What's up everyone!
Hey, I'm kind of on a roll here. This is the second article in a week. That means I reached my goal!
Today's article is another Halloween related article, well kind of. I enjoy having a beer, and most of my friends do too. So, why not add some festival Halloween fun to your beer. Introducing....
Yep, Pumpkin beer. The second I saw this in the store, I knew I had to get some. Made from the O'Fallon Brewery in O'Fallon, Missouri. I have no idea if they make any other kind of brew. Perhaps a quick search on google would let me know. Okay, I just checked, and yes, they have other flavors too. You can check out their website at www.ofallonbrewery.com . They have another flavor beer I'd like to try called 'Cherry Chocolate'. Maybe I should check out more of their beers. Living in St. Louis, a lot of the smaller breweries get overshadowed by Anheuser Busch.
Here's what the bottle looks like. I was kind of confused. The outside of the box, it says Pumpkin Beer. But, on the bottle it says Pumpkin Ale. Is there really a difference? I don't think so, but it's just an observation. It says 'Brewed with Pumpkin and Spices (Cinnamon Sticks, Nutmeg and Cloves)'. On their website they describe it as: Like pumpkin pie in a bottle...we add 120 pounds of real pumpkin to the three-barley mash and then season the finished beer with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.
There's no twist off with this brew, so get out your bottle opener, church key, or whatever you call it. Just a blank cap, nothing on the cap except a gold-ish color.
It totally has an Orange color. It's just a little bit more orange than your average light beer. It smells exactly like any other kind of beer. I was expecting an eye-popping aroma of Pumpkin spice. But it doesn't smell like one of those fake candles.
Before I start showing the tastes tests, remember if you're doing this, write down peoples reactions. I'm going to write pretty much a synopsis of what everyone said about it. Next time I'll have to actually write down quotes.
What better way to kick off a half-time of a Rams game? So having some Chili Dogs & beer we each tried a sample cup of the Pumpkin Ale.
Doug said "It's very smooth" , "It's definitely a dessert beer"
Keith said he liked it, and he would definitely have one if it was available in the fridge. He added that he needed a Turkey Jones soda to drink with it. He said he'd get some to drink when he's handing out candy to the trick or treaters.
Josh said " I smelled it, and I definitely smelled a hint of pumpkin, the initial taste no pumpkin, but the aftertaste was a definite pumpkin taste. Highly recommend it. Would have had another, but Greg took them home with him. Hooray for Boobies!"
Kim really didn't like it. She made a face in disgust saying it was horrible.
I can't remember what Lori thought of it, but she didn't make a face, so apparently she didn't hate it.
I tried it next. And well. I thought it was very interesting. It tasted exactly like pumpkin pie. I don't see myself drinking it regularly, but it's a perfect seasonal beer. I would personally like having a hardcore apple cider more than this if I wanted a Autumn beer. But who drinks beers for the season anyway? It's usually Natural Light season in my house.
Alison thought it was pretty tasty and gave it a thumbs up.
So, after it was taste tested by 6 beer drinkers, 6 out of 7 of us actually liked it, and would give it another try if its in the blow up inflatable halloween pumpkin cooler.
On to my parents house...
My dad gave it a try from his trusty 1984 McDonalds Garfield mug.
He said it was okay. He added he likes beer that tastes like beer. He liked it but he said he would never buy it. He also said he would hand it out to trick or treaters, but I reminded him, that would most likely be illegal plus that would cost a lot of money to give out a whole beer to a kid.
Jeff took a drink. He said, "It was a pretty good beer. It tasted just like a regular beer, except it had a pumpkin aftertaste. I wouldn't mind having a couple in between a couple of Bud Lights. It's not a beer to get drunk off of though. It's kind of nutty at the bottom, so I wouldn't suggest drinking out of the bottle. It's got some grit at the bottom of the bottle"
Mom did not enjoy this beer. She hates beer in general. But, I forced her to take a drink. As you can see from her look, she didn't like this at all. She said it tastes nothing like pumpkin
Here's a view of the bottom of the bottle. You can see some of the grit that Jeff described!
In closing, I would definitely keep this beer around the house in Halloween time. Out of the 10 people that tried it, only 2 people didn't like it. And one of those 2 people don't like beer to begin with, so she really doesn't count. I would recommend it to my many readers to this site to drink while reading my site. Also, If anyone from the O'Fallon Brewery is reading this, we'll all be happy to test out any of your other concoctions for you!
Comment on this article here.
- Greg -
9/19/05
