyway. Medium body, lite creamy mouthfeel, sweet finish. Very good pumpkin.

Tap at Brewgrass Festival. I don’t generally like pumpkin beers because the spices are too intense and I don’t really like my beer to taste like pumpkin pie. But this was a surprise. Orange/copper poor. Not a huge head by any means. Bitter cinnamon and nutmeg as well as pumpkin on the nose, but somehow the balance seemed to work. I liked it. Caramel and malt as well, but not overly sweet. Not sure what to say... a surprisingly tasty beer for me.

Tap @ Barley’s Taproom - The past 2 year this hasn’t been that great of a batch from Catawba, but whenever they decide to get their act together and stop messing around with the ingredients, this is the best pumpkin ale I’ve ever had.

Draught. Pours hazy dark rust orange with extremely small off-white head. The aroma is plenty of nutmeg, some sweet caramel. The flavor is nutmeg and pumpkin pie spice. It finishes on an earthy note. Some caramel comes out once in a while, as do some carbonic notes.

Draft at Barley’s Taproom in Asheville, NC. Poured a clear orange-red color. Head was thin, off white, and left some decent lace behind on the glass. Aroma was spice dominated, mostly cinnamon. There was only a whiff of pumpkin. Dry on the tongue. The flavor was also spice-driven with cinnamon and a dash of black pepper dominating the pumpkin. Mouth feel was on the watery end of the spectrum. Not among my favorite pumpkin beers.

Pint. pours a clear brown/amber. has a smooth light spicy pumpkin aroma. nice and smooth with well balanced pumpkin spices, not too strong or afronted. refreshing spices more prevalent on front with refreshing aftertaste. a good sessionable smooth quality to it. had with food and it went well.