Alaskan Pilot Series: Pumpkin Porter
A native plant of North America, pumpkins were first used in beer in colonial America as a substitute for hard-to-find malt, and none other than the father of our country George Washington had a highly touted recipe. This imperial porter pumpkin beer combines the robust, full-bodied style of a porter with a, frankly, crazy amount of pumpkin.
3.5
196 reviews
Juneau, United States
Community reviews
Check this off the Want List. The first thing that strikes me is the aroma as soon as I open the bottle. Pumpkin, herbal, and spices that follow through into the flavor. A very easy drinking Pumpkin beer that I could continue to drink all night. Very easy on the palette.
The pumpkin porter pours a dark grape nearly black color with a thin tan head that doesn’t last too long but leaves plenty of evidence of its existence behind. The aroma is pumpkin, spice and caramel. The flavor is caramel initially, which is immediately overwhelmed with pumpkin and spices.
Looks and tastes like a porter should with a taste of pumpkin to go with it. I like porters in the winter (Jan-Feb ’round here) and this ain’t that time. Got this to compare with other pumkin ales but this one is not exactly qualified to be in the Halloween Pumpkin Ale challange. Good stuff but not a Halloween brew, more for Christmas time. Will be drinking the rest of these with a slice of homemade pumpkin pie at Christmas dinner this year.
This is a subtle style PP. Pours coffee-black w/tan head. Subtle spices on the nose - mace, cinnamon - a full-bodied porter. Roasted, light-chocolate palate, w/dry, carbonated, refreshing finish. Overall, this is a good porter w/a very subtle pumkin/spice treatment.
Pour from a 12oz bottle. Clear dark brew with tan head. Nice aroma of spice, toasted malts. Taste is pumpkiny with toasted grains. Tasty and enjoyable.
Deep brown pour, small tan head. Nose is smoky vanilla, nutmeg, and black patent malt. Bittersweet. Middle is creamy dark malt, pumpkin body, splash of coco. Finish is earthy with a slightly spicy hop tang. Nice nightcap.
12oz bottle courtesy of Wilkes and Lynn. Dark brown pour, beige head that disappears completely. Aroma of big pumpkin spice, cocoa. Tastes are roasty, toffee, lighter on the spice. Not too sweet - which is good by me.
Poured from the bottle. Really dark, thin head good lacing. Aroma is some roasted malt, some chocolate. Flavor really highlights the traditional seasonal spices. I’m pretty sure I get a good amount of pumpkin to and the spices are balanced like the best pumpkin pie I’ve ever had. This is hands down my favorite pumpkin beer! Abv doesn’t hit me. Sticky sweet finish.
Really earthy roast. Hard to follow up Pumking. Campfire in aroma and taste. Pretty solid if in the right mood. Really dark in appearance and vibe.
Black-brown body, nice carbonated body and decent head. Nose is mildly chocolatey with feint sugar pumpkin notes. The body is earthy chocolate and moderately roasty, with a sweet underpinning and not roast astringencies. Very clean and smooth. Sweet finish that is vaguely of mace or some indiscernable pumpkin spice. Re-rated 10-18-18: Sasparilla colored- with a cocoa cream head. Easy roasty nose with some feint chocolate and the mere inference of pumpkin spices. The body is rich, velvety chocolate cream. Deep porter character with a touch of depth added by clean alcohol and a nice layering of spices. Lathery, sumptuous, delicious.
12 oz bottle pours dark cola brown with a tan head. Aroma is pumpkin, allspice, a hint of roasty malts. Taste is mostly chocolate malts with notes of spice and squash. Body is creamy and finish is slightly bitter.
12 ounce bottle. Pours a dark brownish red with a three inch tan head that slowly collapses. Taste is of pumpkin, spice, malt, caramel, chocolate and grain. Similar aroma. Has a medium body with a slight spicy finish. Very easy to drink and quite enjoyable.
Lots of pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger and allspice in the aroma, along with roasted malt, cocoa and coffee like you would expect with a porter. Very dark brown, murky, decent light brown head with tiny bubbles. Sips leave a good amount of lace on the sides. Nearly opaque dark brown with hints of ruby, one-finger dense tan head and modest lace. Bitter at the start, with a sweet, caramelly finish. I find the sweet almost too much. Hint of sour from the pumpkin. Medium body, not as thick as I would expect, slight carbonation, long finish. Overall, I liked it but if I made one change it would be to tone down the sweetness a little. I think it was a bit less sweet last year.
Poured a deep, dark red/black (barely transparent) with a light head and minimal lacing. Aroma was of malts, pumpkin and a slight smokiness. Taste was of roasted malts, smokiness and slight pumpkin overtones. Palate was good. Overall, a nice porter, although I would probably just go from an ale or lager if I was mainly interested in the pumpkin.
bottle. deep brown with small head. malty with chocolate and light pumpkin. this is a rare pumpkin beer that has more pumpkin than spice. quite well done.
Nearly opaque dark brown with hints of ruby, one-finger dense tan head and modest lace. Aromas of pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice accompany the porter-typical roastd, coffee and cocoa. Bittersweet chocolate taste with pumpkin, nutmeg, brown sugar and cinnamon.
The taste features a bit of bitter then creamy pumkin, nutmeg and cinnamon. Medium body, somewhat watery mouthfeel, minimal carbonation and a lingering bitterness in the finish.
Dark and roasty, with well balanced pumpkin pie spiced aroma and taste. Drinkable as a six pack, and built on a good porter.
This is by far the best pumpkin beer I've had. Appearance is very good with long-lasting tan head, some lace and a dark brown clear color. Aroma is mild. Flavor is where this really works well. They've added a little smoke not over spiced and everything balances super well. Body is very good. I wouldn't necessarily know that this was a pumpkin ale if I didn't see the label or was told. Killer beer.
12oz bottle picked up at The Grapevine, drank in Missoula
Clear dark brown with a small beige head, spotty lacing. Aroma is vegital, pumpkin and dark malts. Taste is similar, pumpkin, dark malts and chocolate
Decent
A great pumpkin beer. I was hesitant about getting it but went ahead and did so. I was not disappointed a perfect balance of pumpking and roasted flavours
Bottle.
Head is initially small, frothy, light brown, mostly diminishing.
Body is dark brown.
Aroma is lightly to moderately malty (chocolate syrup, burnt grain), with notes of squash, nutmeg, vanilla.
Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter.
Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly to moderately bitter, slightly unclean.
Medium body, watery/syrupy texture, lively carbonation.
A clunky beer. Somewhat off-putting aroma of characters that just don’t work well together. Syrupy and overly sweet in the mouth, with a slightly dirty aftertaste. Not very good.
Bottle courtesy of Sledutah, thank you sir! Very dark brown color, bright beige head. Aroma of cinnamon, nutmeg, cocoa powder. Taste big spice, some roast, but the roast is a bit drowned out by the spice.
Basically smells like a nice pumpkin pie with a hint of coffee and dark cocoa in the mix. Pours black int he glass with a thin head. Really nice mellow flavor of pumpkin, roasted malt, hint of fall spices followed by a pleasing sweet bitterness from the brown sugar that’s reminiscent of burnt pie crust but in a good way. Overall, wow what a nice brew for fall. Now I only wish the cool weather would cooperate, I hate drinking fall beers with my AC blasting (living the dream in TX!)
Even spice aroma’s waft up through the glass, with notes of dark chocolate and toasted caramel. Dark, all the way through. Hint of golden caramel at the bottom of the glass, but that might just be my imagination. Great balance here, of baking spices and chocolate… and toffee; And it just works. Leaves your palette with a creamy texture (not overpowering) that makes you want the next sip. All of the pumpkin and porter flavors fit together exactly how you want ingredients to work in a beer recipe.
Good porter. I'm not a big fan of spiced beers but this not too heavy on the spice.
Inky black with bronze compact head; spicy pumpkin pie aromas; strong pumpkin spice hit with oily coffee finish.
Poured from bottle to glass. Dark hue with a fizzy brown head that settled. Aroma is cola, soy, cloves, nutmeg. Mouthfeel is nice with a medium light body and zesty carbonation. Taste is sweet initially followed by a spice astringentness. Overall this is a decent brew.
Roasted malt, candy sugar and molasses sweetness in the aroma with a light vegetal component and some pumpkin pie spices. Crystal clear dark brown, copper and ruby with a light tan head. The pumpkin pie spices come through in the taste in perfect proportion and intensity. Cinnamon and nutmeg are prominent and delicious. The sweetness is equally appropriate with light butterscotch and molasses. The roasted malt flavor shines through and gives a lightly charred wood texture and flavor. Nice earthiness to it and some background pumpkin flavor with some light vanilla and cream in the background. With all that’s going on here, the balance is just incredible. The body and flavor are spot on for a porter. Leaves behind the spices and dark roasted malt flavors. This is definitely one of the best pumpkin beers I’ve ever tasted!
Bottle - very dark but not jet black (when held up to light). Has a light pumpkin spice aroma and taste. Some other spices are in there too like maybe nutmeg and/or cinnamon. Light medium body and smooth. A good sipping beer.
Tap. Pitch black. Nice lingering bit of head. Full body. Nose of charred malts and faintly of pumpkin spice. Tastes very mildly of pie pumpkin, with predominant charred malts and coffee. Heavy!