Jolly Pumpkin E.S. Bam

A clear light brown colored beer, with a huge light beige head. The aroma of bitter hops, with malts and a little flowers. The taste of bitterness, with fruits and notes of spices. The aftertaste is bitter. The beer reminds me a little at light Orval.

Bottle. As with every single Jolly Pumpkin offering I’ve had, this came out of the bottle with a volcanic torrent of foam, that clung to the side of the glass for dear life while it died away. And the prototypical Jolly Pumpkin aroma of farmhouse yeast oozes to my olfactory senses. The beer carries a funky factor to be sure, with a very, very light body -- nectar-sweet, with the earthy yeastiness predominating. (#3740, 11/15/2009)

Pours a hazy brown-amber with a huge off white head. Tight bubble pattern makes the head cling to the glass in clumps and chunks. Strong aroma of brett. Can’t really decifer much more because brett is so strong. Sweet, woody, and slightly fruity flavor. Finishes soapy and bitter. Strong carbonation.

Yellow brown pour with a fluffy white head. Sour woody and spicy aroma. Fruity notes with lots of herbal hops. Bretty yeast flavor with citrus and wood. Lots of bitter hops to finish.

Pours a dark hazy chestnut brown/ orange-amber color with a thick frothy off-white head that has excellent retention. This isn’t giving way at all. I mean it barely settles into a thick cap that lasts throughput leaving large chunks of soapy lacing that practically coat the glass. Sweet citrus aroma with lots of orange peel and some nice chocolate and caramel malt. Tart earthy notes with some nice peppery spice, more citrus, dark cherries, light fruit, oak and vanilla. This is a very complex aroma. Let’s hope the flavo is the same. Nice chewy full body with some art sour oak/wood flavor. This slightly puckering earthy taste is a perfect compliment to the citrus peel notes and earthy hops. Once again, there is a prominent orange peel presence with some soft carbonation and a nice malt backbone providing excellent balance. The aftertaste of this beer makes me salivate for another sip. Extremely quaffable. Another excellent offering from the folks at Jolly Pumpkin.

750 ml bottle. Lively, reddish amber body with a big, foamy off-white head. Aroma is refreshing Bretty. Flavor is dry malty, balanced bitter and fine sourish finish. Well made.

Bottle from de Bierkoning. Hazy copper with a thick creamy head. Sour fruit aroma, lots of brettanomyces. Slightly sweeter in the mouth, yet dry and sour flavours in the lead. Fizzy. Starts aggressive in the nose, but ends up a mild version of Orval.

Pours a dark-tinted burnt orange with orange highlights and the biggest monstrous head I’ve ever had to deal with. No skin oils would keep that sucker down, so I resorted to scooping it out with a spoon (I used a New Belgium goblet, perhaps it wasn’t wide enough). Aroma is funky as expected with JP; notes of earth, oak, mustard, mushrooms, and cheese. Maybe SLIGHT toffee. Tastes of oak, earth, bitter cheese, grassy hops, with a little more earthy malt presence than funky Belgian beers typically have. Finishes extremely dry, earthy and bitter. A little bigger bodied than regular Bam, carbonation doesn’t actually feel to high, considering the enormous head. It’s pretty good, but damn, it’s too dry for me!