Weyerbacher - Imperial Pumpkin Ale

Tonight I'm drinking one of the many pumpkin ales on the market this season.  I like to try a few new iterations every year to see if I can find one that I can drink more than one of.  Last year, Summit brewed the only pumpkin ale that I really enjoyed.  Their Imperial Pumpkin Porter was fantastic.  The only problem is that it was a one-time limited release!  Damn!  When I finally find a pumpkin beer I enjoy it goes away just as quickly as it came.  Thus, my search continues.

Bow to your Pumpkin King!

Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin Ale attempts to personify the King of the Pumpkins.  If the bottle label is any indication of what kind of ruler the pumpkin king is like, I'm pretty sure I'd want to keep my distance.  Especially considering his horde of pumpkin followers behind him.

The description of this brew on Weyerbacher's website explains that this imperial pumpkin ale is "heartier, spicier and more "caramelly" and "pumpkiny" than its faint brethren! We have added lots of pumpkin along with cinnamon, nutmeg and a touch of cardamom and clove giving this beer a spicy, full-bodied flavor".  From that description alone I don't think this will be my kind of pumpkin beer.  But, lets not judge a book by its cover just yet.

Deep amber orange and clear with a very minimal white foam.  Loads of cinnamon and pumpkin spices in my nose.  Very, very bold.  Hardly any other aromas come through.  Maybe hints of the nutmeg and clove but it's hard to tell.  The relentless cinnamon aroma flows directly through to the body of this pumpkin king.  More cinnamon and sharp spice heat up my mouth; almost like a shot of cinnamon schnapps.  The flavors tone down after a few sips and allow some light caramel malt flavors to poke through the spice.  I can't quite tell if it's the alcohol producing the warming sensation or the cinnamon spice.

Overall - This imperial pumpkin beast started off like a cinnamon shot mixed with an amber ale.  But as I made my way through the bottle and allowed the beer to warm it actually started to become rather tasty.  It's still not something that I would want to drink more than one of.  It is, however, a well brewed beer with few off flavors, if any.  For you pumpkin beer fans out there, I wouldn't have any issue with recommending Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin Ale.