Review: Dogfish Head Pumpkin Old Ale

Dogfish Head Pumpkin Old Ale
8.0% ABV
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE
On tap at the Dogfish Head Brewpub, Rehoboth Beach, DE
Served in a snifter glass (approx. 8 oz serving)
Reviewed on 12/27/12 at the brewpub 

This ale, exclusive to Dogfish Head's Rehoboth brewpub, pours a hazy brownish amber with a good thin bubbly head.  Mild carbonation.

Smell consists of pumpkin, vanilla, nutmeg.  I approached this one after two beers and food, so it was becoming difficult to discern smells.

Taste has rich pumpkin and vanilla with a good bourbon/whiskey flavored kick.  Nutmeg, some darker fruits like cherry and raisin coming through.  Mild hops.

Mouthfeel is smooth with a good bourbon bite.  Some earthiness, some syrupiness.

Overall, this was a good pumpkin ale that packs a nice bourbon punch to it.  Vanilla, dark fruitiness present.  In taste, this one is almost a fall/pumpkin cousin to 120 minute IPA though with the alcohol.  Where did this one come from? More info here. It's the product of a competition-winning Philadelphia area homebrewer who got to make his brew at Dogfish's Rehoboth brewpub.  Nice work--I think it's as good as Dogfish Head's seasonal Punkin Ale. 

My score: 92

 

A New Contributor: Mike Sherman

Please welcome Mike Sherman, lifelong friend and fellow beer connoisseur, as a contributor to A Specific Gravity!  Mike brings with him homebrewing experience, something of which I know close to nothing.  He's also a member of Cross Street Irregulars, a Baltimore homebrewing club.

I'm just a guy buying beer, drinking it, and writing down notes in a journal.  Mike's actually making the stuff!  Now, if I can just keep his posts to a PG rating...