Avery Brewing Co. (Boulder, Colorado) wondered what would happen if a monstrous pumpkin ale, plump full of spicy gourdiness, were aged in fine fresh rum barrels to add suggestions of delicate oak and candied molasses. Rumpkin is what happened!
ALL-GRAIN
OG: 1.135
FG: 1.020
IBUs: 25
ABV: 16%
MALT/GRAIN BILL
25 lb (11.3 kg) Pale malt (2-row)
14 oz (397 g) Dingemans Aromatic Malt
14 oz (397 g) Gambrinus Honey Malt
8 oz (227 g) Dingemans Special B Malt
4 oz (113 g) Weyermann Acidulated Malt
1 lb (454 g) pumpkin puree (start with a pound, then use your best judgement!)
HOPS AND ADDITIONS SCHEDULE
1 oz (28 g) Bravo [14% AA] at 60 minutes
0.1 oz (3 g) calcium chloride at 30 minutes
0.33 oz (9 g) nutmeg at knockout
0.05 oz (1 g) ginger at knockout
0.25 oz (7 g) allspice at knockout
0.4 oz (11 g) cinnamon at knockout
YEAST
Wyeast 1028 London Ale
DIRECTIONS
Mash the grains and pumpkin puree for 60 minutes at 152°F (67°C). Boil for 60 minutes, following the schedule for hops and other additions. Whirlpool and chill, then oxygenate and ferment at 68°F (20°C). Age for six months or more in a dark-rum barrel or in a carboy with oak cubes that have been soaked in dark rum.
BREWER’S NOTES
You’ll need a gigantic starter to make this beer!
For a beer this big, your brewhouse efficiency will almost certainly suffer. You can make up for this by including additional pale malt in your grist or by adding a measured amount of dried malt extract (DME) to reach the indicated original gravity.