Jolly Pumpkin Fuego del Otono (Autumn Fire)

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

A ruddy, brown color with orange highlights and a thick, lasting, rocky, tan head. Aroma is mostly actectobacteria like a flemish red ale with some warm caramel and brady notes. Flavor has definite cooking spices dominating the profile that I did not get in the aroma. The acetic nose takes a backseat in the flavor but balances the beer nicely and there seems to be an earthy hop presence that shows itself on the palate each time you swallow. A few points off for simplicity and lack of unity between the flavor and aroma but I do like the CO2 level on this beer as it is not overdone like many of their offerings. He is definitely locking down on some solid stuff.

This clear, deep amber brew put up a huge, long lasting creamy head of off-white. Funky spicy aroma that teases you to taste. Sweetly balanced flavor with just enough bitterness. Very nice.

Pours a hazy golden orange with a dense, rocky, firm, off white head. The aroma is filled with caramel, spices, fruit, and an earthiness. Flavor is has notes of caramel, spices, fruit, and a funkiness. The finish is slightly tart.

06 750ml, one of my favorite labels, pours a cloudy but semi-glowing amber with white fluffy head. nose is extremely complex, notes of nuts, intense oak, blueberries, funk, cinnamon, and something i can’t quite put my finger on it. amazing nose on this beer. taste has mild toasted chestnuts, mild citrus notes and soft caramel, coriander, cinnamon, some brett, lots of oak and musty yeast, and mild sourness in finish. moutfeel is very similar to other JP beers, light, creamy, soft carbination, and extremely dry with no alcohol finish. this is clearly a special beer, but the flavor just doesn’t match the complexities that the aroma has. i think i could drink this and most JP beers all day long.3.9.

1/20/08, 2006 vintage, aged 18 months. poured a slow gusher. the spices didn’t seem to mellow as i notice more coriander and cardamom. aging this didn’t really bring out more brett. nicely oaky. very drinkable. solid but this hasn’t improved with age. 8/4/7/4/15=3.8.

High carbonation, great funky aroma. The flavor and aroma are much the same as the other Jolly Pumpkins. Good beer, low malt.

Sample at Barley Island tasting Jan 20, 2007 - Bought at brewery Dec 2006 - Aroma is sour, nuts and berries with a caramel yeasty finish. Pours clear brown with a small head and no lacing. Flavor matches aroma. Palate is thin and tart. Different and tasty, but not as good as I was expecting.

Added one to flavor and one to overall. Upon a revisit it has a nice gentle spice and good yeasty back that makes all JP brews so tasty.

Lively pour yields a shadowy orange body with a large beige head; as per the usual with beers from J.P. it is steadfast and rocky. Lacing is thick and three dimensional. Aroma is butternut bread, vanilla, cinnamon, nectarine, musty yeast, oak barrel (less than usual, I think the spices keep it in check), sour cherries and blackberries, brown sugar and a nuttiness I must assume is chestnut. So much aromatic interplay and complexity here. Once again I’ve encountered a phenomenal amount of easily identifiable, unique aromas in a Jolly Pumpkin beer. This bouquet does exactly what I think it was intended to do - invoke a feeling of Autumn and the peacefulness that it can bring when enjoying the lovely color and temperature changes in the climate that it is produced in. Well done. The flavor is quite tart, moreso than I’d expected after many energetic whiffs. More tastes of fruit, brown sugar and bready malts. The cinnamon and other spices are profound in their subjugation of my tastebuds. Intense doesn’t begin to describe it. I preferred the aroma to the taste due to the intensity, perhaps I should’ve let it rest a while longer. Palate is medium to full but without balance. Soft mouthfeel. Finishes with a heady amount of oaken barrel and spiciness. A really interesting and individual beverage, with some characteristics I had only previously associated with exotic teas. Intriguing, enigmatic. At times I felt overwhelmed by such bold flavor. Then I realized it is just a challenging beer, so I must take more jabs at it. Ron, you rule.

Pours a hazy amber or light copper color with a thick lacy tan head. Smells of light sourness and grapes, oranges, and other citrus fruits. Tastes of sour citrus with hints of cinnamon and other spices. A little bitterness on the bck of the tongue, but very full bodied as a whole with a nice smooth finish. Very nice brew.