Jolly Pumpkin Maracaibo Especial
A rich brown ale inspired by the enigmatic monastic brews of Belgium, and the mysterious mist shrouded jungles of the tropics. Brewed with real cacao, and spiced with cinnamon and sweet orange peel for a sensual delight. A brew to be sipped, savored, and enjoyed! [Maniac/dkachur - Changed to Sour/Wild from BSA 03/19/2011]
[TheAlum - Changed back to Belgian Strong Ale on 5/5/2011. We can’t open Jolly Pumpkin beers to this scrutiny based on the yeast blend. Sour/acidity may develop over time.. but if we change it for one, anyone can justify making ALL of their Belgians into sour ales. That’s a can of worms that I don’t want to deal with, especially without a Michigan admin. Better to stick with Lambicus base beers, Persegs, and Grand Reserves (and brewpub specials) as the sours]
[TheAlum - Changed back to Belgian Strong Ale on 5/5/2011. We can’t open Jolly Pumpkin beers to this scrutiny based on the yeast blend. Sour/acidity may develop over time.. but if we change it for one, anyone can justify making ALL of their Belgians into sour ales. That’s a can of worms that I don’t want to deal with, especially without a Michigan admin. Better to stick with Lambicus base beers, Persegs, and Grand Reserves (and brewpub specials) as the sours]
3.7
883 reviews
Dexter, United States
Community reviews
Had in bottle in Ann Arbor at their brewery. A decent drinkable sour . Not a lot of character but the best of the bunch I sampled from their selection
Aged 5 years! Deep amberish copper under a thinning spotty ivory head. Earthy lightly lactic aroma with a Belgian funk and lovely peppercorn estery spices. Crisp and cool medium toasty malty flavor with a light lactic acidity and light Belgian spices and a little bit of orange rind. Cool and eccentric, dry and belgianish and lightly funky.
Getrunken aus der Flasche 2013-12. Oh, eher wie ein Sour Red! Der Einsatz von Kakao, Orangen und Zimt haben die sauren Fruchtnoten im Zaum gehalten. Tolles Bier!
Sample at MBCC 2017. Amber with a small head. Sour with fruit, funk, citrus and malt. The body was medium and the finish with notes of alcohol.
Mbcc red. Orange amber, but rusty color. Clearish. Malty nose, some herby, woody. Medd bodied, pretty nice intensity. Light tart woody.
Bottle to glass @ Mikkeller Beer Celebration 2017
Ciemno bursztynowy kolor z cieniutką białą pianą.
W aromacie lekkie cytrusy, przyprawy, czerwone owoce.
Smak jest kwaśny. Dominują owocowe nuty: pomarańcze, morele, lekka śliwka. Potem odrobina drożdżowych klimatów i przyprawy.
Pijelne, chwilami dzikie, bardzo ciekawy profil.
Nie wiadomo czy to Brown Ale, Sour Ale, czy Belgian Strong Ale?
Hazy amber, medium cream head, some lacing. Aroma is slightly sour, spices, plums. Very rich taste, sour fruits, plums, cocoa nibs, spices, caramel malts. Medium sour, low bitterness, very crisp and refreshing for a Belgian style, without too much candi sugar after taste (which is what puts me off in Belgian ales), medium body, lively, astringent finish. Great ale!
Cloudy medium chestnut pour with thin white head and decent lacing. Straightforward sour Berry aroma with some honey. Soft carbonation , mouthfeel is velvety, finishes quite clean but a bit astringent. Flavor has pert Berry sour with weathered wood, hint of cherry. Good sour, a bit bitter or astringent.
On draft at Hop Cat. Pours opaque brown, little head. Plum esters in the nose. Taste is sour and fruity (plum, raisin), finishes with a little bit of plum skin flavor. Really drinkable and unique wild ale - Another great one by Jolly Pumpkin!
Fresh pear compote, caramel, cinnamon, orange zest, brett tropical fruit and medicinal, light acidic acid, dry apples, a bit sharp.
Wood, intense barrel, spices, cinnamon, citrus fruits, bittersweet orange, light alcohol. Clear, dark brown, medium, dark brown. Medium bitter, light sour. More sour citrus fruits, lemon juice, bit of funk, soft carbonation, medium bodied, more funk and dry bitterness in the finish. Beautiful BSA, intense and complex, very nice aroma. Keg at BrewDog, Shepherds Bush.
Keg in BrewDog, Newcastle. Ruby with a thin cream head. The taste is sour with dry spice, red fruits and some warming booze. Apple skin dryness. Decent.
Keg at Brewdog Shepherds Bush, London. A hazy amber/brown coloured pour with a thin off white head on top. Sour, yeasty, spice aroma. Tastes rather similar, sour, fruity, yeasty, spice. Not really my style of beer but I can still appreciate the quality of this one.
Keg at Brewdog as Jolly Pumpkin Maracaibo Especial, 7.5%. Hazy murky brown, almost opaque, foamy light brown head. Aroma is digestive biscuits up front, some light toffee and wafer. Body is fairly light, tingly carbonation and a touch frothy. Taste is quite fruity, in contrast to the aroma. Fig and raisin, sugary, prunes, a touch salty. Quite sweet but dries out into the finish. Decent enough. Probably the least impressive of the JP beers I tried today.
Keg, Brewdog Leicester. Red brown with a thin foam. Plummy, figgy with red wine vinous character. Orange rind with mixed spices. Bready with toffee malts. Cherry stone with a tart, usual Jolly Pumpkin cheesiness. Green apple. Dry cocoa finish. Very good.
Keg Third of a Pint at Craft 100 Festival at Craft Beer Co, Clapham, London in Oct 2016 - Hazy Reddish Brown in colour. Good off-white head. Malty; toasty malts, caramel, cacao. Fruity; orange citrus, peel, cherries, dark fruit notes. Vinous and a bit syrupy. Spicy, cinnamon. Bittersweet slightly sour malty fruity spicy throughout. Nice! (2016-10-06)
1200th rate and it didn’t work out. I will avoid this brewer; second brew that is over soured. if they would just say that it would #*# help. nice pour, aroma had a few things going on - no chocolate - taste was just tart up front with carbonation - not what I like or was looking for....
75 cl bottle, served in tulip. Poured a clear amber brown with an two finger light tan head. Lively carbonation as well as bits of yeast in glass. Aroma: funk, barnyard, green apples, orange peel, citrus, cherries, caramel. Taste: orange peel, tart, citrus, caramel, toffee, cherries, bread, raisins, apricots, grannie smith apples, blood orange, burnt brown sugar, some cinnamon, hazelnuts. Cacao was not present until the the yeast from the bottom of the bottle was poured into the glass. I really swirled the bottle to get all the yeast out. And this changed the beer into murky hazelnut brown with more malty chocolate flavours coming to the foreground. The last bit of yeast on the bottom of the bottle really made the difference for me. Where the sourness dominated in the beginning it is now more in balance with the malts. Medium sourness. Medium body with a long, nice tart and spicy finish. Very good!
Sampled at Elijah Ps. Reddish hued beer that has an off white head. This is citrusy and more sour than others I have had. Citrus is zest and spicy. Deep resonant bitternress results. Funkiness is big here.
Tap JP Detroit. Orang-e color nice full head. Lot-sa sour fruit , blood orange, funky cherries, with a nice cinnamon spicy finish. Ahh special
Bottle @ Rich’s 7k tasting. Pours a murky orangey amber, off-white head. Aroma has cinnamon and orange peel spice. Taste presents lots of spiced dried fruits, some blood orange. Interesting and different.
Bottle shared at MTG III via Beer Gonzo; dark brown pour with a thin magnolia head, aroma has spice, taste has some big winter spice, dark fruits.
Poured from a 750 ml bottle with a 12/14/2010 bottle date.
Aroma is unique with a lot of malt character but also some spice, citrus and fruit notes. Lots of caramel, toffee toasted bread and nuts. Some moderate raisin notes with hints of cherry and stone fruit. Some light citrus notes. Hints of cinnamon with some light chocolate notes.
A bit of a gusher. Pours a somewhat clear, burnt amber brown with a large, moderately thick, dark tan head that slowly recedes to a thin film that lingers on the edges. No lacing and small legs.
Flavor is moderately acidic with a moderate malt note. Toasted bread, nuts and dark caramel dominate. Light chocolate notes with some medium light citrus. Light raisin, fig and cherry notes. Moderately strong phenolics with cinnamon, but also some herbal spicy notes and a bit of vegetable note. Medium bitterness.
Mouthfeel is medium bodied with high carbonation. Moderate astringency and low but present alcohol warmth.
Overall, an alright beer. A nice aroma, but the flavor does not match up. A bit astringent as well. Age definitely hurt this flavor, but I’m not sure it was a great combo to begin with.
Bottle. Pours a bright blood orange with a lasting sudsy white head. Aroma is of sour fruits, light vinegar, oak, brett, funky, cherries, blood orange. Taste is of sour fruits, blood orange, hint of caramel, funky, vinegar, light acidity, cinnamon noticeable on the finish. Soft foamy mouthfeel, medium carbonation.
Bottle. Pours slightly hazy, dark amber in colour with medium white head. Aroma of caramel, malt, sour fruits, vinous, light chocolate. In taste mix of sweet-sour fruity notes, wine. Medium body, moderate carbonation, lightly tart and dry finish.
Pours hazy deep amber with flat white head. Aroma of dried fruit, sugar, fresh fruit and some madeira. Taste is funky, spicy with a tart finish. Light and sticky body with average carbonation.
Draught. Creamy white good mostly lasting head. Amber colour. Moderate malty and light hoppy aroma. Moderate bitter slightly acetic flavor. Cacao present but just making the brew a little unbalanced. Average moderate bitter finish. Creamy palate.
Draft to taster at cappy’s pour dark gold to light copper with thin ecru head. Nose light tart cherry, clove, sweet citrus. Taste sweeter malt, bready, vague fruit, then cinnamon and spice in the finish.
A very nice belgian strong. Pours dark brown with a thing spicy character. Som citrus, some plum and raisin, some chocolate. Tried with Jess at El Bait Shop in 2016.
On tap. Brown colour with off white head. Fruity, cherry aroma. Sweet, fruity, cherry and peach taste. Mediumbody.