Jolly Pumpkin Fuego del Otono (Autumn Fire)

Brewed by Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Style: Belgian Ale
Dexter, Michigan USA

Cloudy dark golden body topped by a very large off-white head. Spicy hard-candies, crunchy dry toffee, caramel dipped chestnuts, candied apples and added spices of the nutmeg/cinnamon family. Overall impression of drinking a spicy and crusty pecan pie. The brett is well integrated in the beer. Actually I’m not sure I would have picked it up if I hadn’t known it was there. Body feels full yet fluid. Original and hard to categorized. As with most spicy beers I found a 750ml to be a bit too much, better in smaller doses. Far from my on my Jolly Pumpkin favourite this is nonetheless an wonderful beer. Cerveza del glouglouburp.

Bottled sample via lubiere, consumed with oakbluff. Light amber in colour with strong (ie: foam over) carbonation. Aromas of funky Belgian yeast, menthol, camphor, wet wood, pepper, ginger, and pippin apple. Flavor wise, the complexity is amazing: gingerbread, mint, caramel, toasted nuts, lemon, red apple, vanilla, and molasses (the final note is very light). Light bodied due to the carbonation, with a gentle sour finish. Amazing stuff.

Fairly dry. Lambic like funk, but it is not a very acidic beer. The nuts and spices really come through and it is richly flavored.

NorCal tasting July 07 - This is one beer from Jolly Pumpkin that I just couldn’t get into. An aroma of ginger and bubblegum, a touch nutty, malty and it brings the obvious funk into everything. Appearance is amber in color with a huge head. Flavors were mostly dominated by the sourness of the beer, but underneath it it carried some caramel-nuttyness to it along with a bit of dark fruity (figs?). Hard to tell due to the Brett.

Gift from my GF. 750 bottle. Bottle bomb, did not flow over but had to sit and wait for head to settle for quite a long time. (needless to say) huge white head on dark brown/red body, almost opaque. Aroma has nice funk with cherries, spices, cloves. Flavor is sour, woody, warrming, sherry, sweet and green apple. Body is med and creamy. Very delicious, unfortunate about the crazy carb though.

Bouteille. De couleur orange ambrée et voilée. Nez de levures sauvages fruitées aigres (pommes vertes, framboises, cerises sûres, notes d’agrumes et de poires), terreuses et boisées (bois humide), malté de caramel sucré et épicé (coriandre, léger de cannelle et de muscade). Moyennement ronde en bouche avec un pétillement fort-moyen et une texture crémeuse. Goût de levures fruitées moyennement sûres (pommes vertes, léger de framboises et de cerises sûres, notes de poires et d’agrumes avec leurs pelures), légèrement boisé (bois humide) et terreux ainsi qu’un goût assez épicé (muscade, coriandre, léger de cannelle et notes de poivre et de gingembre) lors de l’entrée en bouche auquel se rajoute un goût malté de caramel toffee moyennement sucré ainsi qu’un goût de pain puis en finale l’on retrouve une légère amertume asséchante de levures aux notes épicées (notes de poivre et regain de muscade) et de houblon floral léger (notes herbeuses) avec des traces de noix. Post-goût moyen et sec, légèrement amer de levures et de houblon floral avec une aigreur fruitée (pelures de pommes, zest d’agrumes) et des notes boisées.

Amber pour, huge very carbonated white head, pour this slow! Aroma is cherries, apple cider, and very yeast and perfumey. Flavor is really unique caramel malts, almost a drier raspberry malt profile, with a nutty finish. Very drinkable, very smooth, it’s really quenching my thirst and went extremely well with steak & potatoes I know you could say that about water, pop, or any other crappy beer but no this was a showcase of how beer goes with food. Fruity but in a drier way where it has a slight sourness but not much. Again more fruits with apples, pears, raspberries, cherries, leading to a nutty biscuity finish and a dry fruity aftertaste. Really I’m having a very hard time describing this beer it’s so freakin complex, it’s delicious, a summer thirst quencher, a beer with my meal, or just a dessert all on it’s own this beer rules. The carbonation is very big but really it helps highlight the complexities of this delight. The more it warms the fruits really come out and I think I like this beer colder. Some bitter fruitness barley-wine like is coming through and the fruits are getting sharper. What needs to be said is try this beer, it will open up your mind. This isn’t the best tasting beer I’ve had but it’s so complex and should be tried at least one, really this beer is stunning.

Damn this one gushed on me. After fighting that crap it turned out to be a little flat obviously but decent the rest of the way. Yeast aromas and flavors dominate but there are also subtle caramel flavors hidden in there. Medium bodied with a slightly bitter finish. Leaves a fruity sweet residue on the palate.