Late October is prime pumpkin beer drinking time. While when to drink your pumpkin beers have become a polarizing topic, with nationwide breweries battling year after year to be the first gourd release to hit the market, we all know that spice-forward releases are most appropriate to sip when there’s a chill in the air.
Over at Iron Hill West Chester they’re doing things right by hosting their annual, spectacular pumpkin beer tasting (coined Gathering of the Gourds) at the end of October—not in August or September.
The most recent gourdgeous gathering unfolded on Oct. 26, with the roster tapping out at 16 eclectic pumpkin beers on tap—everything from the standard ales, booze-heavy imperials and interesting porters made an appearance, as did squashified surprises like a kolsch, IPA and even, a few sours and blended beers.
With the interesting mix of pumpkins available at my taste-testing fingertips, myself and Town Dish’s Melissa Woodley, decided that in order to experience Gathering of the Gourds to the fullest, we must sample each and every pumpkin release in the spotlight. With nine pumpkin beers from Iron Hills (seven signature beers from Iron Hill West Chester, one from Iron Hill Maple Shade, and one from Iron Hill Lancaster) and seven guest brewery appearances (featuring Cambridge Brewing Co., Brooklyn Brewery, Southern Tier Brewing Co., Elysian Brewing Co., Stewart’s Brewing Co., and Dogfish Head Brewing Co.), we arrived thirsty, pen and paper in hand.
Consider this a special edition Girls on Beer, titled “Girls on Gourds.” Full tasting notes below. For the record, all beers were served and reviewed in sample size—come on, what kind of sippers did you think we were?!
Gathering of the Gourds Pumpkin Beer Tasting Notes:
Flight 1:
Ichabod Imperial Belgian Pumpkin Ale, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: I find it similar to Weyerbacher’s Imperial Pumpkin Ale, except lighter in body.
Amy: There’s a slight hint of pumpkin pie spiced, heavy on the real pumpkin flavor with a slight vanilla finish.
Punktoberfest, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: Consider this one strong with vanilla and spices.
Amy: I’m naming this a Pumking clone.
Bruce Camp-Ale, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: Two words: aggressive and boozy. After a bite of food and a sip of water, it opened up and was more drinkable.
Amy: This bold beaut is Ichabod aged in bourbon barrels, and the taste is pretty straightforward with what was parlayed—pumpkin ale on the front, boozy bourbon on the finish.
Pumpkin Ale, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: The pumpkin is subtle with this release. It is definitely refreshing!
Amy: I’m proclaiming this a “gateway” pumpkin beer. It’s simple and subtle—not too much spice or heavy on the pumpkin. Start with this copper sipper and soon, you’ll be sampling more intricate squash renditions.
Pumpkin Porter, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: Surprisingly lighter in body than expected in a porter.
Amy: Heavy chocolate aromas on the nose, but not in the taste. Caramelized sugars mingle with light whiffs of pumpkin.
Pumpkin Berliner Weisse, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: I find it similar to a sparkling white wine, heavy on the carbonation.
Amy: It’s bubbly and refreshing, very similar in taste to a cider. Pumpkin is subtle, almost non-existent, but the addition of it adds another layer of complexity (on the backbone) than typical Berliners.
Flight 2:
Imperial Pumpkin Ale, Iron Hill Maple Shade
Melissa: Not as boozy as Iron Hill WC’s Bruce Camp-Ale, but similar.
Amy: This is another high-octane pumpkin ale where the alcohol is a strong component of the gourd’esque release. Not particularly a characteristic I’m fond of.
Post Road Pumpkin Ale, Brooklyn Brewing Company
Melissa: This ale is hoppier and more bitter than pumpkin releases I tend to enjoy.
Amy: This squashy release lacks a backbone. It’s heavy with the pumpkin and spice on the front, but then falls flat. It is one-dimensional.
Pumking, Southern Tier Brewing Company
Melissa: Spice-forward without much to back it up. I’d like something more from the finish.
Amy: I’ve always respected Southern Tier’s pumpkin release due to the fact that they are capable of masking the alcohol of the 8.6% ale with a well-balanced mix of vanilla, caramel, heavy cinnamon spice and hearty pumpkin. It’s not sugary or overly sweet, they nail subtly.
Hopsquash Pumpkin IPA, Elysian/Ninkasi Brewing Company
Melissa: Too hoppy for me. The heavy-handed hops hide the pumpkin.
Amy: I agree with M, the hops mask the pumpkin components of the beer, and I don’t prefer pumpkin ales to ever be heavily hopped.
Gourdzilla Imperial Pumpkin Ale, Stewart’s Brewing Company
Melissa: Both the spice and the pumpkin are a bit too strong for my tastes.
Amy: I’d consider this beer a solid pumpkin ale. It’s nicely spiced and generous with pumpkin in taste.
Punkin Ale, Dogfish Head Brewing Company
Melissa: A public favorite for a reason—easy drinking and well balanced.
Amy: Every fall season, I must have a Punkin, with this meeting my quota. It’s nothing mind-blowing, but sometimes you don’t want your pumpkin ale to be overly squashed or spiced.
Surprises:
Killer Kolsch From Outer Space, Cambridge Brewing Company
Melissa: Not my favorite style of beer, a bit too bitter for my tastes.
Amy: Hoppy on the front and on the finish.
Brett Sematary, Cambridge Brewing Company
Melissa: Similar to standard pumpkin ales (well balanced with spice and pumpkin), but with a sour finish.
Amy: Excited for this Massachussets-brewed single batcher to make an appearance in West Chester! It’s funky (from the barrel-aging with brettanomyces) and squashy (from the Great Pumpkin Ale base), with one hell of a bite. Your taste buds go on a ridiculously delicious fall ride, from vegetable, nutmeg and clove, to refreshing lemon, hay and cherry. The combination keeps things interesting.
Pumpkin Weisse, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: It’s light and spicy. Ginger is a strong characteristic of the release.
Amy: I love the punch of pumpkin on the front. It certainly helps you jump right in!
Dr. Funkenstein, Iron Hill West Chester
Melissa: Crisp and packing major pumpkin, with a strong bite on the finish.
Amy: A majestic sour, indeed. As an interesting blend of Iron Hill’s Pumpkin Ale and Funkadelphia, I 100% support the brewers of this Iron Hill hub to marry many more house beers. Stupendous!
Verdict:
Melissa’s King of Pumpkins: Bruce Camp-Ale, Iron Hill West Chester
It’s a bold pick, because at first taste I put it back and wrote it off, but I believe this is a beer to sip, not glup, and encourages you to linger with it. Of course, Amy and I had to sample some food from the squashy specials menu, and the layered flavors of the Bruce Camp-Ale paired perfectly with a caramelized onion and roasted butternut squash pizza. Plus, it’s named after a pretty cool dude.
Amy’s Top Pumpkin Contender: Iron Hill West Chester’s Dr. Funkenstein
I’ve made it a mission to sample as many pumpkin sours as I can lay my thirsty paws on. As a lover of the barnyard funk in my beers, I was impressed by brewer Matt Gundrum’s knack for beer-blending. While I love Funkadelphia and am fond of West Chester’s house pumpkin ale, combining the two varying brews to produce a new majestic release.
On the Scene Video:
Iron Hill brewers Andrew Johnston and Matt Gundrum tapped a real-deal pumpkin to take this pumpkin tasting to serious sipping levels. We caught the full experience on video, watch below.
West Chester Dish Visits Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant’s Gathering of the Gourds from Dish Trip on Vimeo.
Still thirsty for more pumpkin? Click here to drink up Kerry Watson’s top 10 pumpkin beers of the season and here to read a brew review of Iron Hill Phoenixville’s pumpkin ale release.
Follow PA Eats’s Girls on Beer series socially (on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram) by following #GirlsonBeer. Want to participate in the next tasting? Email Amy Strauss with your interest at [email protected].
