Heavy Seas Uncharted Waters: The Great'ER Pumpkin
In the most worthy of pumpkin patches and during the silence of the midnight hour, the Greater Pumpkin raises up and pours a rich deep and burnished orange color. Heady aromas of bourbon, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and clove linger seductively over the thick white head of this tremendous brew. Its love at first sip as the full malt body, dominated by British crystal malt, brown sugar and pumpkin, slowly washes over your tongue. Bourbon barrel aging rounds out the flavors with notes of oak, vanilla, and bourbon. Pairs well with crisp autumn weather, crunchy fallen leaves, and the knowledge that your kids will be asleep soon so you can raid their Halloween candy bags.
Previously 9% abv under the Mutiny Fleet series.
Previously 9% abv under the Mutiny Fleet series.
3.7
273 reviews
Baltimore, United States
Community reviews
On tap at The Pony Bar - 10th Ave. Hazy orange body with big head. Nose is malts, caramel, spices and pumpkin of course. Taste is brown sugar, malts, subdued pumpkin notes, vanilla and sweet flavors. Warm finish.
Bomber. Was really looking forward to this, as Great Pumpkin was one of the better pumpkin beers of yesterday. It was, however, a 2015, and the spices and balance didn’t hold up. Boozy with faded pie flavors, more bourbon than anything else. Not unpleasant, but easily least favorite on the night.
Draft at ale & witch, st pete fl. Tastes damn good, even from plastic cup. Bourbon aroma is faint. Not too much bourbon flavor, just right. Pumpkin is not strong. Cloves, slice but not necessarily pumpkin
$8.79 bomber. Wine warehouse. Hazy Amber with a small off white head. Aroma of pumpkin spice, vegetation, copper. Flavor is cinnamon, nutmeg, vegetation, metal, pepper, alcohol.
Poured into a snifter. Nothing better than a pumpkin beer and football.
3.25 A: Clear orange amber color. I didn’t get much of a head on this. Quickly falling frothy beige with a wisp or two of lacing.
3.5 S: Pumpkin spiciness with ginger and cinnamon leading the way. Allspice and a touch of pepper. The bourbon barrel is pretty weak in this. You really have to look for it to find it. Just a light earthiness and a hint of oak.
3.0 T: The bourbon is much, much more apparent in the taste to the point where it almost controls the beer. Big earthiness, leather, mineral, and melon. Oak, vanilla, and a touch of tannic astringency. Again some pumpkin spiciness as mentioned above. Not a lot of sweet maltiness.
3.5 M: Heavier medium body. Good moderate carbonation. Light creaminess and smooth.
3.0 D: Ehhh, it’s nothing special. The bourbon is too weak in the nose and too strong in the taste. This needs a bigger malty backbone to do well in a barrel.
★ 978 characters
DavoleBomb, Oct 26, 2014
Draft at Capones in Norristown, PA.
Pours a hazy dark golden orange color with tangerine edges and two finger, white foam head that slowly fades into a thick, lasting ring. Streaks of lace left behind.
Subtle aroma with some caraway seed and toasted oak along with subtle pumpkin and autumnal spices. Hints of cinnamon and brown sugar compliment the dry, toasted oak. Was expecting more pumpkin. Not really much bourbon in the nose either.
Medium bodied with a nice barrel presence that’s decently integrated into the pumpkin and spice flavors. Dry oak, vanilla and subtle bourbon sweetness followed by pumpkin purée, nutmeg, vanilla, allspice, clove and ginger. Nice warmth in finish but the ABV is well hidden.
Draught at The Beer Trappe. Orange color with pumpkin flavors but not overwhelming cut by some bourbon.
Draft at Moriartys. Hazy amber pour. Carbonation strong enough to keep a thin fizzy ring treading water around the edges. Not your usual pumpkin brew. More spicy than pumpkiny yet somehow not Pumpkin Pie Spice flavored. A hint of fresh pumpkin. Cinnamon. Nutmeg. Medium vanilla caramel malts. Orange peels. Ginger. There is also just enough tartness to balance out the sugars. Enough astringent oak tannins to linger after the finish and dry things out so you want that next sip. Subtly well constructed.
On tap at Daily Growler, UA: copper pour, white head. aroma of pumpkin spice. tastes have pumpkin and bit of bourbon, light spice, wood, molasses. light to medium. too sweet. so... tired... of pumpkin beers.
Tasted from bottle. Pours a murky dark orange with slightly off white head. Aroma is quite spice driven with all spice, cloves, cinnamon and pumpkin. Taste is moderately sweet with flavors of pumpkin pie, cinnamon, all spice, caramel. Just a hint of oak and bourbon. Really not much bourbon taste and I'm not sure I would have picked it up without knowing beforehand. Overall a very well done pumpkin beer.
Come on, a small draft for $10? WTF? Dude, where’s my wallet? Smell is cloyingly sweet with perhaps a slight olfactory of pumpkin, but I must say its more of spice than pumpkin. Yes, taste is also cloyingly sweet with a warming effect as it goes down. Taste does have a little of pumpkin spice but I think the pumpkin is absent. Finish ends with a slight hint of tartness which turns this rather unacceptable beer into something just a little more palatable. Quite disappointing overall, like most pumpking beers today, lets stress the alky and forget about the drinkability. For a beer that cost as much as a sixpack or 2, this was not worth it.
Aroma: pumpkin, bourbon, pumpkin pie spices, woody,
Appearance: clear light amber, off-white head
Taste: medium sweetness, medium bitterness, pumpkin and spices, bourbon
Palate: medium body, sticky feel, average carbonation, long finish,
Delicious
It pours orange with clouding, a nice head and lacing. There are aromas of cinnamon, allspice, clove, and pumpkin. It has initial flavors of pumpkin, cinnamon, clove, allspice, then the bourbon becomes evident with brown sugar and oak. It has alcohol warming and bourbon characters on the palate. It is a complex, but extremely well done brew.
Deep brown pour with orange tones, small white head. Aroma of pumpkn and whisky with notes of roast, earth, and spice. Flavor of pumpkin, bourbon, brown sugar, orange peel, and booze. Quite sweet.
22 oz bomber. Pours a hazy brownish copper with a small dark white head. Pumpkin, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and clove mix well with the bourbon and oak. A little boozy with noticeable alcohol. Medium body. Sticky and a little thin texture. Moderately high carbonation. Bourbon and oak take a bit of a backseat on this one. Very tasty and well done though.
Big bottle poured into pint glads. Thin white head. No real lacing. Beer is a cloudy amber color. A little pumpkin and some spoce notes in the aroma along with some bourbon. Taste is moderatly malty and light to medium sweet. Some pumpkin taste with moderate spicing. Some bourbon. Finish has a stong alcohol presence. Overall ok pumpkin ale with a little variation with the bourbon barrel aging.
Cloudy amber with a white head. Aroma is pumpkin, cinnamon, and ginger. Flavor is intense malty pumpkin with a ton of spices. A bit of a boozy finish. Girls in yoga pants would be pleased.
22 oz bottle. Pours copper color with a white head that dissipates nearly completely. Aromas of pumpkin and spice. Flavors are brown sugar, spice, pumpkin, leather and stone fruits. Noticeable booziness, Fairly cream mouthfeel. Very nice.
From the 650 ml. bottle. 2015 batch. Orange-amber pour with modest off-white head. The aroma is more subtle with its pumpkin spice and sweet malts. Medium body. Far more vibrant and memorable taste with big nutmeg, cinnamon, and pepper spice characters. Lingering bitterness. The 2015 pumpkin ale season has begun in earnest.
Cloudy brownish Amber with thin beige head; aroma is rich with hints of nutmeg, vanilla and wood; Flava is very rich notes of nutmeg/all spice subtle syrupy sweetness and slight notes of licour; feels medium to thick and chewy but with nice fizzy zing
Poured from a 12 OZ bottle into a pint glass.
Aroma- Has a big pumpkin smell with cinnamon
Appearance- Pours an amber color with a medium sized white head.
Taste- Tastes like PUMPKIN!!
Palate- A medium bodied brew with mild carbonation.
Overall- A great pumpkin beer!
This one is more about the pumpkin and bourbon than the pie spices, though the clove comes on in the finish.
Location: 22 oz bottle from Sparrow-Uptown, 3/13/15
Aroma: Strong pumpkin/vegetal aroma, spice less pronounced for style, light bourbon notes.
Appearance: A slightly cloudy darker orange color with an off white and medium, drippy lace.
Flavor: Similar to the aroma, but less vegetal, and more spice, and more bourbon.
Palate: The body is medium, with average to lively carbonation, and a bit of alcohol heat.
Overall Impression:
Much more vegetal than most in the style. Kind of a yam/squash presence, especially in the nose. Interesting.
Poured from bomber thanks Willrunforbeer. Color is dirty amber brown with quickly disappearing head. Aromas of bread and spices with prune and dried fruit. Taste is of squash and spice and a hint of alcohol in the finish. A good beer.
On cask. Pours an nice clear amber color with white lacing and no head. Aroma of cloves and malt. Nicely spiced heavy on the clove. A pretty good pumpkin beer.
Pours a nice reddish amber color with minimal lacing and no head retention. Tastes like smooth pumpkin and cloves. A very nice fall beer and one that I would drink again, but not one I would seek out.
Banana bread spiced, vanilla aroma that carries through in the flavors as well. Pours a copper color with soft white head.
Also at GABF ’13
Crisp amber coloured body with a copper glow and a thinnish, single centimetre tall, slightly off-white head. Aroma of pure squash, alcohol, raisins, figs, earth, prunes, dates and more pumpkin/squash. Full-bodied; Super dense mouthful with a lot of squash, alcohol, raisins, earth, figs, alcohol and caramelised sugar notes without any major depth. Aftertaste shows some nice sweetness, a big deal of earthiness and pungency and quite a bit of alcohol throughout. Overall, a nice beer with some good flavours and a definite squash-based beer, but lacking in other aspects, especially with depth and complexity. Still, nice to try, but expensive of course as a large format bottle. I sampled this 65 cL bottle purchased from Costco in Pentagon City (Arlington), Virginia on 05-October-2014 for US$8,49 (Bottle #14154?), sampled at home in Washington a few steps away on 13-December-2014.
Poured from a bottle it is a cloudy cherry color the aroma is a malty aroma and the taste is spices of cinnamon and cloves with a bitter finish
From a 22 oz bottle shared at home. Pours a hazy copper with an off white head. Aroma of pumpkin pie spices. Flavors of cloves, cinnamon, pumpkin, some oak and vanilla, Slightly boozy finsih.