Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale

Brewed by Shipyard Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Portland, Maine USA

12oz bottle. Pours a crystal clear, golden-bronze colored body with a thin, fizzy, white head that dissipates quickly into a thin lacing. Aroma is pumpkin pie and cinnamon. Not very malty, more spiced, candy based. Flavor is thin and watery pumpkin pie spices with some sweeter caramel and strong cinnamon. Finishes with no real character after a thin body and fizzy carbonation. Overall, a distinct pumpkin flavored beer, but not very rounded or balanced. Watery with a little too much spice and not enough malts.

Golden pour, light haze, moderate white head, only temporary lace. Aroma initially displays pumpkin pie spices, especially nutmeg, accompanied by a damp earthiness, but quickly fades. On the flavor, the spice and earth are at first overwhelmed by wet cardboard and stale malts. After this fades, the major flavors for the rest of the glass were butter and creamed corn. Medium body, moderately lively on the palate.

Bottle: Pale golden pour with a whispy white head. Aroma is somewhat lager maltish with light spices, mainly nutmeg. Tastes spicey up front, a little more lager malt, but finishes crisp and fruity. The pumpkin flavor stands out in the tail. Not bad, but gives me the impression of just adding spice and color to a pale lager.

Enjoyed via draft in a pub glass. The beer pours a light amber color with a moderate just off-white head. The nose brings characteristic notes of hazelnut, pumpkin pie spice, and nutmeg, along with a bit of malt- a touch more than several other examples of the style. The palate is fairly complex, nodding first to the aforementioned spices, before fading into some nice malty characters (perhaps C-40?), and then finishing with a pumpkin pie crust note that reminds me of Southern Tiers Pumpking. Overall, not quite transcendent, but pretty solid.

Easy to drink. Slightly spicey. Great to drink in front of a fire on a cool fall evening.

Light orange, aroma was lively, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie in the aroma and flavor, very easy to drink and enjoyable

Hazy light orange. Puffy white head that evaporates fast. Lots of little carbonation bubbles. Might be slightly dated. A tad musty. Still has lots of pumpkiny spice. There is some dry bready yeast. Spicy pumkin melds really well with the dry ringwood yeast. Like a pumpkin candle, or pumpkin pie. Solid flavor. Smooth honey quality. A tiny bit bubbly but also smooth on the palate. Feels nice on the way down. Nice and sweet (moreso than spicy). Really smooth and drinkable.

Pale orange pour with a bubbly thin head. Nose is faint spice, clove and pumpkin. Flavor is more full with the same influences, but with a touch of what seems like whipped cream. Sweet and pretty tasty.