Rohrbach Imperial Pumpkin Spice Ale

Brewed by Rohrbach Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Rochester, New York USA

When I heard about this one, I made immediate plans to visit the flagship location for lunch and a pint. Dark orange, decent head. Nose is spicy, pie-like even, and malty. Palate is complex, plenty of body, hops, extremely well balanced with a lot going on. I’ll need to try it again to sort out more of the smells and tastes. Also no alcohol detected. Great effort.

Rohrbach Imperial Pumpkin Spice Ale is a crystal clear, deep golden ale with a dense, elastic, sand colored head that has outstanding retention and lacing. It smells fresh, herbal and minty with notes of dried fruit, vanilla, cinnamon, cherry and alcohol. It’s medium-full bodied, incredibly smooth and dry. The finish is clean and dry and not chalky, like most spiced ales. It tastes pretty dry and lightly bitter. There are notes of graham crackers, vanilla, black pepper and allspice. The balance is good all around and the pumpkin is at the right volume. This beer is well executed and dangerously drinkable. I had to finish the growler in one sitting.