Elysian Dark O The Moon Pumpkin Stout

Brewed by Elysian Brewing Co.
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Seattle, Washington USA

On tap at Iron Hill North Wales as part of their 2008 Pumpkin Fest. Pours a deep brown almost black with a creamy deep tan head that laced. Aroma of milk chocolate, toasted coconut, cinnamon, nuts, toffee and caramel. Aroma was great! Flavor of the same...a nice chocolatey porter with cinnamon notes and this interesting touch of toasted coconuts. Not sure where the coconut was coming from but this really surprised me.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Up until this night I’d thought pumpkin beers were pretty much all crap. But first I had the Allagash Pumpkin, and loved it... then I had this, and it was unquestionably just as delicious, so I had to stick it right up there with the Allagash, and later the Elysian Pumpkin Scottish Ale. These guys don’t mess around with their Pumpkin beers!

This beer was a deep black with good head. Flavor has an awesome, clean coffee, roast with minor pumpkin pie spices. Not too complex but very delicious. Aroma is big coffee and well balanced. Really sessionable, and just perfectly made.

Black with a tan head. Aroma has some mild pumpkin pie spices along with dark roasted malts and semi sweet chocolate. Medium - full bodied with a rich, smooth mouthfeel. Nice flavors of nutty dark roasted and lightly bitter burnt malts with sweet n’ spicy pumpkin flesh, cinnamon, and chocolate to balance. A great base stout that would do well with a bit more pumpkin and spice flavors. Draft@ Bottleworks.

Draft @ Iron Hill - I was pretty psyched to try this as the flavors of pumpkin and porter/stout seem to be nice accompaniments. Darker brown color with a medium head. Aroma is roasty and spicy with cinnamon, chocolate, and roasty pumpkin. Flavor is cinnamon and pumpkin dominant with some nutmeg, chocolate, coffee, and roast. Smooth finish - really good stuff!

Trade bottle from DA. Poured a dark brown with bubbly toasted brown head. Aroma was cinnamon with hints of chocolate and pumpkin. Taste was chocolate, nutty, and roasty. Pallet was medium and silky. Overall very enjoyable. I was expecting more pumpkin taste though.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Very, very dark black beer with a light tan head. Aroma is very toasty and chocolatey. Dark bittersweet chocolate over a rich caramelly maltiness. Lots of cocoa and a bit of licorice as well. Flavour has a touch of pumpkiny sweetness but it is quite subtle in the rich chocolate, plum, and cocoa. I was expecting something like Cape Anne, but this isn’t that at all. Like the pils, the pumpkin contribution is subtle, but it’s definitely there. Sticky toasty/roasty flavour with a kiss of oakty stickiness. Quite a delicious stout.

2007 Update: Chocolate/cinnamon goodness; I just love this beer. Bitter finish. I wish they had this all the time. 2006: Chocolate and spice aroma is perfect for a pumpkin beer. Just enough, not overwhelming spice. Dark black with nice head. Chocolate, coffee, tobacco taste with a nice slightly hoppy finish. Very nice roastiness to it that is quite unique....guessing it’s from the roasted pumpkin seeds. I wanted to steal a keg of this. Awesome.

Tap at the past two Elysian Pumpkin Fests. Pours dark black with somewhat of an orangish tanned thick head. Huge aroma thick with coffee, dark dark chocolate, and roasty malts. Somewhere in the background a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg are floating around. The flavor is a lot of the same notes...thick roasted malt backed by a sweet and dark chocolate body, pulpy with pumpkin at points. The finish is lovely! Hints of bitter chocolate and hops, but lots of pie spice! Damn this is good shit!