Midnight Sun Oak Aged Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter

Brewed by Midnight Sun Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Anchorage, Alaska USA

October ‘09 O-Town Throwdown, courtesy of BA trade. Pours dark brown, off-white head. Aroma of pumpkin, chocolate, spices; nutmeg, and bready, hints of oak. Flavor, lots of pumpkin, now this is my idea of a pumpkin beer, chocolate malts with hints of bitterness.The barrel is present with a nice oak palate. Bready malts, medium carbonation, some spices; nutmeg, hints of cinnamon. Everything about this beer is so well balanced. Tasty!

Bottle generously shared thanks to Nick3 on BA. Pours just about black with a creamy tan head and some lacing. Aroma is lots of oak, pumpkin, spices, chocolate, and roasted malt. Flavor is loads of rich chocolate, caramel, roasted malt, pumpkin, spices, and oak barrel notes. Was this -bal aged or just aged on oak chips? If I had to lay my money down, I’d put it on -bal aging. This had great -bal notes. Palate is silky smooth with soft carbonation. Overall, the closest beer I’ve had to this is The Bruery Autumn Maple -Bal Aged. That was good, and this is damn good.

Courtesy seabass. Pours dark brown with a light tan head. Smells of rich dark chocolate malts, and pumpkin combines, which was really nice. Kind of oaky as well. The flavor was also a blend of the two, which gave it a creamy vanilla nuance. The pumpkin and dark malts went together well and finished quite smooth because of its oaky texture. Awesome brew.

Tasted at Otown Throwdown courtesy Seabass. Dark brown pour. Huge pumpkin aroma with hints of chocolate and barrel. Smooth chocolate malt taste, vanilla and touches of pumpkin. Spectacular.

Courtesy seabass. Dark brown, tan carbonation. Great blend of strong porter, oak, pumpkin, and fall spices. Awesome.

Bottle pours dark brown/black with tan head. Aroma is cocoa with some oak and vanilla. Luscious mouthfeel. Flavor is vanilla, oak, wood, pumpkin spices, coffee, chocolate, and finishes semi sweet with a rich chocolate taste. This brew is a lot better than the original version and adds depth and complexity from the barrel aging that is missing from the plain version. This a simply an amazing beer. Good stuff.

22oz bottle from Mr. treyrab, yet another big hit with the boys at the tasting, thanks again Trey, this was a good one. Rating #74. Pitch black pour with a thin off white head. Lots of pumpkin spice in the aroma, huge really. Flavor is the same, a little dry, a little roastiness, but it went together really well, this was fantastic, thanks again Trey. ꀧ)

Bottle… This beer rocks!… Pours tar-black with a small, creamy, well-tanned head. Excellent retention. The aroma is fantastic chocolaty decadence engulfed by autumn spices – cinnamon, clove, nutmeg – and real pumpkin with a woody, vanilla component that pushes my olfactory system way over the top. Not quite the aroma of CCB’s Good Gourde, but pretty darned close. Ultra full-bodied with a satiny mouthfeel and gentle carbonation. The flavor is luxuriant, sweet and buttery with notes of brown sugar, graham and cinnamon. Despite all the residual sugar, at no point does the taste become cloying… thanks to the time spent mellowing in oak and sufficient bitterness provided by carbonous black malt and aged hops. It’s like drinking a liquid S’more with a dab of pumpkin pie filling stuffed amongst the chocolate, marshmallow and graham cracker. Major kudos to ygtbsm94 for making it possible for me to try this world class pumpkin porter!