Saranac Winter Wassail

I still have some beers left from last year's Saranac "12 Beers of Winter" assortment, and Winter Wassail is one of them. It poured a deep amber-brown color with a small off-white head. It's brewed with traditional holiday spices and orange peel, and they give it a subtle spicy fruitiness. Mouthfeel is a little thin for a winter beer. I would have preferred something a little bit heavier in body, and higher in alcohol. The spices were well-balanced, not over-the-top. This was pretty tasty, but I think it could have benefitted if it was more of a "Winter Warmer". F.X. Matt has a new Winter assortment this year, with 4 new beers in it. I hope I can find it here in Orlando!

Saranac Pumpkin Ale and Octoberfest Lager

I'm on vacation this week, but I have a short lull, so I decided to post. I visited family earlier in the week, stopping at my sister's house for a day. She came through with some seasonal varieties of Saranac that I had not tasted before. First up was their Pumpkin Ale, with the clever jack-o-lantern label. This pumpkin ale reminded me of the Blue Moon version I tried a little while ago. It was kinda subdued as far as spices were concerned. I could taste some pumpkin, but I like my pumpkin ales to taste more like pumpkin pie in a bottle. The second bottle I tried was their Octoberfest Lager. This was a sweet malty Octoberfest - very tasty. It had some caramel flavor, and low hop levels. The glass in the picture contains Octoberfest. The two beers were very similar in color, a medium amber. The pumpkin had a slightly larger head than the Octoberfest, but neither one lasted very long. My sis also supplied me with some Saranac to take home with me including their Black Diamond Bock, which I'm looking forward to. More to follow on that one!

America's Original Pumpkin Ale from Buffalo Bill's Brewery

A few days ago I tasted Blue Moon's Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale, and found it somewhat wanting. I decided to follow it up today with the other Pumpkin Ale I had in the fridge - "America's Original Pumpkin Ale" from Buffalo Bill's Brewery. It is actually brewed by Pyramid Breweries for Buffalo Bill's. It poured a pale amber color with a tall white head. It's a well-carbonated ale. This version of a Pumpkin beer makes up for what the Blue Moon lacked. It's maltier, spicier, and has more pumpkin flavor. It's also slightly sweet. I enjoyed this one more than the Blue Moon. I got this at World Market along with a few others that I'll be sampling soon.

Blue Moon Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale

I decided the other half of my Macaroni Grill dinner could wait another day, so the Porter experiment will wait until then. With the Autunmal Equinox just around the corner, the beer selections in the stores are transitioning from lemony wheat beers to more malty styles, like Octoberfest Marzens, dopplebocks, and seasonal beers like pumpkin ales. I picked up Blue Moon's version of a pumpkin ale about a week ago, and decided to try it with my chicken tonight. The ale poured a coppery color, with a small white head. I expect pumpkin ales to be malty and spicy, like pumpkin pie in a bottle. This was not like that. It had a small amount of pumpkin flavor, a smaller amount of spices, and not much malt flavor. It was somewhat mediocre in general, and had a bitter finish that didn't taste like hop bitterness. I've brewed a number of pumpkin beers myself, and I tend to be over the top the other direction - lots of malt, and lots of spices. This beer from Blue Moon/Coors was basically a disappointment. Not terrible, but not what I was expecting. I have another pumpkin ale from Buffalo Bill's Brewery waiting in the wings. Maybe that one will be better.

La Chouffe Spiced Golden Ale - from Belgium

Belgian brewers are the cowboys of the brewing universe. Where the Germans are proud of their brewing heritage and their Reinheitsgebot, the Belgians believe in "Anything Goes". They experiment with sugars, spices, and whatever else pops into their head. La Chouffe Spiced Golden Ale is an example of that. It is 8.2% alcohol, probably from added sugars, and has a decidedly peppery taste. It is very carbonated and had a decent sized head when first poured. Speaking of pouring, I did a pathetic job of it with this beer. Not thinking about it being bottle conditioned, my glass was full of floating debris. The particles don't bother me, as long as I don't have to chew it. The alcohol showed itself in the finish. This beer had a much more distinctive flavor than the French Jenlain that I reviewed a week or so ago.

Fraoch Heather Ale of Scotland

This beer came from a 4 pack of "Historic Ales from Scotland". It is brewed from malt and Heather flowers. The heather is used in place of hops, making for a very smooth mild-flavored ale. It poured a beautiful honey colored gold, with a small white head. It has a nice malt body, with a floral note to it. It reminds me of a dry mead. If this was a little easier on the wallet, I could see myself drinking this pretty frequently during the warmer months. Here's hoping the other selections in the 4 pack are as impressive as this one.

Left Hand Brewing's Juju Ginger

When I saw this beer, I just had to try it. I really like beer and I really like ginger, so this was win-win. It poured a nice honey color, with a great big white head. The head evaporated rather quickly, but at least it had one for a little while. This is a very light beer, and would be excellent for the summer. It tasted almost like a wheat, but it's actually a pale ale, flavored with ground ginger root. The ginger was more obvious than I expected, which was a good thing. I liked this a lot, even though my tastes normally tend toward maltier brews.